Harmonies and Emotion Expression in Piano Works – Based on Sigh in Piano Works by Joe Hisaishi

Abstract

Piano is a type of western musical instrument. Since its creation, people have been deeply attracted by its melodious sound and elegant temperament. In order to express emotions better with the piano, a lot of musicians and music amateurs have made joint efforts to create many piano playing skills, wherein harmony is a typical representative. Enjoying high fame in the world, Japanese animation has become one representative culture of this country. Success of Japanese animation is attributed to many factors. Except for real emotional expression as well as abundant and varied styles, the exquisite background music has played a dominant role. Joe Hisaishi is a Japanese pianist and composer enjoying the high reputation. He cooperates with Miyazaki Hayao, a Japanese cartoon master, very tacitly. Close relations have been built between them based on the win-win goals. Application of sigh in Joe Hisaishi’s piano works can accurately express ideals and emotions of figures, forming a unique style in his music works. The paper researches harmony application and expression of ideas and emotions in piano works based on application of sigh in Joe Hisaishi’s works. In order to realize in-depth study, the paper also introduces the cartoonist Miyazaki Hayao who is closely related with Joe Hisaishi. Through combination of them, readers can understand the research more easily.