Best Anime Composers

I have recently gotten into music from Anime series and movies, but have felt totally overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of music out there. For video game music I tend to stick with composers I like, so I looked around for a thread for anime music focusing specifically on favorite composers, and I found a couple where people have listed a few, but none where that was the main focus. If there is, please give me a link. I’m not asking for albums, just composers, although feel free to list a couple favorite works of the composers you choose to share.

Otherwise, please tell me who your favorites are!

I really like:

1)Joe Hisaishi

2)Yoko Kanno (I really like the Uncharted Waters II: new horizons soundtrack that she did for the Genesis and SNES, so I started listening to her work in Anime)

3)Yuki Kajiura (I have only heard the "Noir" soundtrack and I like some tracks quite a bit and really don’t like others)

I’m surprised no one jumped on this one… Maybe everyone who likes anime music is living in the downloads forum?

Taro Iwashiro
Tanaka Kouhei
Toshihiko Sahashi
those are like the only good artists I’ve listened to so far

I just got a toshihiko sahashi album off of the orchestral action thread ( The Big-o ) and it’s pretty cool. Do you recommend any of the other two’s albums in particular?

His gundam seed and gundam seed destiny sound tracks have some good ones in there.

Ryo of Supercell

Ryo of Supercell

Oh, I was going to say I couldn’t see that they did Anime music, but I guess they did a single for Bakemonogatari in 2009 according to Wikipedia. Did they do anything else that you know of, brownfox?

Yoko Kanno for sure.

Wolf’s Rain
Escaflowne
Cowboy Bebop
Ghost In The Shell (series)
Turn-A Gundam

Just to start.

Yoko Kanno for sure.

Wolf’s Rain
Escaflowne
Cowboy Bebop
Ghost In The Shell (series)
Turn-A Gundam

Just to start.

I think Yoko Kanno is quickly becoming my favorite, but I recently started listening to Kousuke Yamashita and really like his stuff too, as well as Michiru Oshima and Masamichi Amano. Thank YOU, lossless anime thread and orchestral action thread.

Oh, I was going to say I couldn’t see that they did Anime music, but I guess they did a single for Bakemonogatari in 2009 according to Wikipedia. Did they do anything else that you know of, brownfox?

well, supercell also made a song for the 30 minute Anime Movie Cencoroll (made by the legenday 1 man army animator)

Cencoroll – Love and Roll by Ryo/Supercell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awJQ38B3w9M)

and there’s also a pilot episode of the Anime Adaptation "Black★Rock Shooter" (based on Ryo’s "Black★Rock Shooter" Song)

Black★Rock Shooter by Ryo/Supercell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLzOrik5YJ8)

Black★Rock Shooter (3DPV, THE MOST BADASSS "FAN MADE" B★RS 3D VIDEO IN EXISTENCE!) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFcc-PVoX5E&feature=related)

Black★Rock Shooter Anime (Pilot Episode) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GDw74ATcYk)

Black★Rock Shooter Anime is expected to be in the list of Animes Next Spring

anyways, i have a Query Thread here:

Thread 71227

it would be nice if you guys would help me search for translated songs (official nor fanmade)

I’m not posting based on the thread title. Because I don’t have much knowledge on Anime music but.

Ooshima is great, FMA ost & Chevalier d’eon OST are great.

Sakimoto made for Romeo X Juliet & Tower of Druaga. I highly suggest Romeo X Juliet OST.

Matsuo made Magic Knight Rayearth Music as well. Check it out!

I like Yuki Kajiura .. no doubt ..^_^

well, supercell also made a song for the 30 minute Anime Movie Cencoroll (made by the legenday 1 man army animator)

Cencoroll – Love and Roll by Ryo/Supercell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awJQ38B3w9M)

and there’s also a pilot episode of the Anime Adaptation "Black★Rock Shooter" (based on Ryo’s "Black★Rock Shooter" Song)

Black★Rock Shooter by Ryo/Supercell (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLzOrik5YJ8)

Black★Rock Shooter (3DPV, THE MOST BADASSS "FAN MADE" B★RS 3D VIDEO IN EXISTENCE!) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFcc-PVoX5E&feature=related)

Black★Rock Shooter Anime (Pilot Episode) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GDw74ATcYk)

Black★Rock Shooter Anime is expected to be in the list of Animes Next Spring

anyways, i have a Query Thread here:

Thread 71227

it would be nice if you guys would help me search for translated songs (official nor fanmade)

um…are you just reminding us? that’s the exact same post as before?

Sato Naoki (Pretty Cure to Yes! Precure 5 GoGo) and Yasaharu Takanashi (Fresh Precure and Heartcatch Precure)

I’m surprised no one jumped on this one… Maybe everyone who likes anime music is living in the downloads forum?

Hi jakob! Hope it’s not too late to recommend you some anime composers but I think that you may have already heard about them. There they are:

*Shunsuke Kikuchi* composed

Abare Hasshū Goyō Tabi
Abarenbō Shōgun
Babel II
Casshan
Chōshichirō Edo Nikki
Daimos
Doraemon (Nobuyo Ōyama series, up to March 18, 2005)
Denjin Zaborger
Dr. Slump and Arare-chan
Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z
Dragon Princess
Female Convict 701: Scorpion
Gaiking
Gamera series, including Gamera vs. Guiron, Gamera vs. Jiger, Gamera vs. Zigra and Gamera: Super Monster,
Getter Robo and Getter Robo G
Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell
Grendizer
Highschool! Kimen-gumi
Hurricane Polymer
Jumborg Ace
Kamen Rider (first series through -ZX; only New Kamen Rider excepted)
Kiteretsu Daihyakka
Kure Kure Takora
La Seine no Hoshi
Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger
Message from Space
Q-tarō (Fusako Amachi series)
Robotto Keiji
Ronin of the Wilderness
Sister Street Fighter
Tenchi in Tokyo (also known as New Tenchi Muyo)
Terror beneath the Sea
Tiger Mask
Tōyama no Kin-san (with Ryōtarō Sugi)
Yojimbo of the Wilderness
Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs

*Seiji Yokoyama* composed

Choujinki Metalder
Chouriki Sentai Ohranger
Kikou Kantai Dairugger XV
Magical Tarurūto-kun
Megaloman
Ikkiman
Saint Seiya series
Space Pirate Captain Harlock
Tokkei Winspector

*Tatsumi YANO* composed

Aura Battler Dunbine (TV) : Theme Song Arrangement
Bats and Terry (movie) : Music
Chirorin Mura Monogatari (TV) : Music
City Hunter (TV) : Music
City Hunter ’91 (TV) : Music
City Hunter: Death of the Vicious Criminal Ryo Saeba (special) : Music
City Hunter: Goodbye my Sweetheart (special) : Music
City Hunter: Million Dollar Conspiracy (OAV) : Music
City Hunter: The Secret Service (special) : Music
Ellcia (OAV) : Music
Fushigi Y�gi – The Mysterious Play (TV) : Theme Song Arrangement (OP)
Garaga (movie) : Music
Iczelion (OAV) : Music
Nodoka Mori no Dobutsu Daisakusen (special) : Music
Psycho Armor Govarian (TV) : Music
Relic Armor Legaciam (OAV) : Music
Tomoe ga Yuku! (OAV) : Theme Song Arrangement
Yume Ippai!! (special) : Music
Yuusha Shirei Dagwon – Suishou no Hitomi no Shounen (OAV) : Music

Kentaro Haneda of course. After him, Kohei Tanaka and Joe Hisaishi.

Yuki Kajiura (Tsubasa Chronicle, SAO, Fate/Zero, Madoka Magica, …)
Joe Hisashi (Ghibli films)

My absolute favorite all-time composer is Shunsuke Kikuchi and I’m a bit ashamed that I don’t even own any of his Dragon Ball BGM CDs or Doraemon Sound Track History Vol. 1 though I plan on getting them in time. Especially the Doraemon one, the Dragon Ball CDs are missing a lot of BGMs from the series.

My favorite anime composer is Shiro Hamaguchi. He’s the one who composes all the memorable action bgm in One Piece, while Kouhei Tanaka gets the calmer things that nobody really remembers. XD For example, Hamaguchi has composed Gigant Thor Axe, Luffy Moukou, Overtaken, Difficult, The Very Very Very Strongest, the Strong World theme where they gun down mooks, etc.

I also like Kow Otani (Cyber Formula, Gundam Wing), Toshihiko Sahashi (Cyber Formula Saga/Sin, Saint Seiya Omega), Atsushi Umebori (Initial D), Motoi Sakuraba (Tales), Shiro Sagisu (Gundam, Dancougar, Bleach, Evangelion, Nadia, Macross, Magi), Yasuharu Takanashi (Fairy Tail)… though most of all, Salamander Factory. Their stuff for Super Robot Wars is SO GOOD – even their arrangements of music not their own tends to make masterpieces that are better than the originals.

====Personal Favs===

*Hideki Taniuchi (*sob sob*… Too bad he’ll probably never compose again)
– Death Note
– Gyakku Burai Kaiji (probably horribly misspelled)
– Akagi

*Shinkichi Mitsumune
– YGO! OST SD 1-4 (enough said. Google "Fang of Critias" and be amazed)

* Taku Iwasaki
– Noragami (Amazing Tracks, grew on me after about 30x listens… "Pushing Buttons" "Grief" "Lurking in the Dark" "Zen" .. .too many to list…)
– Irregular of Magic High (Once again solid work, "Miyuki" "Intruder" "Battle 5" "Battle6" on top of my head)

*Yasuharu Takanashi
– Shi-Ki ("Eau de vie" For starters… All in all an a-mazing Soundtrack)
– Fairy Tail (God….. Just listen to it… "Ezra" and all those other tracks…)
… he also composed for Naruto.. I can imagine it being quite good, but I dislike mainstream anime, so…

* Yutaka Minobe (mostly known for Sonic compositions)
– Yu-Gi-Oh! 5DS (Pretty much his only Anime Composition aside GX, but good enough on it’s own, he is a self taught musician… as a sidenote…)

* Yutaka Yamada
– Tokyo Ghoul (Pretty much his only good composition so far… they should give him more work… maybe :RE ?)

*Yugo Kanno
– Ajin (amazing OST, gets better with every listen)
– Psycho Pass (quite good)

===Recommended====

*Go Shiina
– God Eater (If you crave cereal for breakfast and prefer to start your day in epicness "Kakage Shi Taigi" is your thing, solid album)

*Ken Arai
– Parasyte (Pretty solid tracks "Hypnotic" "I AM" "Complex", Sadly he hasn’t gotten much work since 2014…)

*Kotaro Nagakawa
– YGO! Arc-V (Parital good tracks "Intense Back and forth" for example)
– Gossick

*Hiroyuki Sawano
– Ao no Exorcist, Kill La kill, etc. He did a lot of work… (the problem with him is, that he only does "awesome tracks", but the album quality as whole is somehow amiss… Titles noteworthy "Kick = Kell" "Exorcist 2nd Movement")

Yup, thats my "just from the get-go list". I got more, but these are my "current main ones"

The legendary Serizawa Hiroaki, I just love how he manages to get that 80s feeling JUST right. You can hear his music in Touch and Hiatari Ryoukou!, among others.

Yoko Kanno is such a given on any list like this. So glad to see the hype is here.

Does Shoji Meguro count for his work on Persona? It’s mostly in the space of games, but there are also anime adaptations.