Michiru Ōshima
Michiru Ōshima is a Japanese composer who works on music in wide range of areas such as movies, anime films, television series, video games and concerts. She has written scores for more than 100 movies, over 200 television titles, video games, various types of events, concerts, theaters, among others. Ōshima is one of the most prolific living composers for film, anime and video game. She has released over 300 CDs including film soundtracks and artist CDs.
Her works include composition for Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, and ' movies and scores for numerous anime television series, including Fullmetal Alchemist, Nabari no Ou, Queen Emeraldas, ', Arc the Lad, and Weathering Continent.
In addition to the soundtracks on Kaiju films and anime music, she has composed music for several video games such as ' for Super NES, Ico for PlayStation 2, Legend of Legaia for the PlayStation and its PlayStation 2 sequel ', Arc the Lad III, Deemo, and an orchestral arrangement of a Zelda medley for the Wii and Nintendo GameCube game .
She was also the composer for a Japanese stage musical adaptation of the classic Hollywood film Roman Holiday. Her latest work includes the composition of several music tracks for the highly acclaimed Chinese espionage thriller film The Message and a 2017 Chinese mystery thriller film "The Devotion of Suspect X ".
Biography and Works
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Department of Music Composition, Ōshima began her activities as a composer and arranger while in college, and has been involved in composing music for movies, commercials, TV programs, anime, ambient music and tunes for classical musicians. She released the first Symphony entitled “Orasho” when she was still in college. Through her masterful manipulation of both orchestras and synthesizers, she has attracted attention from various sectors for creating grandiose, dramatic sounds and beautiful melodies.Ōshima was the youngest person to be awarded the 1st prize at International Electone Festival / International Electone Concours in 1977 when she was 16 years old. Her other awards include the 52nd and 67th Mainichi Film Contest Award for Best Music, the 21st, 24th, 26th, 27th, 29th, 30th and 38th Japan Academy Prize for Music, and the 31st Japan Academy Prize for Best Score, Tokyo Anime Award for Best Music in 2006, Best Composer Award at Jackson Hole Film Festival 2007. Moreover, Ōshima has composed a large number of music for music festivals in France and Luxembourg, stages in Belgium or concerts in Japan and U.S.A. She also recorded and conducted with orchestras and musicians from all over the world such as U.S., Australia, France, Russia, Belgium, England, Czech, Austria, Poland, Italy, Hungary and Bulgaria, including a concert "KAIJU CRESCENDO: AN EVENING OF JAPANESE MONSTER MUSIC" at the G-FEST XXVI in Chicago. Ōshima was one of the 27 composers for the album ‘In 27 Pieces: the Hilary Hahn Encores’ performed by violinist Hilary Hahn which was awarded a 2015 Grammy Award in the Best Chamber Music category. She has been engaged in many governmental projects as well, such as music director at “40th Year of ASEAN-Japan” in 2013, in which she supervised and managed musicians in ASEAN countries, organized concerts in ASEAN countries and composed music for the ASEAN Summit.
Awards and nominations
;Awards- 2005: Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival Award for Composer Orchestrator
- 2006: Tokyo Anime Award for Best Music for Conqueror of Shamballa
- 2008: Japanese Academy Award for Music of the Year for Bizan
- 1998: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for Paradise Lost
- 2001: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for Nagasaki Burabura Bushi
- 2003: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for The Sun Also Rises and Copycat Criminal
- 2004: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for Like Asura
- 2006: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for Year One in the North
- 2007: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for Memories of Tomorrow
- 2016: Japanese Academy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music for 125 Years Memory
Compositions
Film soundtracks (selective)
- 1995: Winds of God
- 1998: Puraido: Unmei no Toki
- 1998: Ohaka ga nai!
- 2000: Godzilla vs. Megaguirus
- 2002: Hi wa mata noboru
- 2002: Mohou-han
- 2002: Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla
- 2003: '
- 2005: Princess Raccoon
- 2006: Memories of Tomorrow
- 2007: Tsubaki Sanjûrô
- 2009: The Message
- 2010: '
- 2015: 125 Years Memory
- 2017: The Devotion of Suspect X
Anime soundtracks (selective)
- 1986: Saint Elmo – Hikari no Raihousha
- 1992: The Weathering Continent
- 1993: '
- 1994: Lord of Lords Ryu Knight
- 1995: Legend of Crystania
- 1996: Boys Over Flowers
- 1996: Gall Force: The Revolution
- 1998: Fancy Lala
- 1998: Queen Emeraldas
- 1999: Arc the Lad
- 1999: Magic User's Club
- 2003: Fullmetal Alchemist
- 2005: '
- 2005: Garasu no Usagi
- 2006: Le Chevalier d'Éon
- 2006: Project Blue Earth SOS
- 2008: '
- 2008: Nabari no Ou
- 2010: The Tatami Galaxy
- 2010: Sound of the Sky
- 2011: Tezuka Osamu no Buddha
- 2012: Fuse Teppō Musume no Torimonochō
- 2012: Zetsuen no Tempest
- 2013: Little Witch Academia
- 2013: '
- 2013: Patema Inverted
- 2015: Snow White with the Red Hair
- 2015: Rokka no Yūsha
- 2017: Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
- 2018: Bloom Into You
- 2019: Ride Your Wave
Video games soundtracks (selective)
- 1992: Taikou Risshiden
- 1992: Undercover Cops
- 1998: Legend of Legaia
- 2000: Arc the Lad III
- 2002: Ico
- 2002: '
- 2002: Suikoden
- 2003: '
- 2006:
Drama soundtracks (selective)
- 2001: Sayonara, Ozu Sensei
- 2002: Gokusen
- 2002: Satorare
- 2003: Tenshi mitai
- 2005: Yume de Aimashou
- 2006: Oishii Proposal
- 2006: CA to Oyobi
- 2006: Regatta
- 2007: Hotelier
- 2007: Watashi wa Kai ni Naritai
- 2008: Yasuko to Kenji
- 2010: Misaki Number One!!
Selected concerts and projects
- 1980s: Symphony No.1: Orasho
- 2005: For the East
- 2006: London Essay
- 2007: Le Premier amour
- 2007: Amanda
- 2009: Concerto for saxophone
- 2010: Concerto for viola
- 2011: Ganbalo Nippon
- 2011: Vocalise
- 2011: Requiem ~ It lies at the bottom of the sea
- 2013: In 27 Pieces: The Hilary Hahn Encores
- 2013: Viola Sonata and Ariane Jacob
- 2013: Concerto for piano quartet with Orchestra
- 2013: The ASEAN-JAPAN "Drums & Voices" Concert Tour
- 2015: Symphony No.2: Since 1945
- 2017: Symphonic Suite "Sama"
- 2017: Suite for Male Voice Choir "Message of the Voice"
- 2018: "Augustus": Suite for Orchestra and Chorus
- 2018: Jin & Rin: 2 Rhapsodies for Clarinet, Marimba and Orchestra, Mika Stoltzman
- 2018: Concerto for Koto and Shakuhachi, Dozan Fujiwara
- 2018: Musical Sanza and Okuni
- 2019: Godzilla in Chicago - C.H.C.A.G
- 2019: Beyond the Point of No Return