2024.7.7 release "stargazer" Click here for explanation Thank you very much for purchasing the album "stargazer". The word "stargazer" means a person who gazes at the stars, an astronomer, an astrologer, a dreamer, a fish, etc. The song explanation is posted below, but I hope you will enjoy the music by letting your imagination run wild. 01 A world without stars Darkness where you can't see the stars, a world where you have lost sight of the stars, When I wrote the song, I had this image in my mind, so I chose this title. 02 Taisai The title of the song comes from "Taisai's Star", one of the archaic Japanese words for the Andromeda Galaxy. Originally, this song was written when I was looking at the remote island of Ogami Island from the sandy beach of Miyako Island, Okinawa, when I visited the island before. Later, in 2017, I was involved as a composer in a piece called "Nijo Nenrai - The Silent Words of Princess Daihaku", which I released as an overture. 03stargazer This is a piece that makes you feel like you're daydreaming while staring at the starry sky in nature. 04REM Humans sleep alternate between REM and non-REM sleep in cycles of about 90 minutes throughout the night. During REM sleep, the body is at rest but the brain is active, and it is during this REM sleep that we think we dream. I chose this title because of the worldview of the piece, which makes you feel both awake and asleep. 05The ocean of heaven, the waves of clouds, the boat of the moon, the forest of stars, rowing and hiding, I see This is a piece that is based on the poem of the same name taken from the Kakinomoto no Hitomaro collection of poems, which appears at the beginning of the seventh volume of the Manyoshu. The general interpretation is that the moon is hidden among the stars, but there is also an interpretation that the moon is hidden among the clouds to highlight the stars, and the stars shine in the night sky, since the forest (hayashi) means to highlight. It is also said that these stars are the stars of the Tanabata legend, Vega and Altair. 06stella luna On the night on the way back from visiting Motoise Konojinja Shrine and Manaijinja Shrine in the inner shrine of Amanohashidate, Kyoto, I took a break at a parking area on the highway and looked up at the sky, where the crescent moon and Venus were close together and shining very brightly and beautifully. I heard this at that time and wrote this song. 07Coqoo The title of this song comes from Kokuzo Bosatsu. In Buddhism, the morning star (Venus) is said to be the incarnation of Kokuzo Bosatsu, and there is a legend that when Kobo Daishi Kukai was chanting the mantra of Kokuzo Bosatsu in a cave at Muroto Cape, the morning star (Venus) flew into his mouth. "Kokuzo" is the Chinese translation of Akashagarba (the womb of the void), and Kokuzo Bosatsu is said to be "a bodhisattva whose wisdom and merit are boundless, just as the void holds everything infinitely." 08arctrus The title comes from Arcturus, the alpha star of the constellation Boötes. As with Taisai, this melody is used in "Nijo Nenrai ~ Daihaku Princess' Silent Words~". 09Prelude of Wind and Stars This song is music heard in the work of artist Shigee, whose work is used on the jacket. This is a nostalgic piece of music that floats in the starry sky while being blown by the wind. Prelude means "prelude". 10 Heavenly Maiden's Feather Robe This piece was made from the star Orihime, better known as Vega in the Lyra constellation of the Summer Triangle. In Chinese legend, Tanabata and the legend of the feather robe are closely related, and I chose this title because I felt the image of Orihime wearing the feather robe dancing freely in the starry sky. 11 Polaris This piece was made when I visited Hoshida Myoken-gu Shrine in Katano City, Osaka. The seven stars (the Big Dipper) descend from the heavens, and this shrine is also related to the Tanabata legend. It is said that Kukai's Myoken faith, which worships the North Star and the Big Dipper as noble, was established on Mount Myoken in Hoshida. I chose the title Polaris because I felt the clear sound coming from the North Star. 12Star of Bethlehem The Star of Bethlehem is also known as the Christmas Star, and is said to have informed the Three Wise Men of the birth of Jesus Christ and led them to Bethlehem. The Three Wise Men celebrated the birth of Jesus and offered gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the Son of God. Sirius shines in the night sky, and the three stars of Orion shine next to it. It is said that these are the Star of Bethlehem and the Three Wise Men. When I wrote the song, I thought of the Star of Bethlehem, so I chose this title. 13Isola's Song Isola is an ancient word for Sirius, the first-magnitude star in the constellation Canis Major, and there is also a theory that it represents a mermaid. 14Starseed I wrote the song when I was a teenager, but I couldn't decide on a title, so it remained untitled. I came up with the title "Starseed" in May of this year, and now, more than 20 years after completing the song, I am finally releasing it. 15Nova Terra It means "New Earth" in Italian. I expressed in sound the daydream of a world where all life shines with happiness, and people, animals, natural plants, minerals, and more all live in beautiful harmony. I would be happy to share this dream with people all over the world.