Ichiko Aoba

Inspired by the groundbreaking soundtracks of Disney and Studio Ghibli, Ichiko Aoba’s songs always create a fairytale-like, relaxed atmosphere – a musical landscape in which we can become children ourselves again. But where the big animation studios hire whole orchestras to adapt their music to the big screen, Aoba does most of it all by herself. The singer–songwriter first succeeds in telling a story with her voice and delicate guitars that is frequently shaped by her own dreams. Then, piano, accordion, clarinet, and recorder join in and furnish the musical paintings of the gifted multi-instrumentalist with an almost limitless abundance of details. To date, nine studio albums have been produced and have enjoyed unquestioned cult status in Japan, not least because Aoba’s music is rooted in the country’s pop culture as well as in other traditions. Her music has even been requested for Zelda remakes and theatre productions. Now, it’s time we finally brought her to Germany.