"On a Starry Night - Music for Happy Sleep" is a relaxation album that evokes images of quiet nights and beautiful starry skies.

A quiet night story unfolds with a graceful melody against the backdrop of natural sounds such as the chirping of insects and the sound of the wind, which you can hear if you listen carefully as you go to sleep.

We spoke with Makiko Hirohashi, the composer and arranger who worked on the music, about what she keeps in mind when creating music and her thoughts on the work.

--Mr. Hirohashi, you have worked on many projects with Della, and the many releases have received a great response from listeners. Is there anything you always keep in mind when creating soothing music?

Hirohashi: I think that when you want to listen to "soothing music," you probably aren't in a state of high spirits. You might be feeling mentally or physically tired, weak, or depressed, or you might want to release tension and take a breather. 

At times like these, we want someone to quietly, calmly, and gently say, "What's wrong? You've worked hard," or "You're doing great, everything's going to be okay." I always hope to be able to convey that through music. I strive to create music that makes listeners take a deep breath, relax, and feel reassured that "this is okay for me."

-Hirohashi-san, have you ever had a scene or experience where music soothed you?

Hirohashi: For me, music is not so much something that heals me as it is like a friend that is always by my side. In my case, rather than listening to music at concerts or live shows, I often listen to music alone with headphones, so music has always been the one thing that quietly accompanies me, the one thing that has always been with me.

But one day, the music just disappeared from my side.

I started working in the music industry, and after a period of hard work, it became difficult to make music. At that time, the buzzing of the refrigerator, the sound of fluorescent lights, the sound of the exhaust fan, the sound of the clock, and all the other sounds of daily life were so loud that I had to unplug all the power sockets and batteries in the house to make music.

I thought the music other people made was amazing, and I didn't want to acknowledge that, so I started to criticize all the music, and on the other hand, I got depressed.The music I made sounded like it was saying, "I'm in pain, help me."

Suddenly, I realized that the music was no longer beside me.

I thought that the music that was my friend had left me because I hated it, and that I had been deceiving the music that was my friend and getting a job. After I realized that, I stopped listening to other people's music.

Other people's music is bound to be great anyway, with far better melodies, arrangements, recordings, and mixes than my own. But as long as I was envious of other people's music, my own music would never come back to me.

After going through that experience, I feel like music has returned to me. Although I'm not completely there yet, I believe in music more than anyone else and it's by my side now.

On September 28th, your original album "Starry Nights: Music for Happy Sleep" was released. This work can be considered a sequel to "Healing Forest: Music to Soothe the Soul" (2020). Please tell us how it differs from your previous work and what thoughts you put into this new work.

"Healing Forest - Music to Heal the Soul" is music that dives deep into your memories and allows you to gaze into your soul. It is a quiet music album that is like a prayer, with a dignified and pure spiritual world.

"Healing Forest - Music that soothes the soul"

"On a Starry Night - Music for a Happy Sleep" was created with the desire to simply invite everyone to a peaceful sleep, just as the title suggests: "Don't think about anything, good night, everything's okay," as you would lull a child to sleep.

The scenes are set at night, so I included the sounds of insects and owls, and I think it turned out to be a very relaxing album. The Milky Way on a romantic night, or gazing up at the North Star alone, the mysterious and divine sky, the shining white moon... It's filled with many fantastical images.

You might fall asleep and not be able to hear the last song, but the final song is "Morning Star," a song about Venus visible in the eastern sky at dawn. It's a song with a shining star theme that gives you a sense of hope in the brief moment before the sun rises.

Even if you have another sleepless night, I hope you can feel a little courageous, knowing that tomorrow is a new day and good things are sure to happen.

"Starry Night - Music for a Happy Sleep"

-Was there anything that particularly made an impression on you during the production process of "On a Starry Night - Music for Happy Sleep"?

Since this album has a starry sky theme, I did a lot of research on stars, and what made the biggest impression on me was the origins of the universe and the Earth.

The Earth has experienced five mass extinctions to date, including the last one that occurred about 200 million years ago, which wiped out 90 to 95 percent of all life on Earth.

If the mass extinction had not occurred at that time, humans might not exist today, or completely different organisms might have evolved and become intelligent life forms.

I realized that it was a miracle and at the same time just a coincidence that I was here.

So, before the universe was born, before the Big Bang, was there nothing? No, that's not true. There wasn't even a concept of "nothing." "Nothing" can only be recognized once there is "something." "There is not even nothing" is amazing, isn't it?

Finally, about humans.

Unlike other living things, humans are the only creatures who think about why they live and what happens when they die.

The question "Why are we alive?" may seem like a mere coincidence and meaningless on a cosmic scale, but humans seek meaning. Perhaps that's why we create gods and religions and think about heaven and the afterlife.

It's truly amazing how humans are the only creatures on Earth that are completely different from other living things. ...The theme is the starry sky, but I ended up thinking that humans are fascinating. When you think about something so enormous, it makes your everyday worries seem so insignificant, isn't it?

I would recommend this album to anyone who is worried or feeling trapped or stressed.

-- Hirohashi-san wrote a self-liner note for the CD booklet. It's a book that allows you to experience the mystery of the starry sky and the charm of music. Finally, please tell us about your future aspirations.

My music may not be remembered for future generations. But I would be honored if it could be of some use to people living today. So, I would like to continue making music that can serve as a talisman for the soul, that people can think of when they are feeling a little weak, "There's Makiko Hirohashi's music."

Even if it doesn't help a lot of people, if I can make just one person feel that I've been saved, then there will be meaning in my life (as humans, we tend to seek meaning).

When you feel better, enjoy your favorite music at a concert or live performance. When you feel tired or weak, come back.

I'll be waiting quietly anytime.

--thank you very much.

(Interviewer: Della Production Department)

Profile
Makiko Hirohashi

Born in Niigata Prefecture. Graduated from the Department of Composition at Kunitachi College of Music. While still a student, he began writing music for artists, and after graduating he worked at the Biosic Environmental Music Institute, where he discovered his love for healing music. His motto is to create music that makes listeners feel relaxed, and he has carved out a unique world with natural and warm sounds. He has also produced a Relaxing Piano series, and his new and beautiful piano arrangements have been highly praised overseas.