Healing guitar album "Rainbow Ballad - Cinema Song on Guitar"
Guitarist Naganori Sakakibara talks about the production of the "Ballad Series"

Healing Plaza October 1, 2018

The lingering heat of summer is finally coming to an end, and we can finally hear the footsteps of autumn approaching.
Autumn is the season for appetite and reading. Some people may be planning trips to see the autumn leaves.

The recently released "Rainbow Ballad - Cinema Songs on Guitar" is a warm and heartfelt collection of cinema song covers featuring timeless film music played only on acoustic guitar (gut guitar).
This is the latest installment in the "Ballad Series," which follows "Ballad of the Forest - Ghibli" and "Ballad of the Stars - Disney."

This time, we asked "healing guitarist" Naganori Sakakibara to look back on the recording site, including his performance and equipment.

After finishing recording the "Ballad Series"

Editorial Department: How long did it take to record this time?

Sakakibara:
It took about two months. With the first and second albums, I had a lot of trouble getting myself conscious of the recording, but this time it went relatively smoothly.

Editorial Department: Now that you have completed the production of the three “Ballad Series” works, please tell us your honest thoughts.

Sakakibara:
I consider it my life's work to be "what I can express with the gut guitar throughout my life," and I was truly happy to have had the opportunity to cover three of the world's greatest brands: Ghibli, Disney, and Cinema.
Among the songs I covered, there were some that I didn't really like the originals of, but when I arranged them on guitar, they turned out really beautifully and I ended up loving them (laughs).

The secret to Sakakibara Naganori's guitar sound

Editorial Department: It seems like you mostly play using fingerpicking, but some of the recording sessions take a long time. How do you take care of your nails?

Sakakibara:
Of course I do it every day, but if the recording is long I'll clean it two or three times a day .

Editorial Department: Is that sandpaper or something?

Sakakibara:
That's right, the tone changes throughout the day as your nails grow . So, just give it a quick swish twice and you'll be like, "Oh, the tone is back to what it was this morning."

Editorial Department: It seems that even the smallest of changes can have an effect on you. We can really sense Sakakibara's attention to detail when it comes to tone.

Sakakibara:
Playing for long periods of time puts strain on the arms and wrists, so measures to prevent this are also necessary. It's a funny story, but I once recorded while wearing a sticker that improves blood circulation, which is used by athletes. But that's not possible in a live performance, because it would look bad (laughs).

Editorial Department: The “Ballad Series” was recorded in Sakakibara's private studio. Can you tell us what equipment you used for the entire series?

Sakakibara:
The guitar used was a Takamine NPT-315, and the microphone was an AKG C451B. This was the only microphone used for Ballad of the Stars and Ballad of the Rainbow. For "Ballad of the Forest - Ghibli," I mixed a Neumann 87 and a C451B. All three albums were recorded using Pro Tools 9, with an Apogee Duet audio interface.

Editorial Department: Do you also do the miking (positioning the microphone) yourself?

Sakakibara:
I have a general preference for microphone positions, but when there are a lot of overlapping sounds, such as during multi-track recording, I need to adjust them. In those cases, I carefully move the microphones around to find the right position. It changes depending on the song, so it's a painstaking process .

Editorial Department: Hmm, that sounds like a lonely job that would be daunting.

lastly

Editorial Department: Finally, how can someone learn to play guitar like Sakakibara?

Sakakibara:
I think it's important to play slowly, enjoying the "reverberation" of the sound you play until the very end .

Editorial Department: That last comment is so typical of Mr. Sakakibara! I'm going to take my time and enjoy listening to all three albums again.
I'm looking forward to your next work. Thank you!

sakakibarasan