:Mai Fujisawa
{{Short description|Japanese musician}}
{{Use American English |date=October 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Mai Fujisawa
| image = Mai Fujisawa, 2010.jpg
| caption = Fujisawa in 2010
| background = solo_singer
| native_name = 藤澤 麻衣
| native_name_lang = ja
| birth_date = {{Birth based on age as of date|33|2012|11|14}}
| birth_place = Tokyo, Japan
| genre = {{flatlist|
}}
| occupation = {{flatlist|
- Singer
- songwriter
}}
| years_active = 1984–present
| website = {{URL|sing-mai.com}}
}}
{{Nihongo|Mai Fujisawa|藤澤 麻衣|Fujisawa Mai|born {{Birth based on age as of date|33|2012|11|14|noage=1}}|lead=yes}} is a Japanese singer, songwriter, and lyricist. She has released four studio albums and has performed for several soundtracks. Fujisawa has collaborated on several occasions with her father, composer Joe Hisaishi, on the soundtracks for the films of Studio Ghibli. She has also performed on the soundtracks of other media, including the film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011) and the video game Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (2011).
Biography
Fujisawa was born in Tokyo in {{Birth based on age as of date|33|2012|11|14|noage=1}}, and is the daughter of Joe Hisaishi. At age four, Fujisawa performed "Nausicaä's Requiem", featured on the soundtrack of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) which was composed by Joe Hisaishi. Reflecting on the experience in 2019, she said that she "was always hoping" that she could perform in another Studio Ghibli film. While Fujisawa did not perform in another soundtrack until The Boy and the Heron (2023), she has recorded songs for the image albums – collections of demos and musical sketches that serve as a precursor to the finished score – for Princess Mononoke (1997) and Ponyo (2008).
Fujisawa studied at Seijo University in Tokyo, and later at Menlo College in Atherton, California. She founded the choir Little Carol, who perform for Japanese television and have toured internationally. She later began a solo career, releasing music that combines Japanese traditional and Western classical styles. She has also performed with Hisaishi on tour.
In 2012, Fujisawa was a guest singer on the United Nations Singers' Japan tour; she joined them again in 2015 for the United Nations' seventieth anniversary celebrations. Fujisawa is the goodwill ambassador of the city of Nakano. She has composed and performed theme songs for Nakano and Tochigi. She is also credited with writing the lyrics for the school song of Sakata Daichi Junior High in Sakata.
Discography
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Title !Released !{{refh}} |
| {{nihongo|Mai|麻衣}}
|{{dts|December 15, 2010}} |
| {{nihongo|Nursury Rhyme Songs|童謡うたう}}{{efn|Released under the name {{nihongo|Utaumai|うたうまい}}}}
|{{dts|May 22, 2013}} |
| {{nihongo|Raise the Sky|空みあげて}}
|{{dts|April 8, 2015}} |
| Beautiful Harmony{{hair space}}{{efn|Collaboration with Little Carol}}
|{{dts|April 20, 2022}} |
Performances in other media
| class="wikitable sortable"
!Title !Title of media !Released !class="unsortable" |{{refh}} |
| "Nausicaä's Requiem" {{small|(uncredited)}}
|Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind |{{dts|1984}} |
| "The Town Where I Long to Stay"
| rowspan="2" | Kiki's Delivery Service {{small|(vocal album)}} | rowspan="2" | {{dts|1989}} |
| "My Heart" |
| "Theme Song"
|{{dts|2005}} |
| "Rondo of the House of Sunflowers"
|Ponyo {{small|(image album)}} |{{dts|March 5, 2008}} |
| "Stand Alone"
|{{dts|December 18, 2009}} |
| "Lily's Theme" {{small|(uncredited)}}
|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 |{{dts|July 4, 2011}} |
| "Pieces of a Broken Heart" {{small|(uncredited)}}
|Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch |{{dts|November 17, 2011}} |
| "Theme Song"
|Paper Lanterns |{{dts|May 20, 2016}} |
| {{n/a}}
|{{dts|August 9, 2023}} |
Notes
{{notelist}}
References
{{reflist|refs=
{{cite web |title=Melody of Japan: Animation, Film and Classics with Mai Fujisawa |url=https://www.monash.edu/mlive/whats-on/events/melody-of-japan/ |publisher=Monash University |access-date=February 16, 2021}}
{{cite web |title=Mai Fujisawa |url=https://www.seattlesymphony.org/about/meetthemusicians/theorchestra/artists/a-h/fujisawa-mai |publisher=Seattle Symphony |access-date=February 16, 2021 |archive-date=October 31, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031073059/https://www.seattlesymphony.org/about/meetthemusicians/theorchestra/artists/a-h/fujisawa-mai |url-status=dead}}
{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Jake |title=Singing the dream worlds of Ghibli |date=December 27, 2019 |url=https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/singing-the-dream-worlds-of-ghibli-20191220-p53lwq.html |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |access-date=February 16, 2021 |archive-date=November 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129234817/https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/singing-the-dream-worlds-of-ghibli-20191220-p53lwq.html |url-status=live}}
{{Cite news |title=久石譲の娘麻衣が語る"親子の葛藤"歌手になる…父の説得に３年 |url=https://www.zakzak.co.jp/entertainment/ent-news/news/20121114/enn1211141214009-n1.htm |date=November 14, 2012 |access-date=October 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230715133327/https://www.zakzak.co.jp/entertainment/ent-news/news/20121114/enn1211141214009-n1.htm |archive-date=July 15, 2023 |work=Zakzak |publisher=Sankei Digital |url-status=live}}
{{cite web |last1=McPherson |first1=Angus |title=Mai Fujisawa on singing an iconic film moment |date=February 19, 2020 |url=https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/features/mai-fujisawa-on-singing-an-iconic-film-moment/ |website=Limelight |access-date=February 16, 2021 |archive-date=March 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302140221/https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/features/mai-fujisawa-on-singing-an-iconic-film-moment/ |url-status=live}}
{{Cite AV media notes |title=The Boy and the Heron (Original Soundtrack) |last=Hisaishi |first=Joe |author-link=Joe Hisaishi |date=August 9, 2023 |publisher=Tokuma |id=TKCA-75200 |type=CD}}
{{Cite AV media notes |script-title=ja:崖の上のポニョ イメージアルバム |last=Hisaishi |first=Joe |author-link=Joe Hisaishi |date=2008 |type=CD |publisher=Tokuma |id=TKCA-73309 |lang=ja |trans-title=Ponyo on the Cliff Vocal Album}}
{{Cite AV media notes |script-title=ja:魔女の宅急便ヴォーカル アルバム |last=Hisaishi |first=Joe |author-link=Joe Hisaishi |year=1992 |type=CD |publisher=Tokuma |id=30ATC-190 |lang=ja |trans-title=Kiki's Delivery Service Vocal Album}}
}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.sing-mai.com}} (in Japanese)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fujisawa, Mai}}
Category:Japanese women singers
Category:21st-century Japanese songwriters