Kenji Kawai
{{short description|Japanese music composer and arranger (born 1957)}}
{{BLP sources|date=March 2016|reason=He's got 61 entries in MADB, so his discography should be sourceable. Also the biography needs to be sourced.}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2014}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| image = Kenji Kawai 20071028 Manga Expo 06.jpg
| landscape = yes
| caption = Kawai in 2007
| name = Kenji Kawai
| background = non_performing_personnel
| native_name = 川井 憲次|
| birth_name =
| alias = {{nihongo|Kaai|かーいさん|Kāi-san}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1957|4|23}}
| birth_place = Shinagawa, Japan
| origin =
| instrument = {{hlist|Guitar|keyboard|drums}}
| genre = Film score
Electronic rock
Instrumental rock
| occupation = {{hlist|Composer|arranger}}
| years_active = 1980–present
| label =
| associated_acts = Mamoru Oshii
| website = {{official url}}
}}
{{nihongo|Kenji Kawai|川井 憲次|Kawai Kenji|born April 23, 1957}} is a Japanese music composer and arranger. Known as one of the biggest names in the soundtrack world, he has worked on a wide range of mixed media productions, including anime, TV shows, films and video games. Among his credits are Toei's Kamen Rider Heisei Generations Forever, Tsui Hark's Seven Swords and Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon; Wilson Yip's Ip Man; Mamoru Oshii's films The Red Spectacles, StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops, Ghost in the Shell, Mobile Police Patlabor, and Assault Girls. He also worked on the OVA and TV anime adaptations of Vampire Princess Miyu, The Sky Crawlers and Avalon; the anime adaptations of Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma ½ and Maison Ikkoku; the live-action adaptation of Gantz and Hideo Nakata's films Ring, Ring 2, Chaos, Dark Water and Kaidan.
His nephew, Hidehiro Kawai, is a bassist in Fox Capture Plan, an instrumental band.
Career
After dropping out of a nuclear engineering program at Tokai University, Kawai began studying music at Shobi Music Academy. However, he dropped out after half a year. With a few friends, he created the band Muse, playing fusion rock and participating in music competitions. Through competing in such contests, the band members became technically competent to enter the music industry and decided to part ways.{{cite web|title=Profile|url=http://www.kenjikawai.com/intro.html|access-date=2017-06-01|language=ja}}
After leaving Muse, Kawai began composing music for commercials in his home studio. While recording music for radio actor and voice actor Yūji Mitsuya, he met music director Naoko Asari, who advised him to compose anime soundtracks. Some of his work for anime soundtracks can be found in Ranma ½ and Ghost in the Shell. According to Kawai, he is not good at creating music from nothing, as he draws sounds from the visuals of the works. In the majority of cases, the images of the anime are not yet created, so he creates music when referencing storyboard visuals.{{Cite news|url= https://news.mynavi.jp/article/20130517-kk/2 |title= 作曲家・川井憲次「「トワイライトQ」が僕の感性のターニングポイント」 (2) 押井守監督との出会い |newspaper= マイナビニュース |date= 2013-05-17 |access-date= 2020-05-19 }}
Following his success as an anime movies music composer, he became involved in live action movies. He contributed music to horror films: Ring, Ring 2, Dark Water, Japanese-Polish science-fiction film Avalon, the Hong Kong film Seven Swords and in the 2017 live action film Death Note.
Kawai has worked on several projects with director Mamoru Oshii (both Headgear members) and has written scores for all of Hideo Nakata's films. Kawai's music has received the Annie Award and Hong Kong Film Award. In 2005, Ghost in The Shell 2: Innocence he was nominated for an Annie Award.
For the music found in Seven Swords and A Battle of Wits he was nominated for Best Original Film Score Awards at both the 25th and 26th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2006 and 2007.
Works
= Anime/television =
= Film =
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| Year
! Title | |
|---|---|
| 1987 | |
| 1991 | |
| 1991 | |
| 1992 | |
| 1998
|Ring | |
| 1999 | |
| 2000 | |
| 2000 | |
| 2000 | |
| 2001 | |
| 2001 | |
| 2001 | |
| 2002 | |
| 2002 | |
| 2002 | |
| 2004 | |
| 2004 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2005
|Kidan ({{lang|zh|奇谈}}) | |
| 2006 | |
| 2006 | |
| 2006 | Dragon Tiger Gate |
| 2006 | |
| 2006 | |
| 2006 | |
| 2007 | |
| 2008 | |
| 2009 | |
| 2009 | |
| 2010 | |
| 2010 | |
| 2010 | |
| 2011 | |
| 2011 | |
| 2011 | |
| 2013 | |
| 2014 | |
| 2015 | |
| 2015
|Gamera | |
| 2017 | |
| 2018 | |
| 2018 | |
| 2019
| Ip Man 4 | |
| 2019
|Blood Friends ({{lang|ja|血ぃともだち}}){{cite web |url= https://eiga.com/movie/96474/|title= 血ぃともだち|access-date= June 17, 2022|work= eiga.com}} | |
| 2020 | |
| 2021
| Limbo | |
| 2024 |
= Video games =
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| Year
! Title ! Platform | |
|---|---|
| 1990 | |
| 1990
|Bloody Warriors: Shangō no Gyakushū | |
| 1992 | |
| 1994 | |
| 1994 | |
| 1998 | Sega Saturn |
| 2003
|Nobunaga's Ambition Online (Chapter of Hiryu) | |
| 2007 | |
| 2007–2010 |
= Documentary =
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title |
|---|
| 2009 |
= Others =
Awards and honors
- Asteroid 117582 Kenjikawai, discovered by Roy A. Tucker in 2005, was named in his honor. The official {{MoMP|117582|naming citation}} was published by the Minor Planet Center on January 9, 2020 ({{small|M.P.C. 120069}}).
See also
References
{{reflist|30em|refs=
|title = (117582) Kenjikawai
|work = Minor Planet Center
|url = https://minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=117582
|access-date = 1 February 2020}}
|title = MPC/MPO/MPS Archive
|work = Minor Planet Center
|url = https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html
|access-date = 1 February 2020}}
}}
External links
{{Commons}}
- {{Official website|http://www.kenjikawai.com}} {{in lang|ja}}
- {{IMDb name|0442766}}
- [http://mediaarts-db.jp/an/anime_series?utf8=✓&asf%5Bkeyword%5D=川井+憲次&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=tv_a&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=tv_sp&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=movie&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=ova&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=event&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=personal&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=etc&asf%5Bmedia%5D%5B%5D=blank Kenji Kawai] at Media Arts Database {{in lang|ja}}
- {{YouTube|puIsASh5P2U}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kawai, Kenji}}
Category:20th-century Japanese conductors (music)
Category:20th-century Japanese male musicians
Category:21st-century Japanese conductors (music)
Category:21st-century Japanese male musicians
Category:Japanese male conductors (music)
Category:Japanese film score composers
Category:Japanese male film score composers