Autumn colors brightened in Kyoto Prefecture. On the 7th floor of a station building overlooking Kyoto tower, stands a grand piano. A high school student on her way back from a tennis match. A middle school student on a school trip. An English teacher who fell in love with Japan. A couple who met each other at this station piano. A man who survived a fatal bike accident. A union banker who overcame his wife's death by playing the piano... Each from all walks of life come to play their melodies to share.
Kyoto City
Japan's ancient capital with changing seasons
Kyoto Station
Over 600 thousand commuters and tourists
transit every day.
On the 7th floor of the station building...
stands a piano in a quiet, secluded area.
It was placed here by Kyoto station.
Cameras were set up to watch people play.
Local high school student
On her way back from school tennis
Liebestraum No. 3
Franz Liszt
She's been taking piano lessons
since she was 4 years old.
Started playing tennis in high school,
now enjoying both music and sports.
Today was a big day for her,
participating in a tennis tournament.
She lost in the first match,
but the piano was here to cheer her up.
"I love playing the piano and wish to continue."
"I want to teach my kids and then their kids...
continuing piano throughout generations."
"I want all of them to be able to play."
Students during a school trip
Kanden
Yonezu Kenshi (2020)
Middle school student from Saitama
Learning piano from 6 years old
Hakujitsu
King Gnu (2019)
On their way to Kyoto for a school trip,
she found the piano and decided to play.
Her hope is to make memories to cherish
before middle school ends.
Naked Heart
Aimyon (2020)
After visiting famous temples and shrines,
she asked her classmates to come with her.
"I wanted the people listening to enjoy
so I chose popular songs they'd be familiar with."
Mother and Daughter from Kobe city
On their way to shopping
Kimi ni Aitaku Nattara...
ZARD (1997)
She is a big fan of the band ZARD.
Practiced the song a lot during quarantine.
Her daughter learned the lyrics too.
"Whenever I want to see you
I'll come right away"
"Because it is so fragile
I care so dearly"
"A blue sunset upon my streetscape
I can't wait to make noise with you again"
"When people listen to me playing
and tell me it makes them feel uplifted,
I get power from that myself."
"If people can enjoy it, that makes me happy."
Couple in a long-distance relationship
Into the Night
YOASOBI (2019)
Boyfriend, a programmer living in Tokyo
Girlfriend, a local university student
They met a year ago.
This piano brought the two together.
She saw him play and asked him to teach her,
eventually falling in love.
After 3 months of not seeing each other,
the piano brings the two together once again.
"I could play better than a year ago."
"I'm more relieved than happy.
He's pretty strict, so."
The streets of Kyoto are filled with music.
At the bank of Kamogawa River are people
practicing orchestral music.
This 90-year-old building used to be
a public bath.
It now turned to a cafe,
keeping its original interior.
They hold live performances regularly.
Two friends that play piano together
I LOVE...
OFFICIAL HIGE DANDISM (2020)
Both are civil service workers.
They like to use their days off to play duets.
After spending the day playing piano at home,
they came here wanting to play on a grand piano.
Duetting allows them to reach a wider range,
making songs sound more powerful.
"I play one way and the other person would follow."
"I really enjoy this feeling
of communicating through music."
English teacher from the U.S.
Lives in Mie Prefecture
Merry-Go-Round of Life
Joe Hisaishi (2004)
(From the film "Howl's Moving Castle.")
He fell in love with Japan during his first visit,
got a teaching job and moved here.
A big Japanese anime fan,
especially for their emotion-provoking music.
He enjoys traveling on his days off.
This time he came to Kyoto for autumn foliage.
"It is such a beautiful location, that Kyoto Tower there,
you can look at the mountains and all these, you know, reverberation room..."
"I think it's a wonderful place to play piano here."
50 years old
Works at a machine factory
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
Ryuichi Sakamoto (1983)
(From the Film "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence")
He's been playing the piano for 2 years.
Taught himself how to play from online videos.
He's been practicing this song for 2 months.
After a life-altering bike accident at age 34,
he felt determined to make the most out of life.
Expanded his hobbies to basketball,
hiking, marathon, and now piano.
He's still left with numbness on his right hand,
but the joy of playing goes beyond that.
"It's refreshing to start something so new
and long term at this age."
"I look forward to it."
"I'm not that good yet
but if I'm playing better than last year,
that's good enough for me."
55 years old
Works at a credit union
Gypsy Love Waltz.
Franz Lehár.
He started playing piano when he was 5.
Gave up once, but started again at 33 years old.
At age 39, he married a fellow piano player.
They performed a duet together at their wedding.
2 years later, his wife passed away suddenly.
He lost his hearing for a while due to shock.
This song helped him get back on his feet
hopeful like the melody's shift to an uplifting tone.
He then started participating in amateur
piano competitions and won several awards.
"All I could do was to accept the reality.
Piano was what gave me strength to overcome."