Joe Hisaishi

On April 6 and 7, 2024, Joe Hisaishi brought his most iconic melodies to life at Plenitude Arena for two exceptional symphonic concerts dedicated to the world of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. Accompanied by London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and 250 musicians and choir members, the Japanese composer took audiences on a more-than-two-hour journey into a world of imagination that has become truly universal.

From Tokyo to Paris, the crowning moment of a composer who became a global phenomenon

Welcoming Joe Hisaishi to Plenitude Arena was about much more than a symphonic concert: it marked the transition of an artistic legacy deeply rooted in animated cinema onto some of the world’s biggest international stages. Following a tour that had taken him to cities including Tokyo, New York, Los Angeles and Melbourne in 2022, these two dates in France marked another milestone in the composer’s growing global influence.

© Apolline Cornuet

And what a setting for such a meeting! With a capacity of up to 45,000 spectators in concert configuration, Plenitude Arena is the largest indoor entertainment venue in Europe. For music as expansive as Hisaishi’s, the venue was able to showcase its full acoustic and visual power, while bringing together an audience united by a shared passion.

At Plenitude Arena, the legendary collaboration between Joe Hisaishi and Hayao Miyazaki therefore took on a spectacular new dimension. For more than thirty years, the two artists have worked together on ten iconic Studio Ghibli films, an artistic journey whose melodies have reached far beyond Japan’s borders.

When the giant screen opens a window onto the worlds of Ghibli

The show’s production was built around a constant dialogue between music and imagery. On stage, Joe Hisaishi conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, while giant screens displayed excerpts from the films connected to his work. This combination allowed audiences to rediscover Ghibli’s landscapes, characters and emotions, brought to life once again through the power of symphonic music.

The technology at Plenitude Arena enhanced this immersive experience. With its vast projection surface and lighting equipment, the venue is designed to adapt its setup to every major show. Here, the goal was not so much to multiply special effects as to create a setting worthy of the music: allowing the images to complement the orchestral arrangements, giving the silences room to breathe and letting the symphonic crescendos unfold in all their grandeur.

The result was an experience that was as much about watching as it was about listening, with that unique feeling of reconnecting with childhood memories while experiencing them in an entirely new way.

A musical journey through Nausicaä, Totoro and Ghibli’s greatest classics

Over the course of around two hours, the program spanned several decades of creativity, striking a balance between instantly recognizable themes and more developed symphonic suites. The setlist offered a true journey through Hisaishi’s musical universe.

Among the highlights of the program:

• Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, including The Legend of the Wind, Nausicaa Requiem and The Bird Man
• Kiki’s Delivery Service, through A Town with an Ocean View, Heartbroken Kiki and Mother’s Broom;
• Princess Mononoke, with The Legend of Ashitaka, The Demon God and Princess Mononoke;

This richness is precisely what made these evenings at Plenitude Arena so unique. Rather than simply presenting a succession of well-known themes, the concert offered a genuine symphonic journey, moving from the delicate world of Kiki’s Delivery Service to the powerful sounds of Princess Mononoke, before reaching the luminous poetry of Totoro.

Joe Hisaishi, the iconic composer whose melodies speak to generations

Joe Hisaishi holds a unique place in the world of film music. His name is inseparable from several Studio Ghibli masterpieces, but his career extends far beyond that universe, encompassing composition, orchestral conducting and his own solo musical creations. His strength lies in his rare ability to write instantly memorable melodies while giving them an orchestral depth that continues to move audiences, generation after generation.

His digital reach is another reflection of his popularity: Spotify currently lists more than 3.9 million monthly listeners for the artist. His discography also remains highly visible on the platform, with soundtracks including Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Princess Mononoke and My Neighbor Totoro among the featured albums.

At Plenitude Arena, this popularity translated into a deeply collective experience: Ghibli fans, classical music lovers and film enthusiasts coming together around the same themes. This is perhaps one of Joe Hisaishi’s greatest strengths: bringing popular culture and symphonic music together without ever losing the emotion at the heart of his work.

A suspended moment we already wish we could relive

April 6 and 7, 2024, will remain two truly special dates in the history of Plenitude Arena. By welcoming Joe Hisaishi for these two unique French performances, Plenitude Arena offered its audience a show at the crossroads of cinema, animation and the grandeur of a symphonic concert.

From Nausicaä to Totoro, from Kiki’s Delivery Service to Spirited Away, the evening above all reminded us of the universal power of a melody: one that can bring an image, a memory or an emotion rushing back, sometimes in just a few notes. And within the vastness of Plenitude Arena, these melodies found a setting worthy of them, bringing audiences together in the same bubble, suspended somewhere between dreams and reality.