Takahiko Ishikawa – The Firmament (1993)

Takahiko Ishikawa - The Firmament

With the subtle tinge melancholy of Winnie The Pooh, synthesizers layer and layer atmospheres atop to build and airscape of depth, and we are thrust into this wonderland.  Parallel emptiness all around; stillness and peace. 

1.  The Firmament

               Tranquil ascension, through layers and clouds.  Aqua dampness runs through our hair and we feel fresh.  Fly and be free.  Explore the serene blessings of The Firmament.

Lots of rootless voicings in this song I think, this is how he makes the airy quality of the music.  Floaty, not grounded with a root note.  A lot of the voicings seem to include 2nds.

Song starts off with a voicing D F# G# E, to B E F# D.  I think it functions as an E7 to a Dmaj13.  Regular IV V stuff here, since this part of the song is in A major.  Ishikawa plays around with A and D major 7 chords, with that E7 filled in some places. 

               At around 1:37, there’s an ascending 3rds run starting on the F# note.  Then it goes into ||A maj  | Dmaj   |  Fmaj  |  Cmaj   |.   Transitioned to C major now and there’s more I IV V stuff happening.  A lot of times when there’s a G7 chord Ishikawa will not definitively plop down on G7, rather he will fill in the space with wispy synth melodies blending together.  

At some point a descending 3rds run happens, starting on the A note.  Some more G7sus fills and blends, then the song resolves back to A major at the end.

2.  Afternoon in the Breeze

               A picturesque park, the birds chirp, flutter, and play.  Sun is triumphantly shining, justice prevails.  

               A Balamb city breeze wafts us past.  We suddenly remember the anxiety of the day, smally and achingly.  Momentarily, then the breeze wafts us past.  “Stay here, in the present” it cheers us on.

               An autumn jewel brushes by.  The Clouds darken with age as the day goes on. 

               Repeat.

               Afternoon in the Breeze has an easy to distinguish form.  The intro is :

||G maj   |  F maj   |  Bb maj   |  C maj   |  D maj   ||  Then goes to a section bumps back and forth between Gmaj and Cmaj.  Song is heavily in G mixolydian, lots of emphasis on the C note in the melodies.

||D min   |   C maj   |   G maj   |  G maj   |

|D min    |  C maj     |  D maj    |  D maj   |   Cool to see some D minor in here!  After this, bops around between G maj and C maj again.

BIG CHANGE IS  ||Fmaj7   |  G maj   |  F maj7   |  G maj   |  Melody flits between B and C over the F major 7 chord.  Again, G is more of a mixolydian but not quite a harsh dominant chord approach like normal.

Intro swings in again and song form repeats :)

3.  Memories of a Swing

               Plopped next to the swing set, chains squeak, children laugh and seagulls chirp, we feel the sea wind on our face.  Nostalgia spreads like water colors across a pulpy page crumbled by life’s disappointments.  Sadness kisses our hair; heavy sigh.  The blurred children on the swings comes back into focus, and we return to the park.

               Memories of a Swing is probably an improvised piece.  Harmonies bump around among Fmajor13, G7, and C major 7.  I think just once an A minor appears, as well as a Dmin, Gmaj (II, V).  Primarily melodies are played over F major and C major, the good old IV I.  At around 13:40 some Ryuichi Sakamoto comes into town.

               Side note, the F major 13 is sometimes voiced F A D E and LOL it spells the word, “Fade”, for a song about memories how clever!!!!

4.  First Date

               Trailed by magic sparkles, in a simple, modest dress enters the young man’s female friend.  Embarrassed they introduce each other and make small talk.  Reminiscent of Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight”.  Scenes of them progress through the night, only the music heard, no sound effects.  They visit a coffee shop, play games at a fair, walk around down.  They laugh innocently from time to time, warming up to each other.  Final scene, atop a Ferris wheel, bluedark night sky.  The magic kiss.

               Alternate end: both parties meet in the middle of a suburb side street, exchange goodbies and would-you-like-to-meet-agains.  Pleasantly split ways, touched by the star of destiny to meet again.

||  E maj   | E maj/D#  |  C# min  |   C# min   |

|  A maj     |  B maj       |  E maj    |  E maj*     ||    *Cute melody here is E, F#, B, G#.

After a repeat it goes to:

||  G maj   |  C maj   |  G maj   |  Gmaj   /F# |

|E min       |   C maj   |   D maj  |  Dmaj       |

|  G maj     |  C maj   |  G maj   |  C maj        |

|A min      |  D  maj    |  G maj  |   G maj      ||  Then repeat the form.

Nothing too off the wall here.  Something to note is the 4^th bar usually lets the chord ring out to breathe.

              

5.  A Walk Under the Flowing Clouds

               We are walking under the flowing clouds LOL.  

|| G maj   |  C maj    |  A min    |  D maj    |

|   F maj    |  C maj    | F maj    |  D maj      | 

Synth arpeggios follow the chords accordingly:  D G A D,     E G C D,    E G B C,    D F# A D,   C F G C,   D E G C,    C F G C,    D F# A D.

Second part is:

||G maj 9    |   C maj 9    |   A9    |  D7sus    ||  Which leads into the Susy ending:

||Csus11   |   Csus11   | Csus11   | Csus11   |

|Dsus11    | Dsus11    |  Fmaj7    |  Fmaj7     |

|G maj      |  G maj     |   Csus11   |     And the Csus11 happens until the end of the song.

6.  Winter Skies

               Flashbacks of Donkey Kong winter stage troubles.  Very mountainous, natural snow, earthy colors, a hearty briskness permeates the air.  Hints of Christmas melodies ring out.  Minor scale snow is interesting indeed, a whole other weather than Major scale snow.  Pine trees hold up the sky.

               Chain reaction chord progression ending, same thing that Naitoh does in, “In the Forest”??  I hear it in his 2^nd song.  I expected his foresty arpeggios to appear after Winter Skies final cadence.

Intro of song bops between A minor and G major, this key center is A dorian.  After bopping, goes to a solid A dorian vamp with lots of synthesizers trickling about in the air.  Then a modal key change to A Aeolian scale:

||A min    |  G maj    |  F maj    |  E min    |

|D min    |  D min    |  E min    |  E min    ||  Then vamps on A Aeolian again, until switching back to A Dorian.  

The ending progression is as follows, harmonies are descending:

||A min    |  D7    |  G maj    |  C maj    |

|A min    |  F maj  |  G13      |   C maj    |

|A min    |  F maj    | G13    |  A maj 7   ||

And it wraps up beauteously by resolving on A major, the same key the album started on.  Cool idea that the first song actually starts with E7, Dmajor, the V and IV chord of A major.  Might imply and endless album repeat!

Miscellaneous Thoughts:

I think the album tells a story all the way through, each track a different scene in a movie.

This is an “Inside Album”, an album that should be listened to with headphones.  It creates a space that is fun to explore and be in.