Yuri Kasahara
Encyclopedia
Yuri Kasahara is a Japanese
opera
singer.
Kasahara is a graduate of Tokyo
's "Star Woman High School of Urawa", with self-education in the Toho Gakuen School of Music
, majoring in singing
, minoring in piano
. During university attendance, she debuted in A Midsummer Night's Dream
in the Samita Hall. Simultaneously, she recorded several television commercial tunes. (To this date, she has sung over 100 songs for commercials.)
In 1989, she was the part of the Queen of the Night
in a production of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte at the Shinjuku Cultural Center. Following, she was in Cemellia Princess and Hendel and Grey. In addition, she has performed a multitude of operettas for many concerts.
In 1990, Kasahara crossed over from Japan
to Italy
for further operatic studies. She passed many auditions for operas, performed in music festivals, and was regarded as one of Japan's finest vocalists . Several years passed by, and she returned home, with further confidence for the Japanese stage.
In 1994, she went with the Japanese Performance Association to a French music competition and won first prize. During the same year, she performed in the Toho Gakuen School of Music's 30th anniversary ceremony as one of the top students. In addition, Kasahara also went and performed in the Coca-Cola
Special Musical Opera (also known as The Magic of Coke, with a nationwide performance).
She most recently has been writing lyrics for operas, obtaining high appraisal for her work in the entire musical score for Love Believing. She has also worked on the music and script for Douro no Aka SHOES and the operatic adaptation of the Yokohama
fairy tale
Aoi Hitomi. All of her works have been performed in multiple opera circuits in Asia. Also, she has been noted for working with Yuki Kajiura
on the anime
series Noir
, Aquarian Age: Sign for Evolution
, and the OVA .hack//Liminality
, in which she sung four versions of the song "liminality". A few of Kasahara's lines from "liminality" also make a cameo with Emily Bindiger
on a remix of the .hack//SIGN
song "The World", and she has been spotted frequently as a guest vocalist with See-Saw
. She also makes an appearance on Kajiura's solo album Fiction, singing a redone version of "Salva Nos" (from Noir) and a new song "Red Rose". In 2006, Kasahara sung for the soundtrack My-Otome
in the song MATERIALISE.
Yuri Kasahara has recorded her own two-disc album entitled "An Encounter" featuring several of her most famous non-anime related performances, rerecorded with the Tokyo Konsei, and is currently being featured as a vocalist for the Madlax
soundtrack.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer.
Kasahara is a graduate of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
's "Star Woman High School of Urawa", with self-education in the Toho Gakuen School of Music
Toho Gakuen School of Music
is a private conservatoire located in Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan.-History:Toho Gakuen was founded in 1948 in Kudan as a music school for children, and two years later opened the Toho High School of Music, to provide quality musical education to teenage girls. 1955 saw the establishment of the Junior...
, majoring in singing
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, minoring in piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
. During university attendance, she debuted in A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
in the Samita Hall. Simultaneously, she recorded several television commercial tunes. (To this date, she has sung over 100 songs for commercials.)
In 1989, she was the part of the Queen of the Night
Queen of the Night
-Botany:* Queen of the night, Nightblooming cereus, several genera and species of cactus* Queen of the night, Cestrum nocturnum, a woody evergreen commonly known as Night-blooming Cestrum-Music:...
in a production of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte at the Shinjuku Cultural Center. Following, she was in Cemellia Princess and Hendel and Grey. In addition, she has performed a multitude of operettas for many concerts.
In 1990, Kasahara crossed over from Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
for further operatic studies. She passed many auditions for operas, performed in music festivals, and was regarded as one of Japan's finest vocalists . Several years passed by, and she returned home, with further confidence for the Japanese stage.
In 1994, she went with the Japanese Performance Association to a French music competition and won first prize. During the same year, she performed in the Toho Gakuen School of Music's 30th anniversary ceremony as one of the top students. In addition, Kasahara also went and performed in the Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
Special Musical Opera (also known as The Magic of Coke, with a nationwide performance).
She most recently has been writing lyrics for operas, obtaining high appraisal for her work in the entire musical score for Love Believing. She has also worked on the music and script for Douro no Aka SHOES and the operatic adaptation of the Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
Aoi Hitomi. All of her works have been performed in multiple opera circuits in Asia. Also, she has been noted for working with Yuki Kajiura
Yuki Kajiura
, born August 6, 1965 in Tokyo, Japan, is a Japanese composer and music producer. She has provided the music for several popular anime series, such as one of the Kimagure Orange Road movies, Noir, .hack//SIGN, Aquarian Age, Madlax, My-HiME, My-Otome, .hack//Roots, Pandora Hearts, Puella Magi...
on the anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Noir
Noir (anime)
is a 26-episode Japanese anime television series produced in 2001 by the Bee Train animation studio. Kōichi Mashimo directed Noir, it was written by Ryoe Tsukimura, and the soundtrack was composed by Yuki Kajiura...
, Aquarian Age: Sign for Evolution
Aquarian Age: Sign for Evolution
is a 13-episode television anime series based on the Aquarian Age collectible card game. The show was co-produced by Broccoli and Madhouse and aired in early 2002 on TV Tokyo. VHS and DVD copies of the Japanese editions are currently on sale, and ADV Films has released the show in the United States...
, and the OVA .hack//Liminality
.hack//Liminality
.hack//Liminality is the OVA series directly related to the .hack video game series for the PlayStation 2, with the perspective of Liminality focused on the real world as opposed to the games' MMORPG The World. Liminality was separated into four volumes; each volume was released with its...
, in which she sung four versions of the song "liminality". A few of Kasahara's lines from "liminality" also make a cameo with Emily Bindiger
Emily Bindiger
Emily Bindiger is an American singer, belonging to the award-winning a cappella group The Accidentals....
on a remix of the .hack//SIGN
.hack//SIGN
.hack//Sign is an anime television series directed by Kōichi Mashimo and produced by studio Bee Train and Bandai Visual, that makes up one of the four original storylines of the .hack franchise...
song "The World", and she has been spotted frequently as a guest vocalist with See-Saw
See-Saw
See-Saw is a Japanese pop duo originally from Tokyo, Japan. Its members include Chiaki Ishikawa and Yuki Kajiura; former member left the group in April 1994 to pursue a writing career...
. She also makes an appearance on Kajiura's solo album Fiction, singing a redone version of "Salva Nos" (from Noir) and a new song "Red Rose". In 2006, Kasahara sung for the soundtrack My-Otome
My-Otome
is an anime series created by Sunrise. Directed by Masakazu Obara and written by Hiroyuki Yoshino, it is a spinoff of My-HiME anime series and as such My-Otome takes place in a new setting with new main characters....
in the song MATERIALISE.
Yuri Kasahara has recorded her own two-disc album entitled "An Encounter" featuring several of her most famous non-anime related performances, rerecorded with the Tokyo Konsei, and is currently being featured as a vocalist for the Madlax
MADLAX
is a 26-episode Japanese anime television series produced in 2004 by the Bee Train animation studio. Kōichi Mashimo directed Madlax and the soundtrack was composed by Yuki Kajiura...
soundtrack.