Eminence Online

Soundtrack Review

My history with anime music has been long and variegated, but despite the deluge of new and interesting soundtracks that emerge after each anime's run, there are a few soundtracks that I'll keep coming back to. Gunslinger Girl's Soundtrack would fall into this category for two main reasons: Gunslinger Girl really holds a lot of nostalgic value for me since it was the anime series that brought me out of my anime hiatus, and even if you took that emotional factor aside, it's a soundtrack that manages to stand out because of the way Toshihiko Sahashi's predominantly symphonic compositions do a remarkable job of channeling the anime series' European setting.

To do this, Sahashi uses six pieces to create the foundation for the series' overall feel. Titled, appropriately enough, "TEMA I" through "TEMA VI," these pieces interact with each other in a cohesive manner that brings forth Gunslinger Girl's many facets. "TEMA I," in particular, shows Sahashi's ability to paint the grim, depressing mood that generally pervades the series' stories which are, at their core, about girls who have been brainwashed into becoming mindless cyborg assassins. As you listen to the piece, you can definitely hear the mournful violin part conveying the sense of tragedy inherent in the girls' situations, making it an excellent piece that can be considered the overriding theme for the anime.

"TEMA II" and "TEMA III" are played by a solo violin and piano respectively. By choosing to use soloists in these arrangements, the melody heightens the tragic aura because the soloists do an excellent job of bringing out that sense of loneliness and pain that most of the girls endure. While there are a few exceptions to this, by and large, most of the girls rarely interact with their handler outside their line of work and the dependency that they exhibit towards their owners becomes really disheartening to see, which the music conveys distressingly well.

"TEMA IV" takes a different turn by capturing the more action-oriented parts of the series through its slightly faster tempo and sense of urgency. The introduction works to get your heart pumping and the choral section gives off the feeling as though the antagonists in the series were on the receiving end of divine judgment as the girls kill them off. "TEMA V" also makes good use of the chorus combined with the violins to give off a nerve-rattling feeling that leaves the listener on edge. "TEMA VI" closes out the themes by generating a suspenseful aura, as though it were depicting the girls going about their dangerous missions.

Though the themes describe above are the pieces that stand out the most, the soundtrack does have other pieces that capture the essence of Gunslinger Girl's setting. "Bucolica," for example, has a really soothing air that matches with the aura that one gets from traveling to a European city that has a rich cultural history. The soaring strings give off this rich sense of freedom while remaining very serene. "Citta'" continues "Bucolica's" graceful, serene feel through the utterly beautiful counterpoint between the violins, which assume the melody, and the piano part, until the very end where the piano part becomes dominant. And for those who are looking for a piece that captures a slower-paced life, give "La Calma" a listen because that's a really soothing piece that uses an acoustic guitar and a piano part to achieve its eponymous effect.

Given the subject material covered by the series, tracks like "Ansia" and "Deperazione" fit right in through the way they carry an anxiety-inducing melody by using the violin's quiet vibrato to create tension as well as a sense of foreboding that one can hear later on in "TEMA IV." "Paura" also uses the background violin vibrato, though this one sounds really menacing, as though danger was lurking just out of sight. By using such techniques, this soundtrack does an excellent job of instilling within the viewer the hazards that the characters face, thereby forging that sense of danger that pervades the atmosphere when the girls are sent on missions.

Where the soundtrack is a bit weaker is in its use of electronica to create the tension through dissonance. "Maniaco" is composed entirely with synth sound effects that are cacophonic and unpleasant to listen to since there's no discernible melody. "Timore" also goes along the same route and adds to the chaos by throwing in screams at unpredictable intervals and while it does create a harrowing kind of ambience, it's not a piece that I would sit through. That said, there are only two pieces that I consider problematic, and given that this soundtrack is composed of 39 tracks, that's not a bad ratio by any measure considering how good all of the other pieces are.

The soundtrack then roars to a finish, offering action-based pieces like "Movimento," which, as you might expect, uses a steady, fast-paced rhythm to convey the feeling of movement while using "TEMA IV's" theme. "Velocita" also has a pronounced beat with a lot of tension through its dissonant melody that keeps the listeners on their toes through the action-y moments in the series. "Simpatia" starts the process of winding things down through a more calming melody that one might hear in a church setting when at prayer. Finally, "ROMANZE" comes in and it's an odd piece to be using since it uses an arrangement of the 2^nd movement of Chopin's 1^st Piano Concerto, but it works to bring the background music portion to a close.

Gunslinger Girl's soundtrack remains my most favorite anime soundtrack from a TV series because of how well Toshihiko Sahashi is able to convey the tragedy inherent in the characters' situation by using melancholy themes. However, he's not limited to depressing fare since his excellent melodies capture the setting well through pieces like "Citta'" and "Bucolica," which brings the right dose of intensity in the action scenes, and engage the listener's emotions through some of the more calming pieces. The number of unpleasant pieces remains astoundingly low, which is why it's hard for me to tire of this soundtrack. Because of this, Gunslinger Girl's soundtrack stands as a testament to Sahashi's skill and provides a listening experience that can only be described as being timeless.

Share Article: