An opportunity to discover the joy of music
Nice to meet you, I'm Takuro Mitsui, the representative of Purpose Music Store.
As this is my first blog, let me start by introducing myself and my musical journey. I was born in Ota Ward, Tokyo, and grew up in Chigasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture from the age of two. What first got me interested in music was watching "Hirake! Ponkikki" when I was in elementary school. I'm sure many of you will find this nostalgic.
This program was aired on weekday mornings, and to me it is a legendary program, with Gachapin and Mukku, as well as BOSE and Namie Amuro as MCs. During the broadcast, there were segments such as "Thomas the Tank Engine" and "Hanako of the Toilet," and I was fascinated by the music that played between the segments. The music featured songs by Tatsuro Yamashita, Sadao Watanabe, Kazuyoshi Saito, Chisato Oe, Chisato Moritaka, and other great artists who I didn't know about when I was a child.
Furthermore, at that time there was a Sumiya near my parents' house, and it was a habit for the whole family to go there every weekend to rent CDs. My father liked folk songs (my name, Takuro, comes from Takuro Yoshida), my mother liked new music and Western music, and my older brother, since the TK boom (Tetsuya Komuro) was at its height at the time, liked popular songs by artists such as TRF, Globe, and Namie Amuro.
This experience of being exposed to music across all genres was what led me to discover the joy of music.
I'm going off topic, but when I was in elementary school, cassette tapes were still the norm and recording from CDs was difficult. I hated the song cutting off when switching from side A to side B, so I would re-record it over and over again, or if I got too excited and jumped while recording, the vibrations would cause the CD to skip, and I'd have to re-record it again...I remember it was a struggle just to record.
Getting back to the topic, I've been a big fan of Tamaki Koji ever since I was in elementary school. The first CD I bought was Tamaki's "Denen," and the next was V6's "Ainanda" (composed by Tamaki Koji). I've been a fan for over 25 years now.
I have nothing but respect for her for being the No. 1 vocalist even after turning 60. She has declared that she will "sing until she dies," so I hope she takes care of herself and continues to work slowly.
I could write a blog about Tamaki-san with this much enthusiasm, so I’ll end it here for now (lol).
I was experiencing failure in life.
What made me want to seriously study music was Kotaro Oshio, who was recommended to me by a friend in my first year of high school. In my third year of junior high school, I started playing the guitar I had at home, and it was a shocking encounter for me, who only knew how to play chords. I never thought I could "play chords and melodies together" with just one guitar. And I never expected to be able to play such wonderful songs by myself.
He was an absolute star to me at the time.
From then on, I copied Oshio's CDs every day, copied his songs live on the radio, brought my guitar to school... I just practiced and practiced. Of course, I also performed Oshio's songs at the school festival, and everyone was amazed and fawned over me, all thanks to Oshio.
As an aside, the juniors started practicing Oshio-san's songs on the guitar in the music room and ended up breaking it, so guitars were banned at school (lol).
After graduating from high school, I persuaded my parents to let me enter the music college that Oshio was attending, but it was there that I experienced a setback in life.
When his teacher at vocational school asked him, "What kind of artist do you want to be?" he answered without hesitation, "I want to be like Oshio Kotaro!" (with a smug look). To which he immediately replied, "We don't need two Oshios in the music industry," and it was only then that he realized something.
"You can't become like Oshio-san." Looking back now, I'm grateful for the advice I received from my teacher, which I think was sound, but at the time, it felt like the three years I'd spent studying for Oshio-san had been completely rejected.
But here's where the miracle happens.
I had read Oshio's scores so thoroughly that I wore them out. The person in charge of transcribing them, Daisuke Minamizawa, who is also friends with Oshio himself, was going to be a lecturer at the technical school I was attending. I postponed my graduation for a year, transferred from the guitar department to the solo guitar department, and learned solo guitar under Mr. Minamizawa.
In addition to fingerpicking, he taught me how to arrange solos and how to program DTM, and on occasion he even invited me to his home, which are unforgettable memories for me.
After learning about DTM from Professor Minamizawa, I became interested in composing songs and formed a band.
When the band was first formed, there was a female vocalist, but when she had a demo tape of herself singing and Mr. Minamizawa listened to it, he advised her, "I think you should sing it," and so she became the vocalist.
It will surely come to mind in a flash of light.
I was able to have many precious experiences during my time in the band. I had the opportunity to play with the musician who inspired me to start playing guitar when I was in third year of junior high school, I performed at outdoor festivals, we toured various regions, we did a radio show on FM radio, we filmed a music video, and so on. There were so many experiences I can't even begin to describe them all.
My fondest memory of all is of Seiji Kameda.
(The person in question has given permission for the photo to be published.)
Kameda himself selected us to take part in a project called "Kameda Juku" to nurture new bands. The students were able to perform at events and festivals hosted by Kameda, and also had the chance to talk to him at the after-party, giving us a valuable opportunity to spend time together.
I still remember the words Kameda-san said to me at the launch party.
The words he said were, "I want you to use me as a stepping stone to spread good music to the world." I felt that it was wrong for a top-notch person in the industry to say to a newcomer, "I want you to use me as a stepping stone." As we talked, Kameda's love for music was conveyed at every turn. I was also impressed when he said, "I want to know as many good songs as possible."
I will never forget the countless experiences I shared with my teammates. They will surely flash before my eyes.
Although there were some challenges due to differences in opinion as the members came from all different places, upbringings, and ways of thinking, we were able to share the worries, hardships, and joys together as we worked toward the same goal, and that is something I treasure.
Even if it's just a hobby, once we can all get together, I'd love to practice in the studio and do live shows again.
This was a long introduction, but this is my musical journey so far.
From now on, my wife, daughter, and I will work together to do our best to provide used musical instruments that meet your needs.
Well then, we look forward to your continued support.
