Jacket, front and back
Liner notes insert (exterior)
Liner notes insert (interior)
Symphonic Suite Space Battleship Yamato 2024 mix X
Symphonic Suite Space Battleship Yamato 2202 Vinyl Edition
Special interview
Composer Akira Miyagawa X mixing engineer Toshiyasu Shiozawa
Space Battleship Yamato then and now. Two musical works representing two generations are gathered together in the old yet new format of analog vinyl on the memorable 50th anniversary of Yamato‘s voyage. To commemorate this, a conversation between composer Akira Miyagawa and engineer Toshiyasu Shiozawa was conducted. Their conversation is published in the liner notes of both works. Please read them together.
(Composition: Masaru Hayakawa)
Miyagawa: When they recorded Symphonic Suite Space Battleship Yamato, was the multi-recorder 16 channels? You have to get the balance right during the recording to a certain extent.
Shiozawa: Yes. There are various instruments on one track.
Miyagawa: It’s strange that the sound this time sounds digital.
Shiozawa: I muted the unused tracks, the ones that weren’t playing, so the signal-to-noise ratio has improved dramatically.
Miyagawa: Past masters didn’t have that.
Shiozawa: At the time, there was no computer mix, so all channels were turned up, which was a big advantage in terms of signal-to-noise ratio. Also, there was less sound transfer on the magnetic tape.
Miyagawa: The recording studio was Columbia Studio 1.
Shiozawa: Yes, it was Studio 1 before it was split into two. It was all recorded at once in that large space, so the sounds of various instruments ended up on the string track…
Miyagawa: They are mixed together, aren’t they?
Shiozawa: That’s also a good thing. There’s one woodwind instrument, one flute, one oboe, and one clarinet all on one track. Piano and guitar are included. Small instruments like tambourine and triangle are also included. The sound was balanced on the spot.
Miyagawa: So the echo is new.
Shiozawa: Yes. It’s not an analog method using a metal plate (an echo machine that uses the vibration of a metal plate to add reverb to the sound) but a simulation that gives it a nostalgic feel. Of course, we don’t have the equipment from back then.
Miyagawa: The instruments seem to be closer together than in the original.
Shiozawa: It sounds that way because it’s clearer.
Miyagawa: it feels like it’s there even when you add echo.
Shiozawa: The sound was in good condition on the multi-tape, and I was moved when it came out so clearly. The multi-recorder used for recording still exists and is still in working order. I used it to make a digital copy.
Miyagawa: This remix is a chance to show off your skills. But it’s a different process from a normal mix.
Shiozawa: Rather than creating something new, it’s more like recreating a great work from the past.
Miyagawa: It’s true that it’s both the original and something different. It’s interesting.
Shiozawa: Symphonic Suite Yamato was the first record I ever bought myself.
Miyagawa: I see. So you wanted to join that company one day.
Shiozawa: I was still a long way off from that. (Laughs)
Miyagawa: When I think back to when Space Battleship Yamato started, I think it stood out from other works in terms of reality. I think Apollo was a big factor. I was 10 years old when Apollo flew. I got interested in it around the 8th one, and made a plastic model to display in my room.
Shiozawa: (Laughs)
Miyagawa: I don’t think there would have been a Yamato without it. Humans had been to the moon. So the reality of going beyond that to the planet Iscandar emerged. Two years later, photochemical smog emerged as a social problem. All the kids back then wondered what would happen to the Earth if it continued like this.
Shiozawa: Around 1971. Right on the eve of Yamato.
Miyagawa: That’s right. It’s often overlooked, but with Apollo and the pollution problem, we were mentally prepared to welcome Space Battleship Yamato. The story of going to the edge of the universe to retrieve a machine to clean up the polluted Earth after the planet bombs were dropped had a tremendous reality to it.
Shiozawa: Going all the way to India (Iscandar) to receive the blessed sutra (Cosmo Cleaner) is a bit like Journey to the West.
Miyagawa: It’s a road movie, isn’t it?
Shiozawa: This time, Symphonic Suite Yamato 2024 Mix will be released on CD, analog, and digitally.
Miyagawa: I’m looking forward to the analog version. You can hear the difference in sound from the original the most. Actually, I’m still not completely used to the sound of digital. There was once a delicious ramen that I thought was ideal: music. I wanted one day to be able to eat the ramen my father makes. When I first went to the ramen shop (recording studio), I wondered if this was the “taste” I wanted. It felt like some important “umami” was missing.
Shiozawa: Symphonic Suite Yamato was recorded nearly 50 years ago, but musically and acoustically, it doesn’t feel old at all. I’ve been working on it with the hope that it will be an album that anyone can enjoy. I hope many people will enjoy listening to it.
(September 25, 2024, at Akira Miyagawa’s home studio)
Artifact collection from 1977
A reproduction of the 1977 liner notes was also included. Look for a long-overdue translation of them in the next Cosmo DNA update.