Bleach is one of my first anime series that I’ve watched through all episodes, including fillers. I felt particularly emotional when Kuchiki Rukia was saved by Kurosaki Ichigo from execution, ESPECIALLY when Ichigo takes on the Sokyoku in the form of a blazingly awesome firebird!
The music in Bleach is quite fascinating to me as an anime violinist. I especially love the jazzy undertones of Hueco Mundo on cello, as well as the chime-like, chilling downward chords in the saddest parts of each episode, like stars’ tears floating slowly down upon a darkened world.
I liken my violin bow to Ichigo’s zanpakuto (soul sword) in that it’s very thin but can strike the most powerful of chords! Senna resonates strongly with me and I feel like it brings out the inner BEN-KAI (my personal “bankai”).
This particular piece, Never Meant to Belong, has a special place in my heart. On this morning I was feeling particularly sad and depressed. I remember it quite clearly, actually. It was a Sunday morning and I was getting ready for church, but I was really feeling down. I felt isolated from the rest of the world, and kind of rightly so – I was already 3 years out of college and living in a 1000-sq. ft. apartment by myself away from campus. It got really lonely sometimes. So I decided to look up a sad song to play and I came across this one, which I instantly recognized from all the many Bleach episode I had watched. I went to my keyboard and plunked out the accompaniment, recording it in one take, then grabbed my camera and violin and produced this video, also in one take. It was very heartfelt and I have a hard time reproducing the same depth of emotion that we hear in this version. I’m really glad that I was able to capture it on camera and share it with everyone, especially my wife and 4 children (2018). It’s now a permanent part of my legacy!
If you like this music, please SHARE it with others! I hope to bring peace and hope to those who’ve felt similarly as I did – life does get better, and in the case of Bleach, we see that Ichigo does emerge victorious in the end! (Well, the “end”, when we were so rudely cut off with so many unresolved plotlines!)
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