An anime composer is a

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

who mainly composes music for

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

productions. There have been many anime composers over the years, and while anime soundtracks are big business in Japan, there have been few notable, long-term composers of anime music before the 2000s.

Notable figures

Joe Hisaishi, best known for his collaboration with Hayao Miyazaki beginning in the mid-1980s. Since most of Hisaishi's anime music has been for Miyazaki, his influence has been somewhat muted compared to later composers. Shigeaki Saegusa, composer for '' Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' in 1985, was a classical composer who produced a symphonic score for this series, which went on to be extremely popular (one of the foundation successes of the Gundam franchise). While Saegusa produced only a little more anime music, his ''Zeta Gundam'' soundtrack is still considered a classic among '' otaku''. For many of them, Saegusa and Hisaishi were the first to inspire the idea that anime music could be of very high quality. Kenji Kawai was producing scores for series such as ''

Blue Seed ''Blue Seed'' (stylized as ''BLUE SEED'') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yuzo Takada. The plot is based on the Izumo cycle of Japanese mythology. The main character, Momiji Fujimiya, is a descendant of the mythical . ...

'', '' Patlabor'', and '' Ranma ½''. While few of these scores were groundbreaking, they were almost all solid works of music. Kawai was arguably the first composer to produce a number of anime soundtracks and achieve at least a modicum of popularity within the otaku community while doing so.

Yoko Kanno is a Japanese composer, arranger and music producer best known for her work on the soundtracks of anime series, television series, live-action films, video games, and advertisements. She was born in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. She has wri ...

garnered some interest with her soundtracks for ''

Escaflowne is a 26-episode Japanese anime television series created by Shōji Kawamori and Sunrise Studios and directed by Kazuki Akane. It premiered in Japan on April 2, 1996 on TV Tokyo, and the final episode aired on September 24, 1996. Sony's a ...

'' and ''

Macross Plus is a four-episode anime OVA and theatrical movie in the ''Macross'' series. It was the first sequel to the original ''Macross'' television series that took place in the official timeline (''Macross II'' was quickly retconned by series creator ...

'' during the 1990s, but it was her soundtrack for '' Cowboy Bebop'' in 1998 that made her extremely popular among anime fans. Hiroyuki Sawano known by his works in famous anime series like

Attack on Titan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. It is set in a world where humanity is forced to live in cities surrounded by three enormous walls that protect them from gigantic man-eating humanoids referred to as ...

Aldnoah.Zero , stylized as ΛLDNOΛH.ZERO, is a television and print series created by Olympus Knights and A-1 Pictures. It presents the fictional story of the Vers Empire's 37 clans of Orbital Knights' attempted reconquest of Earth—enabled by the empo ...

, his style is notable by having epic orchestra and vocal songs. He started composing in 2006 and still is composing in soundtracks or in his vocal project SawanoHiroyuki.

Yuki Kajiura Yuki, Yūki or Yuuki may refer to: Places * Yuki, Hiroshima (Jinseki), a town in Jinseki District, Hiroshima, Japan * Yuki, Hiroshima (Saeki), a town in Saeki District, Hiroshima, Japan * Yūki, Ibaraki, a city on Honshu island in Japan * Yuki, ...

is a composer known by her works in anime series such as Sword Art Online, Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel,

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Koyoharu Gotouge. It follows teenage Tanjiro Kamado, who strives to become a demon slayer after his family was slaughtered and his younger sister, Nezuko Kamado, Nezuko, turned into a ...

, and Kara no Kyōkai. She is also known for forming the vocal group Kalafina. Taku Iwasaki (the '' Rurouni Kenshin'' OVAs, ''

Witch Hunter Robin ''Witch Hunter Robin'' (stylized as ''Witch Hunter ROBIN'') is a 2002 Japanese anime series created by Sunrise and animation director Shūkō Murase. The series originally aired in Japan on TV Tokyo between July and December 2002. The series w ...

'', '' Read or Die'' TV, '' Soul Eater'') and

('' Noir'', '' .hack//SIGN'', ''

Kara no Kyoukai ''The Garden of Sinners'', known in Japan as sometimes referred to as , is a Japanese light novel series, written by Kinoko Nasu and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi. Originally released as a series of chapters released independently onl ...

'') have both produced several well-respected soundtracks in the late 1990s and 2000s.

Toshio Masuda (composer) is a Japanese composer. He has composed and synthesized scores for several Japanese television shows and animated series. Masuda is perhaps best known as the composer of the 2002 hit anime series ''Naruto'' where he combined traditional instrume ...

, has composed music for anime such as '' UFO Baby'' (2000) and '' Naruto'', both of which are popular shows. Shinji Miyazaki is mainly known writing and arranging music for the anime ''

Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...

''.

Michiru Oshima Michiru (満, みちる, ミチル) is a Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, 1970s J-Pop artist *, Japanese composer *, Japanese pop singer and songwriter *, Japanese voice actor *, Japanese anime scriptwriter *, Japane ...

composed the score for '' Fullmetal Alchemist''. Music for the second series, '' Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood'', was written by the notable composer

Akira Senju is a Japanese composer, arranger and conductor. Biography Senju studied composition at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music and received his master's degree with honors. Between 1994 and 2003, he produced series of cover albums ...

Shiro Sagisu Shiro, Shirō, Shirow or Shirou may refer to: People * Amakusa Shirō (1621–1638), leader of the Shimabara Rebellion * Ken Shiro (born 1992), Japanese boxer * Shiro Azumi, Japanese football player 1923–1925 * Shiro Ichinoseki (born 1944), Ja ...

is best known for his collaborations with

Gainax Gainax Co., Ltd. (stylized as GAINAX; ja, 株式会社ガイナックス, Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: ) is a Japanese anime studio famous for productions such as ''Neon Genesis Evangelion'', ''Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise, Roya ...

. His career has spanned nearly three decades and he's composed for a variety of anime including '' Kimagure Orange Road'', '' Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water'', ''

Neon Genesis Evangelion , also known simply as ''Evangelion'' or ''Eva'', is a Japanese mecha anime television series produced by Gainax and animated by Tatsunoko, directed by Hideaki Anno and broadcast on TV Tokyo from October 1995 to March 1996. ''Evangelion' ...

'', and ''

Bleach Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color (whitening) from a fabric or fiber or to clean or to remove stains in a process called bleaching. It often refers specifically, to ...

'', as well as '' Attack on Titan (film)''

Yoshihisa Hirano is a Japanese composer and arranger. He is best known for composing the scores for anime series, such as ''Death Note'', '' Hunter × Hunter (2011)'', and ''Edens Zero''. He has also made the orchestration for video games, mostly in the Final ...

is the acclaimed composer for ''

Death Note ''Death Note'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from December 2003 to May ...

', Hunter x Hunter (2011), Ouran High School Host Club,

Hajime no Ippo is a Japanese boxing-themed manga series written and illustrated by George Morikawa. It has been serialized by Kodansha in the ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' since October 1989 and collected into 135 ''tankōb ...

,'' and ''

Midori Days is a Japanese manga series by Kazurou Inoue. It was published by Shogakukan in the magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' from September 2002 to July 2004, with its chapters collected in eight ''tankōbon'' volumes. The manga was licensed in Nort ...

.''

Yutaka Yamada is a Japanese composer, Arrangement, arranger and Orchestration, orchestrator, based in Los Angeles. Biography Yutaka is an alumnus of the Senzoku Gakuen College of Music in Japan, where he studied musical composition under Toshiyuki Watana ...

, another popular anime composer, known for the scores of '' Tokyo Ghoul, Vinland Saga, Great Pretender,'' and ''

Babylon ''Bābili(m)'' * sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 * arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel'' * syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel'' * grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn'' * he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel'' * peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru'' * elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...

'' Satoru Kosaki is another popular composer mainly known writing and arranging music for the anime ''

Lucky Star Lucky Star, The Lucky Star or Lucky Starr may refer to: Art, entertainment, and media Anime and manga * ''Lucky Star'' (manga), a manga, anime, and video game series * "Lucky Star", one of the Angel Frames from the anime and manga series ''Galaxy ...

'' and '' The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya''. Goro Omi is another popular composer mainly known writing and arranging

science-fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...

, which is his specialty due to his dark

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

. He is also best known for the background music in both the '' Ginga: Nagareboshi Gin'' and ''

Tonde Buurin is a Japanese magical girl manga series written and illustrated by Taeko Ikeda. It was originally serialized in Shogakukan's Shōjo manga, shōjo magazine ''Ciao (magazine), Ciao'' from August 1994 to September 1995, collecting into 3 ''tank� ...

'' TV shows. Motoyoshi Iwasaki's music style is also dark

, although he is best known for his music from the '' Hamtaro'' TV show. Mark Mancina is more well known for composing background music outside of

, as well as the music for the '' Blood+'' TV show. Kohei Tanaka, a prolific anime and

video game composer Video game music (or VGM) is the soundtrack that accompanies video games. Early video game music was once limited to sounds of early sound chips, such as programmable sound generators (PSG) or FM synthesis chips. These limitations have led to ...

, is famous for being the music composer for ''

One Piece ''One Piece'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' since July 1997, with its individual chapte ...

'' and '' 21-emon''. Takanori Arisawa, Udi Harpaz, and Amotz Plessner are other popular composers mainly known writing and arranging music for the anime ''

Digimon , short for "Digital Monsters" ( ''Dejitaru Monsutā''), is a Japanese media franchise encompassing virtual pet toys, anime, manga, video games, films and a trading card game. The franchise focuses on the eponymous creatures, who inhabit a "Di ...

''. Toshihiko Sahashi is another popular composer mainly known writing and arranging music for the anime ''

Steel Angel Kurumi is a Japanese manga series created by Kaishaku. An anime series adaptation directed by Naohito Takahashi, animated by Oriental Light and Magic, produced by Pony Canyon with character designs by Yuriko Chiba and Yūji Ikeda and music by T ...

''.

Kow Otani is a Japanese composer. He is best known for creating the soundtracks for the Heisei ''Gamera'' trilogy, '' Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack'', ''Mobile Suit Gundam Wing'', and ''Shadow of the Colossus''. Biogra ...

is the music composer for ''

Shakugan no Shana , also known simply as , is a Japanese light novel series written by Yashichiro Takahashi with illustrations by Noizi Ito. ASCII Media Works published 26 novels from November 2002 to November 2012 under their Dengeki Bunko imprint. The ...

'', '' Blade of the Immortal'', '' Outlaw Star'' and '' Deltora Quest''.

Shunsuke Kikuchi was a Japanese composer who was active from the early 1960s until 2017. He specialized in incidental music for media such as television and film. Kikuchi was regarded as one of Japan's most highly demanded film and TV composers, working princi ...

is the music composer for the ''

Doraemon ''Doraemon'' ( ja, ドラえもん ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. The manga was first serialized in December 1969, with List of Doraemon chapters, its 1,345 individual chapters compiled into 45 ' ...

'', '' Dr. Slump and Arale-chan'', ''

Dragon Ball is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The Dragon Ball (manga), initial manga, written and illustrated by Toriyama, was serialized in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 individual chapters colle ...

'' and ''

Dragon Ball Z ''Dragon Ball Z'' is a Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Animation. Part of the ''Dragon Ball'' media franchise, it is the sequel to the 1986 '' Dragon Ball'' anime series and adapts the latter 325 chapters of the original ...

'' anime. Shinkichi Mitsumune, because of his cinematic scoring and orchestration with big

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

sound, is the ''

Yu-Gi-Oh! is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kazuki Takahashi. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magazine between September 1996 and March 2004. The plot follows the story of a boy named Yugi Mutou, w ...

'' TV show's music composer. Kevin Penkin, an Australian-born composer known for his scores for '' Made in Abyss, Rising of the Shield Hero,

Tower of God ''Tower of God'' () is a South Korean manhwa released as a webtoon written and illustrated by S.I.U. It has been serialized in Naver Corporation's webtoon platform Naver Webtoon since June 2010, with the individual chapters collected and publish ...

, Eden,'' and an episode of '' Star Wars: Visions.'' Tsutchie, composer for the new anime adaptation of ''

Gangsta. ''Gangsta'' (stylized as ''GANGSTA.'') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kohske. It has been published in Shinchosha's '' Monthly Comic @BUNCH'' magazine since March 2011. The series has inspired a spin-off manga, an ...

'', also composed scores for '' Cowboy Bebop'' and '' Samurai Champloo''.

Kan Sawada (born 9 April 1968) is a Japanese composer and arranger. His desire to be a composer came from listening to Ludwig van Beethoven's symphonies in junior high school. Sawada studied composition and orchestration at Tokyo College of Music. He won ...

is another popular composer mainly known writing and arranging music for the anime ''

''.

Miki Matsubara was a Japanese composer, lyricist, and singer from Nishi-ku, Sakai, Osaka, Japan. She participated in the opening and ending theme songs of the TV anime "Gu-Gu Gummo" under the name of "Susie Matsubara." Her 1979 debut song " Mayonaka no Doo ...

(1959-2004) was a singer and composer mostly known for her compositions for anime such as Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory {{DEFAULTSORT:Anime Composer *