Makino Yui-san stepped onstage and opened with the light and cheerful melody of ‘Modokashii Sekai no Uede’ which brought on the cheers of the crowd. She then greeted the audience in English with a loud voice. “Thank you! Hi, everyone! Hi, Balitmore! I’m happy to see all of you!” The audience was definitely excited as they cheered back. Yui-san then switched to Japanese.
- Yui: Hello, everyone. I’m Makino Yui. Thank you very much. Is it okay to speak in Japanese? That’s amazing! Do you understand Japanese? Thank you so much! I love you all! Thank you!
Encouraged, Yui continued to share how happy she was to be with us. She shared that it was her first time in Baltimore but the second time in the US. She said in English “Thank you for coming today.” before moving on to announce the next song, ‘Sasayaki wa Crescendo’.
The melody was faster tempo then ‘Modokashii’ and she danced a bit on stage, moving to the music. There were only a few glow sticks waving in the audience but people clapped along to the beat.
The intro to ‘Fuwa Fuwa’, the single for her radio show is a personal fav with a light piano melody and lyrics to match. To hear her sing it live is truly a pleasure since it’s such a simple melody that just lifts you up. During the song, Yui-san got people to wave their hands and clap. I’m sure others were swept along to the sweet and catchy piece.
Moving to the keyboard, we were graced with her gentle melody on the piano and voice for ‘Ao no Kaori’. It’s a soft and slower song which showcased her vocal range as she goes from low to high in a single measure. Though gentle, it’s a powerful song.
She shared that the next song was from her debut role as Sakura for Tsubasa Chronicle. The fans cheered when they heard the name even before she announced the title of the next song, ‘You Are My Love'(This piece was actually a surprise piece since she left this area blank on the setlist.) It truly was a special moment as we had Sakura on stage singing as she played. A minor haunting melody which reflected the depth and sadness of the series.
The next song was naturally her debut single, ‘Amrita’ from the movie Tsubasa Chronicle: The Princess of the Country of Birdcages. For this ballad on the piano, I spotted a few in the audience waving their glowsticks.
One thing I must complain about is the video camera shots during the piano segments of the concert. Many times the focus of the screen was on her face when she was not even singing rather than her piano playing. The camera also cuts away sloppily and abruptly at times and the fade away was not utilized appropriately. For those that needed to watch the screens to view the stage, it was very jarring. Usually the focus of the camera is pretty good during these concerts which surprised me about the poor quality during this performance.
Back to the stage, Yui-san moved away from the piano to sing, ‘Cluster’ from her 2011 album. The audience clapped along. She closed with ‘World Tour’ from her 2015 album Tabi Note (which was also sold at the event. Before she sang the song, she taught everyone to say ‘Hello’ in reply to a segment in the chorus. The response was clear as we sang long with Yui-san.
- Modokashii Sekai no Uede (Welcome to the NHK ED)
Sasayaki wa Crescendo (Francesca: Girls Be Ambitious ED)
Fuwa Fuwa
Ao no Kaori (Soul Eater ED)
You are my love
Amrita (Tsubasa Chronicle movie ED)
Cluster
World Tour
After singing, an interpreter came on stage, but it was truly unnecessary as Yui-san was very clear in her motions and expressions. Yui-san simply asked for a photo with the fans which everyone quickly gathered in the front for. Her concert was too short, there were definitly more songs from her discography that she could have sang, but it was enjoyable all the same.
(Photos will be posted once they are approved by management. Thank you for your patience.)