Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
heldencrow
The music is superb. Purely as an introduction to the passion and tradition of shamisen and acoompanying song this anime could not have been better. I will always be grateful to have been given this chance to experience that for the first time. And not just one or two performances: the show features multiple Japanese artists playing together or alone, sometimes introducing us to new ideas, sometimes playing the same piece but made individual through their own styles.
However. The excellent music and good supporting artwork are let down by the story and characters. The main character is The Troubled but Brilliant Artist in Search of His Own Sound. A cliché in service of a cliché. He is silent, moody, self-obsessed and generally an asshole to everyone. But they always seem to forgive him b…
Read at the sourceVicenteDragneel
I started watching this anime because I was intrigued by the musical instrument they use and the way it sounds. I stumbled upon a dramatic anime in which the protagonist tries to create his own music despite being heavily influenced by his grandfather's music.
Story: 9/10
The story revolving around Setsu, the protagonist, is spectacular. Despite having immense talent, he lacks his own unique style when playing the shamisen, only imitating his grandfather's music. Thus, he must search for his own essence.
Art: 8/10
The art is perfect and doesn't need much more than it has. Even the fingers playing the shamisen and the movements are fantastic.
Characters: 9/10
The characters are perfect in every sense. None of them seem flat or unimportant, and the characters who are meant to be irritatin…
Read at the sourceZNoteTaku
SPOILER-FREE!
I’ve taught music and music history at a university, but interestingly enough, music anime and I have a bit of a troubled relationship. I suppose it stems from the fact that I find real-life stories about what music means to people so much more compelling than what fiction usually provides. It’s rare that I come across a music anime like "Sound! Euphonium," "Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song," or "Kids on the Slope," which manages to both excite my musical imagination and make me feel compelled to follow the overall drama.
Which brings me to "Those Snow White Notes," a show where I wasn’t sure what to expect from it. All I knew going in was that it concerned an instrument that I knew a little bit about, but not anywhere enough to be called an expert. I’ve listened to a few shamisen…
Read at the sourceTwilightDweller
Strange, clumsy, erratic, but riveting. If I had to describe this show in a few words. The range of emotions I felt while viewing were unexpectedly diverse. The title of Mashiro no Oto speaks for itself, the "sound" they produced was exceptionally candid.
For many people, after a certain point of viewing title after title, they may stop fussing over the technical details of a production and start focusing on more abstract concepts such as feeling the emotion or passion of the creators conveyed through the characters, or particular themes or messages that resonate with them. This is one such work for me. The plot isn't particularly exceptional and the pacing is pretty poor. Particularly the beginning and ending, both being quite abrupt. There aren't any groundbreaking moments in the arcs…
Read at the sourceZaysaki
The music pulled me in and it is good. Everything else i had to endure. I was rolling my eyes so hard i had to start fast forwarding some of parts between the music. So much terrible writing, pointless drama and tear jerking. Mediocre characters at best, throwaways at worst. I know it's a problem in manga/anime as a whole, but damn some of these female characters were so stereotypically useless.
It started well enough, but went down hill quite early. Completely threw away an interesting story and went with just another high school setting with an arena arc to top it off.
I expected better, but it was so bad that it actually made me write this review. If you think this is like 'Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu', think again.
Read at the sourcesimonsenpai98
Biggest Upset endings in anime history.
Written poorly although music is 11/10. Plot is 2/10.
I hate when they over dramatized the story to distract from actual musical journey which is supposed to be a main theme.
Nodame Cantabile is a perfect example of how music anime is done right.
Cowboy Bebop have better musical journey than most "music" anime out there.
Worst part is cliff hangers. I hope studios stop doing that for business reason because many viewers will drop & move on to next anime which don't have cliff hangers.
I hope there's season 2 because there's no way if this is how the show ends.
I'm upset because it could've so much better.
The protagonist seems to need psychiatrist & his "mom" shouldn't be around him. The main plot ought to be MC not caring about competition, n…
Read at the sourceCaptainTexas
The first episode of this show intrigued me with an interesting set of characters, a decent premise (wandering musician trying to deal with grief), and decent music that showcased an instrument that I didn't have much exposure to.
Unfortunately the rest of the series doesn't deliver on the promise of the pilot. We are quickly introduced to your bog-standard high-school setting that turns, rather quickly, into your standard tournament arc. The shamisen does occasionally shine but is often drowned out in unnecessary overly-expository dialogue or, worse, saccharine, see-how-hard-we-are-trying-to-tug-at-your-heart-strings?! background music.
The show sets up some interesting characters and character dynamics (our protagonist has an amazingly dysfunctional family) but fails to develop the c…
Read at the sourceanairam9
When I first read about this anime I was hyped, and it did not dissapoint.
Story: 9/10
The first half was good enough to keep me watching, with some silly moments here and there. But the second half came unexpected. As we dive more into Sawamura's conflict, the episodes feel shorter, and you are left craving for more. In some episodes the melodrama was at the same level as a soap opera. But, on a personal level, his search for his own sound and identity hit home, and his frustration never felt more relatable than now.
Art: 7/10
The series' art in general looks fine, but when the shamisen is out, you get some beautiful shots and movements that makes the instrument feel alive.
Sound: 10/10
The ops and ed were great, and the score in general was good. But the 10 goes for each time you h…
Read at the sourceWatchTillTandava
*I didn't intend to write this as an actual submitted review, but decided to post it on a whim, because why not?
*Spoilers included
I thought the first episode or two were excellent, as was the season finale (even the penultimate episode was pretty solid, mostly because of the build-up of tension leading into the finale and re-focus back on Setsu and the individual competition). The other 10 or so episodes though were a huge letdown.
Beyond the first and final episodes, I love the color palette and lush art style in this show and most of the shamisen playing scenes and their musical quality (I say most, because some were kind of a retread and others were too diluted with being drowned out with interspersed characters' talking and the general OST of unnecessary piano music loudly playing…
Read at the sourceMihikoAnim
Mashiro no Oto, was amazing and moving ... but only at the beginning and end of the anime.
The story is not banal, it surprises and one wants to follow the hero's story further. Setsu, after his grandfather's death, runs away from home and sets off from the village to the big city, meets new people, and begins his journey to find his sound.
And so it begins, but quickly ends up in high school and the school elements get tangled up. The famous story of the tournament in which friends and the main character are to take part begins. At this point, I started rewinding the episodes, not wanting to see the whole thing.
The story is patterned, you won't see anything new. High school students and Setsu's new friends are boring and simple. The same is true of a teacher who cannot understand that sh…
Read at the sourceren0080
Lemme tell you, even if you don't know sh*t about music, I think you'd enjoy this anime.
I mean, even me who had sh*tty music taste who only likes jpop songs had a boner when I listen to this anime's music performances.
And that's saying a lot since all other music/ost that did that are only from a few (Sawano, Kajiura, Kenji, etch.)
The story itself is very simple. Although it had a rocky start with unimportant characters being introduced in episode 1 just to never mentioned them again for the rest of the season. But never mind that, the pacing of this anime is quite good. It had natural progression and it doesn't have any forced development in it's story. Overall, very good.
The characters however are kinda forgettable. Like, the minor characters I mentioned in episode 1. The start wa…
Read at the sourceAlice0006
When I know this only has 12 episodes but the manga already has 27 volumes and it's still ongoing: I know this will be unfinished journey. So I will not pay attention much to the ending while reviewing this and just hoping for second season.
Story:
A journey about a boy who search for his sound. All his life, he is only imitating his grandpa. After meeting many people, perform in public, and participate in competition, he start to discover his own sound and learn many other emotion.
I actually already skimming the manga and I know he will perform in public later on so this anime is really just the beginning of his journey. Even if it's only the beginning, we clearly can see he grow as a person, and many characters and event happen here is for that purpose while other characters are also…
Read at the sourceYun45
I'm not usually a big fan of music animes but this anime really captured my heart from beginning to end. The music was beautiful and the story was good. There were heartwarming moments, emotional moments, and many more emotions to experience from this anime. Honestly, this anime kept surprising me in many ways and kept me on my toes throughout the whole show. I have nothing but good things to say about this anime.
I highly recommend this anime, sadly it seems that this anime is very underrated. I will be eagerly waiting and wishing for another season of Mashiro no Oto.
Read at the sourceEdenharley
By the premise alone you might think this show is an absolute skip, and I don't blame you. It's essentially "quiet boy is good at the shamisen, a traditional Japanese instrument". That's it that's the plot. However there is so much within that plot that makes this show so fantastic.
Firstly and probably mainly are the music and performances, the soundtrack for this show is really unique as it's mostly only performances of the shamisen, even the OPs and ED are based around the instrument. These performances, however, are truly breathtaking. You wouldn't think something as "boring" as a shamisen performance could make you legitimately excited but this show excels at that. Each performance is shrouded with character development and really neat visual elements along with really great animatio…
Read at the sourceAlfredo_Elric
Mashiro no Oto is a new music anime about an culturally important instrument: the shamisen. From the first episode, the audience is drawn to Setsu, a very skilled shamisen player who has yet to find his sound, leaving his home in the countryside for Tokyo after his grandpa has passed away. Throughout Setsu’s journey, there are many forced, dramatic moments to be able to meet new characters or push the story forward. While the music is gladly the strongest point to this anime, there are many flaws that come with it. Before explaining further, some cultural context of this instrument should be known.
Kabuki is a very important theater within Japanese culture. There are different types of theater like Bunraku, the puppet theater, but both use the shamisen instrument as an important figure.…
Read at the sourcegaussian_
Finding our identity as an individual is a journey we all embark on in life. This journey is unique, but for many its most tempestuous years take place while we are teenagers. Who do we want to be? Who does society want us to be? Who do we look up to? How do we take the best we see in others and incorporate it into ourselves without compromising our individuality?
These are the key questions explored by Mashiro no Oto, as we follow the life of a budding young shamisen player, Sawamura Setsu. At its heights, Mashiro no Oto explores this with delicate grace, effortlessly playing the strings of our emotions, but in its valleys it struggles with the selfsame question.
Mashiro no Oto started amazingly strong, with one of the best first episodes I've seen to date. Sawamura Setsu's struggles fo…
Read at the sourcetensura1704
This review is Spoiler free....
"Mashiro no Oto" before starting this anime, I never watched any music and competition based till now. But after watching the first episode it's like... We can give this anime a chance. This story is totally based on an instrument called Shamisen. Well to be frank... the music is the heart and soul of this anime. Let's get into deep:
Story: 7/10
It's really a simple story. There's nothing new about the story. The plot is a bit predictable. You can easily guess what's gonna happen next. Also the pacing of first 3 episodes are good, then it gets dragged. Unnecessary Elements are too much in the anime that makes you a bit bored.
Art: 8/10
I think the art is good. The soft texture of the backgrounds which will add it's speciality while the characters playin…
Read at the sourceLuubie
Learning about Japan's artistic cultures is always a wonderful experience. How many times do we come across anime and manga that use themes that are unusual in the Western, but that produce an essential meaning in this very rich country? This season, eyes were definitely on the most popular animes and that overshadowed some titles that could deliver much more than just 12 Episodes. Mashiro no Oto is one of those hidden and silent animes within the huge catalog of titles. That's bad for the show's visibility, but definitely its relevance, even if filtered by the few people who appreciate that kind of culture, is more than pleasing, it's surprising.
Mashiro no Oto is basically a show involving an instrument and a melancholy story of Setsu, the protagonist. He lost his inspiration and his re…
Read at the sourceStark700
Life is full of opportunities and the teenage years is no exception as the time to experience growth. What does that tell you about Setsu Sawamura? Is he an opportunist seeking glory or trying to find his own purpose in life? You see, if there's anything in life that's difficult, it's to live in it.
Chances are that if you're the average anime viewer following only a few shows every year, this slipped under ther radar. It didn't achieve mainstream popularity even in its own genre. And let's be honest here, judging on the premise itself gives the impression of a niche type of show. Indeed, Mahiro no Oto (Those Snow White Notes) packages together a variety of characteristics and genres that mixes music, drama, and most importantly, character growth. With that mind, it's time to take a deep…
Read at the sourceIrrelevantGuy
Mashiro no Oto started out as a trainwreck. Riddled with horrendous pacing issues, the first episode tried fitting in way too much content for its own good, nearly making me give up all my hopes for the anime. I'm glad that I stayed until the end, though, because what came afterward was nothing short of spectacular.
Mashiro no Oto focuses on the traditional Japanese instrument known as shamisen, something that very few people are familiar with. However, this is not necessarily an anime about shamisen. First and foremost, Mashiro no Oto is an anime about the inner growth of a troubled teenager named Setsu Sawamura, who merely plays shamisen. The anime primarily chronicles Setsu's tumultuous life as he tries to overcome his struggles with the help of his friends and family members.
Mashiro…
Read at the source