The Los Angeles Philharmonic named composer Joe Hisaishi as its next Composer-in-Residence on Thursday, starting a five-year artistic partnership that begins with the 2027/28 concert season and runs through 2031/32. The deal brings the Japanese composer to southern California for new pieces, recording work, and regular concerts at three major halls. The Tokyo composer is now 75 [1].
Details of the Five-Year Residency
Work begins in the autumn of 2027 and runs through the 2031/32 concert season. The post is not an honorary title, but a five-year artistic role that puts Hisaishi on stage and in the recording studio. The Los Angeles Philharmonic confirmed that he will write pieces crafted for the orchestra and its local fans [2].
Joe Hisaishi said he feels honored by the selection and pointed to his growing artistic ties with southern California players over recent years. “Los Angeles holds a special place in my musical life-from the premiere of my Harp Concerto with the LA Phil’s Emmanuel Ceysson at Walt Disney Concert Hall to our recent performances at the Hollywood Bowl and The Ford,” he said following the announcement. “In the seasons ahead, I look forward to exploring new musical horizons with this extraordinary orchestra and sharing the spirit of discovery with audiences in Los Angeles and beyond,” he said [1].
At 75 years old and with a career spanning more than 50 years, Hisaishi shows no desire to retire from the podium. He keeps taking on conducting duties and new pieces that require regular travel. Extended stays in California will anchor his concert schedule through the five-year term [1].
Concert Venues for Joe Hisaishi
The residency centers on recurring dates at three halls run by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Downtown concertgoers will see Joe Hisaishi lead programs at Walt Disney Concert Hall, a venue known worldwide for its curved metal exterior and clear acoustic warmth. The hall gives him an indoor space suited for fine acoustic textures and full symphony works [1].
Summer appearances will shift to the hillside stage at the Hollywood Bowl, where Hisaishi drew record crowds during a three-day concert run in July that earned two Guinness World Records. The July concerts proved how eager local music fans were to hear his work in an outdoor amphitheater, and the new contract brings him back there each summer through the 2031/32 season. He often conducts while playing solo piano parts, guiding players through subtle dynamic shifts [1].
The third stage in the artistic pact is The Ford, known in county records as the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre. The historic open-air venue sits across the canyon from the Hollywood Bowl. Its natural hillside setting suits small groups and chamber pieces [2].
New Commissions and Outreach Initiatives
Writing new music for the Los Angeles Philharmonic stands at the center of Joe Hisaishi’s residency duties. The orchestra asked him to create original pieces that will receive their world premieres in Los Angeles during the five-year term. The new works will expand his concert catalog beyond film scores, building on minimalist symphony pieces and concertos he composed over the past two decades. The plan includes studio recording projects to document these new works for fans worldwide [2].
Hisaishi already tested this creative link when he premiered his Harp Concerto at Walt Disney Concert Hall with harpist Emmanuel Ceysson. The concert proved his ability to work closely with local players, laying groundwork for future studio albums [1].
Beyond writing and conducting on stage, the partnership includes educational programs developed with the Joe Hisaishi Foundation. The foundation supports music teaching and young talent, working with schools and local groups to make orchestra music open to youth across the region. Teaming up with the orchestra’s youth branch will let the group run masterclasses, student workshops, and community events across southern California [2].
Longstanding History of Joe Hisaishi at Ghibli
While this appointment focuses on his work on the concert stage, Joe Hisaishi is best known worldwide as the composer for Studio Ghibli. His artistic partnership with director Hayao Miyazaki began forty years ago and produced some of the most recognized scores in animation history [1].
In fact, there has never been a Hayao Miyazaki-directed Ghibli feature film that Hisaishi did not write the score for, forging an enduring creative bond that shaped modern Japanese cinema across four decades. His film catalog includes globally loved titles such as My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away. The music blends gentle piano lines with warm brass and string themes, mirroring Miyazaki’s tales about nature, flight, and childhood wonder. Generations of moviegoers know these melodies by heart, and his live concert suites continue to sell out arenas around the globe [1].
A background in both anime and concert halls gives Hisaishi a rare appeal among modern conductors. He bridges the gap between devoted film fans and traditional concertgoers, drawing both groups into the same seats. By bringing those fans into halls like Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl, the Los Angeles Philharmonic expects to draw fresh crowds who might not normally buy tickets for symphony programs [1].
Other Scores and Cultural Awards
Joe Hisaishi’s creative work reaches well beyond Studio Ghibli. His career spans five full decades. He contributed scores and musical arrangements to other anime productions, including Mobile Suit Gundam, Children of the Sea, Kimagure Orange Road, and Creamy Mami, showing a wide range across different animation genres [1].
Gamers know his work from the symphony score for Ni no Kuni, an anime role-playing game that featured full studio recordings. In live-action cinema, he scored a handful of feature films for Japanese director Beat Takeshi (Takeshi Kitano). Kitano’s film scores delivered sparse, emotionally quiet piano themes that proved his range beyond lush anime music [1].
His work brought Hisaishi major state honors in Japan. In 2010, the Japanese government awarded him the Medal of Honor with purple ribbon to recognize his services to culture. He won his sixth Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Music that same year, confirming his standing among his peers in the Japanese film industry [2].
More honors followed in 2023, when the Japanese government granted him the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette. The Los Angeles appointment opens another chapter in his long career, linking his Tokyo roots to the American symphonic tradition. For southern California audiences, the next five seasons offer a chance to hear fresh orchestra works written and conducted by one of Japan’s most famous composers [2].
- ONLINE NEWS Baseel, C. (2026, October 23). Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi named Composer-in-Residence of Los Angeles Philharmonic. SoraNews24. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS Anime News Network. (2026, October 22). Frequent Ghibli Collaborator Joe Hisaishi Named LA Philharmonic’s Composer-in-Residence. Anime News Network. [Article Link]
