Friday, October 24, 2014

Recap:// Nodame Cantabile Episode 7


Nodame and her Gorota puppet wonder if Eto is mistaking her for someone else by claiming to be her instructor. Eto knocks Gorota across the room and tells Nodame to be grateful that he's going to fully bring out her talent. He sees her musical score entitled "Fart Exercises" and Nodame explains that she's working with Tanioka to finish it. Together with choreography, it will be used in her student teaching. Eto demands that she play a normal classical piece.


Nodame starts to play Mary Had a Little Lamb and Eto yells at her. He tells her that he personally selected her as his student, and that playing around won't be tolerated. Nodame yells back, asking what is wrong with Mary Had a Little Lamb. She takes his fan away and informs him that she is studying seriously. She tells him not to refer to her rudely and leaves.


Nodame runs to Tanioka who tells her that Eto had insisted on taking her as his pupil. Besides, he thought it would be interesting. Nodame says she doesn't like Eto, but Tanioka tells Nodame to do her best and shows her out.


Chiaki and Kiyora meet with the new orchestra members to discuss what needs to be done. He gets a text from Mine informing him that he and Sakura got into A-Oke. Chiaki is pleased to keep the agreement to let them into his orchestra. Kiyora suggests having a drinking party for the new orchestra.


At the bar, Sakura points out to Mine that everyone knows each other already. Mine sees a flutist cozying up to Chiaki and alerts Masumi who pushes her out of the way and takes her seat. They begin a discussion of what piece to play and Chiaki is relaxed to be in such a mature gathering, unlike S-Oke's parties. However just half an hour later, they all turn into cheap drunks and everyone wants to be the soloist. Chiaki decides on an oboe solo featuring Kuroki; the only one not being a crazy demanding drunk.


Nodame looks for Chiaki at Uraken, but Mine's father tells her that they all went out for the new orchestra. He offers to make her mabo, but she leaves. Worried, he calls Mine to report that Nodame is acting strange.


Mine tells Chiaki that Nodame staggered home without eating anything. Kiyora suggests that they all go to another place. Chiaki gets pulled along by the girls, unknowingly passing Nodame in the street.


Kikuchi arrives at the academy in the convertible of his married girlfriend. Mine runs out to find out who dropped him off, when Kikuchi gets a call from yet another girlfriend, this one English speaking. Mine thinks he's amazing.


Reina and Maki comment on the group from Chiaki's new orchestra. Suganuma runs up and asks Saiko if she didn't know about it even though it involves Chiaki. Ookouchi asks them if they're okay with outsiders practicing at their school. Maki wonders who Ookouchi is. Ookouchi thinks she's talking about Kimura whom he remembers was known for violin, but he was nasty and bullied. Maki points out his misunderstanding.


Ookouchi starts to introduce himself as number two in the conducting department, when Eto comes and whacks the back of his head. He asks if anyone has seen Nodame, but no one has. He yells out that if she skips class, she'll have to repeat. Nodame trembles in her hiding place.


Chiaki confers with Kikuchi and starts practice. He notices Mine and Sakura in the mix and kicks them out. The piece is Mozart's Oboe Concerto in C Major which calls for only 35 players, so they have to sit this one out. Mine grumbles, asking why he picked such a piece. Masumi tells them that it doesn't call for a timpani either, so bear with it. Chiaki starts again, happy to be working with a good orchestra where everyone picks up quickly. He marvels as Kikuchi's amazing technique.


The members talk about their competition schedules, and also about how good a conductor Chiaki is. Mine is depressed because everyone is more skillful than he is. Masumi reminds him that the others enter competitions regularly. Mine protests that he was the concert master of S-Oke, and he even got into the elite A-Oke. Kiyora tells him that if he has time to complain, he should practice. She adds that he should stop acting like a woman, and be a man . This causes his eyes to roll back in his head.


Mine entreats Chiaki to decide on their next piece quickly. Masumi explains that Mine wants to practice in advance to impress the others. Kimura says that his practice doesn't matter; Chiaki should decide quickly or their publicity will be delayed. Masumi stops Mine from punching Kimura.

Chiaki points out that they don't have a hall to perform in yet. Just then Saiko comes in to inform Kimura that they should be able to reserve Tokyo Symphony Hall since she has influence there. Kimura tells a surprised Chiaki that he seems unfamiliar with these matters so that's why he's in charge of the administrative aspect. Then he freaks out over being able to fill the seats of such a large hall for an unknown orchestra, no matter how much they advertise.


Kawano and Sakuma arrive and ask if they want to put an ad in Classic Life. Of course it will cost them. Mine's father immediately whips out a lock box and offers to buy a full page. Chiaki wants to know what they are doing there, and Kawano explains that they got an anonymous call about Chiaki putting together an orchestra. Mine's father hides his face.

Masumi suggests that they decide on a name. Mine and his father had stayed up all night coming up with the name Rising Star Orchestra, R.S-Oke for short. Kimura is upset that they came up with the name.


Sakuma poetically approves, and Kawano translates that he thinks it's a profound name. Chiaki needs to decide on their next piece, and Sakuma gives him a CD of Strezemann's latest release. Before he leaves, Mine's father asks Chiaki to take food back for Nodame.


Nodame laughs when she hears that Chiaki is going to conduct Mozart. She explains that Mozart is pink, and it's funny to think of Chiaki conducting pink. Chiaki wonders why he was even worried about her when she's talking and eating a lot as usual. He asks about her piano practice, then says that since he's busy, she's on her own for awhile. Nodame is dismayed, but offers to bring food and honey dipped lemons to Chiaki's practice. He tells her not to come.


During practice, Chiaki feels that the orchestra sounds silver, and admits to himself that Mozart should have a little more glitter and warmth. During a break, Nodame shows up with miso soup and rice balls for everyone. Chiaki drags her outside and asks why she's not at ther lesson. She says that Tanioka is ill, and when Chiaki starts to call him, she makes the excuse that he went to Mexico with his family. Chiaki sees through her and asks why she's skipping class.


Kuroki comes out to speak with Chiaki and apologizes when he seems to be interrupting. Nodame rushes up to him and gives him the food she brought. After she leaves, Kuroki asks Chiaki if Nodame is his girlfriend. Chiaki explains that she's just an underclassman in the piano divison, and Kuroki looks happy to hear that.


Meanwhile inside, Kiyora plays her violin and Mine is amazed. He begs her to give him private lessons, saying she's better than his teacher. Then he professes his love for her violin. Chiaki interrupts, asking if they can start practice. Masumi cheers. Kiyora punches Mine away, but blushes as she takes her seat.


When practice starts again, Kiyora is smiling over Mine's confession and Kuroki thinks of Nodame. Chiaki notices that instead of plain silver, the orchestra is sounding pink.


Eto continues to hunt for Nodame, and she continues to avoid him.


Chiaki meets with Tanioka and finds out that Eto his now Nodame's instructor. Tanioka explains that after hearing them play Rachmaninoff, Eto became smitten with Nodame's talent. Chiaki says they'll never get along and asks why he doesn't do something to help her. Tanioka explains that he's not enthusiastic enough to bring out initiative in a student who doesn't have any. He wanted to help her achieve her dreams, so he helped with ther Mojya-mojya Suite and Fart Exercises for three years. He wouldn't have handed her over to Eto if she really didn't want it, but lately he feels that she's changed.


Chiaki finds Nodame's notebook in the practice room. She arrives and suggests they go home together. Chiaki reveals that he knows about Eto being her instructor and asks how long she's going to skip lessons. She says that she doesn't skip her early education classes. Chiaki tells Nodame that she's not suited to be a teacher. She won't be able to guide children when they won't respect her; she'll just get bullied. Nodame insists that she'll be a kindergarten teacher, but Chiaki says that if he were a parent, he wouldn't leave his child with her. Nodame proclaims them divorced, and Chiaki agrees and leaves.


Chiaki reflects that Nodame is a performer, but she won't make it the way she is now. No matter how talented she is, she has to have the desire to be a performer herself. He can't pull her up; in the end the only thing he can do to change her is to do his best in what he does.


Kuroki thanks Nodame for the food and offers her a bouquet of lily of the valley. While he explains that they signify pure love, Nodame is busy chasing the thermos that she dropped. He shows her how he scrapes his own reeds. For clarinets and saxophones, ready made reeds can be bought, but oboe reeds have to be specially made. Kuroki finds the oboe more lovable because it requires work, but people tend to think of it as a plain instrument.


Nodame thinks about the pressure Eto and Chiaki have put on her, and asks Kuroki if it's strange for a future kindergarten teacher to also aim high. Kuroki tells her that playing well makes him happy. The better he plays, the more fun he has. So to aim high is to enjoy music purely.


Eto asks Chiaki if Nodame is weird; why can't she take lessons normally? Chiaki tells him that he doesn't give normal lessons, teaching with a paper fan. Eto explains that it's not a paper fan, but the form of his love. Chiaki wonders why Nodame is running away. Even though Eto is strict, her rejection of him is too extreme. Eto says that he'll throw the fan away. He doesn't want to make the same mistake he made with Chiaki. No matter how weird she is, he won't give up on a student that he selected.


Nodame finds Puri Gorota figurines leading into the practice room. Eto comes in behind her with a lunch box that he says comes with the day's lesson. Nodame is about to jump over the railing when he tells her that he's thrown away his fan and apologizes for yelling at her.


Nodame agrees to take lessons normally, provided Eto signs a Fart Agreement. He has to help her finish the choreography for her Fart Exercise and promise not to hit her. Eto proceeds to sing and dance while she plays Fart Exercise and at the end, his notes on how to handle her, fall to the floor. Nodame picks it up and Eto reveals that Chiaki had given him advice, afterall, he's the one most worried about her. Nodame is so happy that she runs out of class.


Nodame finds Chiaki in the library and overhears him telling Saiko that he always thought it would be pointless to stay in Japan, that he wouldn't reach the top no matter what recognition he might receive.


Nodame eats at Chiaki's house that night and he wants to know what happened to breaking up. She asks him why he can't travel abroad and he can't hide the fact that he's afraid of flying. He says it doesn't matter because he's going to do all he can with the new orchestra.

The two of them listen to Strezemann's CD of Brahm's Symphony No. 1; his first symphony, taking 20 years to complete. Listening to it, you realize that not a second was wasted. Chiaki recalls Strezemann's advice to immerse himself in the music, to face the piece seriously, and that he won't tolerate mediocrity. He pulls the score off his shelf and starts working immediately.


Chiaki is determined to immerse himself in Brahm's world. At practice, some members arrive late. Mine confronts Kiyora saying the concert master shouldn't be late. He feels that the others aren't taking the orchestra seriously enough. They argue that they have to participate in competitions because their futures depend on it, but they are also in R.S-Oke because they feel they can do something great with Chiaki. Mine agrees saying that they can become a professional orchestra that will last forever.


Kurumi says it's a nice dream, but he'll be returning to Boston in the spring. Kiyora adds that she will be going back to Vienna at some point. She wants to do something amazing with this orchestra, but ultimately she wants to be based in Vienna and perform worldwide. Chiaki must be the same. The members wonder why Chiaki isn't already competing abroad. They all aim to be soloists rather than orchestra members.


Chiaki starts practice, but is upset that everyone laughed at Mine. Nodame notes that the members are all playing as they please. Chiaki abruptly ends practice, telling them that they'll resume after competitions are over.


Nodame follows Chiaki and drops her thermos. As it bounces down the stairs, Chiaki is confronted by a memory of a medication bottle rolling down the aisle of the airplane he was on as a child The memory goes on to reveal the elderly man sitting across the aisle from him and he wonders at this new revelation. Thus far, he hadn't seen a specific person is his recollection of the emergency landing.

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