A high school 3rd year student, Miyamoto Dai, whose heart was touched by Jazz, continued to play the Saxophone alone in Kawahara, rain or shine, day or night, for many years. Ishizuka's page-turner applies the gung-ho spirit of action manga to an unlikely subject: jazz music. The series was published in English by Seven Seas Entertainment as 2-in-1 omnibus volumes from November 10, 2020 to March 22, 2022.

The story is punctuated by short flashbacks explaining Dai's love of jazz, and references to giants such as Bill Evans, Charlie Parker or Miles Davis. A wonderful ambassador of jazz, Blue Giant is a great success in Japan and France, where the first volume has been published in 2018 by Glénat. I used to play the violin back in high school, I was in advanced orchestra even though I barely knew how to read music sheets! The incredible music strikes a chord deep inside him, and he immediately decides to dedicate himself to the saxophone.

This award-winning manga from Shinichi Ishizuka, compiled into five omnibus volumes for its English debut, is a pitch-perfect drama about the power of music. I also like that we aren’t told what the main character is rehearsing because it gives the reader a sense of freedom and lets you imagine his sound, because if you were to pull out a recording of Coltrane or Armstrong you wouldn’t hear the real him. The art is above average, the character designs are non-inspiring, and the story is just a cliche came-of-age tale.

He has no skills, no formal training, and no idea what he's up against, but his obsession drives him to play that instrument day after day. He wants to be kind but can’t, tries to make himself look cool, and sometimes acts diffident, which is all part of the charm of Yukie.A third series, titled Blue Giant Explorer, was serialized in Big Comic from May 25, 2020, [14] [15] to May 10, 2023.

On the other hand, Yukinori, a pianist, appears to be strong, but inside, he has a lot of pain that he does not show to others. Music is something beautiful and you don’t have to play an instrument to truly feel it, so what if the chords make no sense ?

The Japan Society hosted the premiere in New York on October 6, 2023, in advance of screenings at North American theaters on October 8 and 9. There is an old gospel song with the lyrics, “Take me back/take me back dear Lord/to the place where I first received You. After having written about mountaineering with the Vertical series (awarded many times for its very realistic and informed aspect), the author Shinichi Ishizuka released in 2013 a manga about his other passion: music.

Blue Giant has become something of a jazz emissary in Japan, with its manga releases coming tied to music lesson promotions, a compilation CD of jazz greats picked out by the artist Ishizuka, and even a tie-up with Brooks Brothers, based on one of Dai’s most famous quotes: “A white shirt is proof you’re a jazz man! It’s this that throws him into the company of Yukinori (Shotaro Mamiya) a former piano prodigy old before his time, prickly with those less talented or privileged than himself, and almost ready to give up the jazz game entirely. The main character, Dai, is always strong and straightforward,” Namba told Ryo Takayama in Tokion magazine. Phenomenal story, plot progression, and characters as the high school protagonist makes discoveries and mistakes in his quest to explore the Jazz idiom on tenor saxophone.Dai's friends and mentors keep him down to earth and are just as important to the story as he is (not Individually but to the supporting cast as a whole). It doesn't give too much detail in music theory (mainly because the focus is Dai's experience) but you'll still appreciate this manga! beautiful development as he transforms from a boy to a man in both heartwarming and heartbreaking fashion. Je l’ai acheté en Anglais parce que je trouvais ça cool d’avoir deux tomes réunies en 1 seul et honnêtement, je ne suis pas déçue !