My Childhood Friend, who became a National Idol, moved next door to my Run-down Apartment [Dropped] - Chapter 35 - The Start of Musical Fest!
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- My Childhood Friend, who became a National Idol, moved next door to my Run-down Apartment [Dropped]
- Chapter 35 - The Start of Musical Fest!
“Senpai! It’s already 10 o’clock! The first performance has started!”
“Sena, open all the windows in the classroom. Let the sound leak outside even if it is a little bit.”
“Understood!”
Without needing to be told, Sena actively cooperated with my instructions.
Truly a dependable and adorable kouhai.
“For the work I’m putting in, I’ll make sure to pay you properly later! I won’t let you forget our promise!”
…And this time no tricks involved.
For now, someone passing by needs to know that I’m playing the piano here. For a 30-minute set, it means I have to play the piano continuously until it catches someone’s attention.
Street piano….
Originally, it referred to pianos placed in public places like streets and corners for anyone to play freely. However, recently, on video platforms, the popularity lies in taking requests from occasional viewers and delivering improvisation and arrangement on the spot.
“In most other venues, it’s mostly about playing one-way music for the audience. But if we can take requests and arrange them on the spot, we can create interactive music. It’s a trick that works precisely because the venue’s capacity is small.”
But Sena seemed skeptical of my opinion.
“But what if a song we don’t know comes up? What would we do then? If someone says ‘I don’t know this, please play a different song,’ the situation would become awkward.”
“Really? You just listen right there, memorize it, and play it accordingly when the modulation comes. If you don’t mess up the modulation timing, you can go through 20 songs in 30 minutes.”
“Wow… How do you even keep track of all that in your head? I understand…”
Sena put on wireless earbuds connected to their smartphone, took a deep breath, and prepared herself.
Songs generally have similar structures. Especially in contemporary J-pop music, there’s a limited range of chord progressions and melodies that are well-received.
She just has to read the main melody accurately, avoid dissonance, fit chord progressions into various patterns, and grasp the pleasant sequence of notes while performing.
As long as we keep these four things in mind, surprisingly, it will work out.
After all, there might be various arrangements, but there are no real mistakes.
Moreover, this year, both True Mirage and Misty Eyes, one of the top popular idol groups are coming to the university, so there’s a larger crowd than usual. Even so, the venue’s capacity hasn’t changed. Thus, there’s a reasonable chance that people who couldn’t get in might pass by here.
And then…
“I couldn’t hear the Japanese instrument rock!”
“Miku, don’t be selfish. We couldn’t get seats, so it can’t be helped. How about we buy cotton candy and listen next time?”
“They even mentioned that they’d perform the Altiman Omega opening…”
Suddenly, voices of two people from outside the room could be heard.
They were conversing in front of the J-Venue. We can’t let these potential audience members slip away.
Altiman. A boy’s favorite hero, where giant transforming heroes defeat monsters invading Earth.
“Altiman Omega… and the MV music video is this. Oh, they’re using our studio for it? Interesting.”
Sena played the opening video that was uploaded on the video platform.
From the high-tempo intro that hits you like a punch to the head, to the consistently male-oriented high sound, it’s suitable for singing from the bottom of your heart.
This song, which seems like it needs to be played powerfully throughout, fits perfectly as the first piece to attract the audience.
Peeking out, I saw that the two outside were a boy in the early years of elementary school and his mother.
It’s up to me to somehow get them inside…
“Hello there! Wasn’t that Zest Beam that defeated Goran the monster in Episode 3 of Altiman Omega super cool? This guy is going to play it for you now. Would you like to listen?”
Sena’s communication skills are completely off the charts!
Sena, without any sense of incongruity, started talking to the young boy. And it worked, the boy responded to her words excitedly.
“Huh? Nee-chan knows about Omega?!”
“Fufu~, Kagari has been watching Altiman since I was a little kid! Since Kagari, who knows so much, is excited about the performance of that guy over there, there’s no reason not to expect great things!”
“Mom, can I go check it out!?”
The boy’s eyes were gleaming.
“Uh, well, if Miku-kun wants to…”
In an instant, the boy’s eyes turned toward us.
Sena connected the first line for me. Now, the rest is up to how I handle it.
Adding heavy bass chords over the powerful intro.
“Is it okay if we watch from up close?… Is that alright?”
“Of course. Our venue is all about creating a sense of presence.”
Now that I think about it, during a concert, there needs to be a certain distance between performers and the audience. Since there are no chairs or anything here, having the audience watch from zero distance is an advantage.
“Wow…! It’s so cool…! And it’s so loud…!”
Rather than neatly playing the notes in sequence, I used all my muscles to strike the keys dynamically, so that the motion itself would show in the boy’s eyes.
Meanwhile, I glanced at Sena conveying her my thoughts.
“Miss, if you’d like, please come in too. And if you have any songs you want to hear, the pianist here can arrange them on the spot.”
“Can you really do something like that…? Like, for example, a calm song like ‘Summer Sonatina’?”
“Of course! If you let us know after this song, we can play it right away. Our senpai here knows all sorts of songs!”
In an instant, the earbud in my ear started playing the opening of a popular Korean drama from a while ago. I had only heard the mother watching it briefly and didn’t know the details.
A flowing, melodic song of love. It’s the complete opposite genre of what the boy requested.
When Sena noticed my gaze, she sent me a small nod.
After this performance, I really have to buy them some yakisoba or takoyaki and treat her!
In the meantime, Sena doesn’t miss a single opportunity in the sporadic flow of passersby.
Next, a group of three high school girls passed by.
“But seriously, this place is doing some pretty intense piano stuff too, right?”
“There’s barely anyone here.”
“It’s still morning. Cheer up!”
“Hey, let’s go to the Light Music Club’s popcorn stand. There’s nothing here.”
“Just checking it out real quick. Oh, is that you, Kagari-senpai!?”
“Huh? Miyu and Kanae, right? Skipping school to come here… Well, this works perfectly. I’m going to gather everyone together, so you all stay here. I’ll show you something amazing.”
““Yes!””
For some reason, the two high school girls stood at attention, then quickly ran off.
“Senpai, we have added another five-person group! That makes seven in total! It’s going to get busy here soon!”
Sena’s ability to wink cutely is just too much!
Could the first performance, with its overachieving Senpai, have just started?
☆☆☆☆☆☆
Hello Readers, translator here. Unfortunately due to lack of response from the readers it made it harder for me to continue this series and hence after thinking for a long time I decided to drop this series. Other TL are free to pick it up.
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TL : Zenon#4120