Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Kiki's Delivery Service

Music by Joe Hisashi
Arranged by June Yoo ′25

Conducted by Mitchell Dubin ′25
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ABOUT THE WORK

Kiki’s Delivery Service is a 1989 Japanese animated film directed by Hayao Miyazaki and animated by Studio Ghibli. It tells the story of Kiki, a young witch who leaves her magical town in the countryside to start a life of her own in the city. Despite a promising start to her flying delivery business, she finds that she is unable to connect with the urban youth, who view her as old-fashioned and unrefined. As loneliness sets in, Kiki becomes depressed and falls into a magical slump.

Joe Hisaishi’s score for the film marks his fourth collaboration with Miyazaki in a partnership that continues to this day. The main theme, “A Town With an Ocean View,” is one of the most iconic works in his entire oeuvre. This arrangement combines this theme with two other selections from the soundtrack—“A Very Busy Kiki” and “Osono’s Request.”

This is the third consecutive year that we’ve brought Joe Hisaishi’s music to our largest venue, Woolsey Hall. Year after year, the 74-year-old Japanese composer’s scores for Studio Ghibli have been requested by the orchestra more than any other piece of music. We hope you can hear this enthusiasm as we bring Kiki’s magic back to the concert hall.

~ June Yoo ′25

#studioghibli #kikisdeliveryservice