A collection of theme songs, insert songs, and background music from 5 Centimeters per Second
5 Centimeters per Second is an animated film directed by Makoto Shinkai, released in 2007.
It tells the story of Takaki Tōno from his elementary school years to adulthood, centered around his first love from childhood.
Warm, bittersweet, and heartrending, it’s a favorite among many fans who consider 5 Centimeters per Second to be Shinkai’s best work.
And of course, it also features one of Shinkai’s trademarks: excellent music.
Beginning with Masayoshi Yamazaki’s One more time, One more chance, the beautiful tracks are as deeply moving as the story itself.
In this article, we’ll introduce the music related to 5 Centimeters per Second, focusing on the songs that appear in the film.
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- Songs from Spirited Away: theme song and insert songs
- The song from Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea. Theme song and insert song.
- The theme song of a romantic film that gives you a heart-fluttering, moving feeling.
- Song(s) from The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Theme song and insert song(s).
- Theme and insert songs of 'Your Name'
- Anime BGM compilation: background music and insert songs that color the story
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Compilation of Theme Songs, Insert Songs, and BGM from 5 Centimeters per Second (1–10)
Fragment of LettersEsaki Fumitake
This 24-second instrumental delicately crystallizes fragments of unfulfilled feelings.
It appears as the fifth track on the original soundtrack for the live-action film 5 Centimeters per Second, composed by Fumitake Ezaki.
As the title “Letter” suggests, its fragile charm evokes snippets of correspondence and memory.
Built around piano with chamber-like strings and sound design layered in, it employs a minimal touch that leaves breathing room like the trace of a sigh.
A brief piece that sinks into the heart when one reflects on missed connections and distance.
ClassicJUDY AND MARY
A four-piece rock band that blazed through the 1990s, JUDY AND MARY’s 10th single.
When it was released in October 1996, it was used as the opening theme for the TBS program “Pop-file,” and later became the song for Nissin Foods’ “Vegetable Soup Noodles” commercial.
In the live-action film “5 Centimeters per Second,” set for release in 2025 and depicting the year 1997, it’s featured as a song within the story, appearing in a scene where high schooler Kanae sings it at karaoke.
The lyrics capture a sparkling instant of youth, paired with a fast, exhilarating pop-rock sound.
And YUKI’s high, clear vocals convey the thrill of love and the brilliance of youth straight to the heart.
Give it a listen when you want to rekindle memories of a bittersweet first love.
Thinking About YouRadiohead
Released as an early recording in 1992 and included on the 1993 debut album Pablo Honey, this song is a poignant piece swirling with unrequited love and alienation.
Its lyrics, interweaving a rift between the successful other and oneself with jealousy and self-deprecation, evoke the feelings of Takaki Tōno.
The simple acoustic guitar arpeggios and the delicate vocal tone accentuate its introspective emotions.
It resonates in those moments when you stand frozen with an unattainable longing, when there’s someone you just can’t forget.
Collection of theme songs, insert songs, and BGM from 5 Centimeters per Second (11–20)
OursEsaki Fumitake
This is a piece featured on the soundtrack of the live-action film “5 Centimeters per Second.” Centered around the piano, it’s characterized by crystal-clear harmonic progressions and a delicate sound that makes use of ultra-soft attacks, carrying a fragility that resonates with themes of distance and the passage of time.
It gives you the sensation of slipping into the film before you realize it.
I’d recommend this work to anyone who cherishes bittersweet memories of love.
FeltEsaki Fumitake
It’s a playing technique where felt is placed between the piano hammers and strings to draw out a gentle touch, and the piece softly envelops memories of missed connections and loss.
By narrowing the range to the mid–low register and keeping the reverb short, the sound design tactfully evokes tactile images of raindrops, the night air, and still, snapshot-like scenes of trains.
You can’t help but be drawn into a cinematic world.
It’s a track I want to listen to on days when I’m carrying a quiet ache in my heart.
Please take your time and really sink into it.
Vanishing in the RainEsaki Fumitake
A song that delicately depicts rainy scenes and the wavering of the heart.
Centered around the piano, its soundscape conveys the blurring of memories and feelings for things that fade away.
It is placed at key moments in the latter half of the film where the characters’ inner worlds shift, playing a crucial role in supporting the emotional arc of the story.
I think it’s a piece that accompanies quiet nights when you listen to the sound of rain, or moments when you look back on memories with someone special.
Snow Fireworksrappubito
It’s not a main theme or insert song from the film, but I’d like to introduce a track connected to 5 Centimeters per Second.
The song is produced and performed by Rapbit, who is also active as a Nico-rapper.
It’s said to be a piece created with 5 Centimeters per Second as its motif, and the track—built around a bittersweet yet beautiful piano melody that resonates with the other songs featured in the film—leaves a strong impression.
The lyrics contain words that evoke the story, and it’s said that quite a few people discovered 5 Centimeters per Second through this song.
