This is the definitive BGM for the graduation ceremony! A moving collection of songs you can use for everything from the entrance march to the thank-you party.

you knowsakushi/sakkyoku: Takahashi Hayumi

[Piano] “Ne” Nursery/Kindergarten Song – Easy Accompaniment Piano Solo

This song is characterized by its gentle melody and warm lyrics.

Written and composed by Hayumi Takahashi, it celebrates the importance of human connections.

Originally created as a camp song, it is also widely used as a graduation song and is sung at performances and graduation ceremonies in nursery schools and kindergartens.

It received the Excellence Award at the 2nd Camp Song Contest hosted by the Japan Camping Association, and its musical value has been highly acclaimed.

Loved by a wide range of ages from children to adults, it’s a perfect track to play as background music in moments that evoke friendship and family love.

Song of a FriendBUMP OF CHICKEN

BUMP OF CHICKEN “Friend’s Song”

The song I want to listen to while reflecting on a friend I’m parting ways with is BUMP OF CHICKEN’s “Tomodachi no Uta” (“Song of Friends”).

The lyrics, written by Motoo Fujiwara as he thought of characters from works he loved since childhood, convey a clumsy yet warm sense of friendship, and the grand sound incorporating trumpet is sure to resonate deeply with men as well.

Released in February 2011 as their 19th single, this track moved many as the theme song for the film “Doraemon: Nobita and the New Steel Troops—Angel Wings.” It’s a song that wraps up the anxieties of a new departure and gently nudges you forward.

Even if you end up walking separate paths, it makes you believe the time you shared won’t disappear—a masterpiece filled with kindness.

Thank you along with goodbye.iwashi pikunikku

A preschool teacher’s graduation song, “Goodbye and Thank You Together.”

There’s a graduation song that makes the everyday memories of days spent at the preschool feel so precious.

Created by Iwashi Picnic, the song has steadily spread across childcare settings nationwide since its release on YouTube in January 2019.

Born from the creator’s experience as an active nursery teacher in charge of the oldest class, it gently weaves together specific, child’s-eye memories—like the day they fought with a friend and made up, or the moment they managed to eat a food they didn’t like.

The melody naturally blends the sadness of parting with feelings of gratitude, and it’s written in a range that even preschoolers can sing comfortably.

The simple piano-only arrangement is another charm.

It’s a piece that seems made for slideshow presentations at graduation ceremonies or as background music at thank-you gatherings—one that conjures the image of parents in tears as they look back on their children’s growth.

Filled with the warmth that only something born from real practice can offer, it’s a song that stands beside both the teachers sending the children off and the families setting out on a new journey.

Liebestraum (Dream of Love)Franz Liszt

List: Liebesträume No. 3 / Kyohei Sorita

The gently flowing piano melody softly envelops the listener’s heart.

Released to the world by Franz Liszt in 1850, this piece was originally composed as a song and later arranged for solo piano.

Its sweet yet faintly wistful resonance perfectly suits the atmosphere of a graduation ceremony, where farewells and new beginnings intersect.

From a quietly introspective opening, it builds passionately before settling back into calm—a structure that paints a drama reminiscent of reflecting on days spent at school.

Beloved across many settings, it has been used in commercials and wedding-related videos.

Why not let its tender tones grace solemn yet warm moments—such as the conferral of diplomas or the recessional?

It will be sunny tomorrow.Sakata Osamu

Ashita wa Hareru (Okaasan to Issho) / Osamu Sakata

When it comes to a song that cheers on children setting off on their own paths, this is the one.

Written and composed by Osamu Sakata, it was first broadcast in March 1999 as the Monthly Song on NHK E-Tele’s “Okaasan to Issho.” It was penned to coincide with the graduation of the show’s then “big brother” and “big sister” singers, and it beautifully weaves together the sadness of parting with the hope of meeting again.

Its gentle melody carries a message encouraging children to remember their friends especially in times of sadness or anxiety.

Featured even in elementary school music textbooks, it has become a timeless standard sung across generations.

It’s perfect for tender moments like graduation slideshow presentations or exit scenes.

Run Through the MemoriesMy Hair is Bad

My Hair is Bad – Dash Through the Memories

A ballad by My Hair is Bad filled with a warm message of gratitude to friends who shared irreplaceable time together, and of turning even painful experiences into strength for the future.

The sincere words penned by vocalist Tomohito Shiiki affirm the days that have passed in their entirety and give you the courage to take a new step forward.

Released in June 2024, the song also drew attention for being written as the theme for the film Crayon Shin-chan: Our Dinosaur Diary.

It’s an important track that closes out the album ghosts, featuring a grand band sound worthy of a story’s end credits.

It’s a song that gently supports graduates as they etch their memories into their hearts and move on toward tomorrow—why not listen to it together with your cherished friends?

Until the world becomes oneYa-Ya-yah

Until the world becomes one

This is a song by Ya-Ya-yah that has long been cherished as the ending theme of the beloved anime Nintama Rantaro.

Released in May 2002 as the single “Yuuki 100% / Sekai ga Hitotsu ni Narumade,” it reached No.

9 on the Oricon Weekly Chart.

Set to gentle piano and strings, it carries a warm message: in tough times, let’s hold hands and share our warmth.

The boys’ clear, pure vocals and soft harmonies are perfect for scenes reflecting on days spent at the kindergarten.

The lyrics, which convey the importance of bonds with friends and supporting one another, will quietly resonate with parents as well.

Played as slideshow background music or as an exit song, it will envelope the venue in a cozy atmosphere.

If everyone holds hands and sings together, it will become a song that makes your graduation-from-kindergarten memories shine even brighter.