Theme Songs of NHK Taiga Dramas Through the Years: The Allure of Music That Colors Historical Stories

Main ThemeSaegusa Shigeaki

Overture 'Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack' / Shigeaki Saegusa

This is the theme song of Taiheiki, composed by Shigeaki Saegusa.

Taiheiki is the 29th Taiga drama, broadcast from January 6 to December 8, 1991.

Set from the late Kamakura period to the Nanboku-chō period, it portrays Ashikaga Takauji, the first shogun of the Muromachi shogunate.

The opening theme’s beginning instills a distinctly unsettled feeling.

Flames RiseSugano Yoshihiro

[NHK Taiga Drama] (1993) Homura Tatsu (The Flame Rises), Yoshihiro Kanno, Naoto Otomo, NHK Symphony Orchestra

This is the theme song for Honotatsu, composed by Yoshihiro Kanno.

Honotatsu is the 32nd Taiga drama, broadcast from July 4, 1993 to March 13, 1994.

It is a march-like piece that seems to express the heightened emotions of heading into battle.

Yae no Sakura Main ThemeSakamoto Ryuichi

Yae no Sakura Main Theme

This is the theme song for Yae no Sakura, composed by Ryuichi Sakamoto.

Yae no Sakura is the 52nd Taiga drama, broadcast from January 6, 2013 to December 15, 2013, and it was nominated in the Drama category at the 2014 International Emmy Awards.

The series tells the life story of Yae, the wife of Niijima Jo, the founder of Doshisha University, and became a particularly valuable work—its travel segment in the final episode even featured footage of Yae herself in her later years.

The Golden DaysIkebe Shinichirō

Shinichiro Ikebe / The Golden Days (1978) | Kimbo Ishii – NHK Symphony Orchestra

This is the theme song for “The Golden Days,” composed by Shin’ichirō Ikebe.

“The Golden Days” is the 16th Taiga drama, broadcast from January 8 to December 24, 1978.

For this series, the Taiga drama’s first overseas location shooting was conducted in the Philippines, and Filipino actors also appeared.

Ryōma-denSatō Naoki

Ryomaden

This is the theme song for Ryōmaden, composed by Naoki Sato.

Ryōmaden is the 49th NHK Taiga drama, broadcast from January 3 to November 28, 2010.

It was the first Taiga drama centered on Sakamoto Ryōma since Ryōma ga Yuku, which aired in 1968, and Masaharu Fukuyama played the role of Ryōma.

The Lady Taikō ChronicleSakata Koichi

[NHK Taiga Drama] (1981) Onna Taikōki, Koichi Sakata, Kazuhiko Komatsu, NHK Symphony Orchestra,

This is the theme song for Onna Taikoki, composed by Koichi Sakata.

Onna Taikoki is the 19th Taiga drama, broadcast from January 11 to December 20, 1981.

While Taikoki featured Toyotomi Hideyoshi as the main character, Onna Taikoki is told from the perspective of Nene, Hideyoshi’s lawful wife.

Its opening theme uses delicate string tones to express femininity.

Wind, Clouds, and the RainbowYamamoto Naozumi

[NHK Taiga Drama] (1976) Kaze to Kumo to Niji to (Wind, Clouds, and Rainbow), Naosumi Yamamoto (composer, conductor), NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Chorus

This is the theme song of “Kaze to Kumo to Niji to,” composed by Naotsugu Yamamoto.

“Kaze to Kumo to Niji to” is the 14th Taiga drama, broadcast from January 4 to December 26, 1976.

Set in the mid-Heian period, it portrays uprisings and wars, following the lives of Taira no Masakado and Fujiwara no Sumitomo.

The flute, reminiscent of gagaku, beckons you into the Heian era.