Masaki Niwa -- Koorogi Bashi（こおろぎ橋）

 

Singer-songwriter Masaki Niwa（丹羽応樹）made her first appearance on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" through her brassy composition of "Chinatown" for singer-actress Mari Natsuki（夏木マリ）back in 1978.

Later that year, the native of Ishikawa Prefecture released her 5th EP, "Koorogi Bashi" (Cricket Bridge) whose title track was used for a TBS drama of the same name that ran from October 1978 to March 1979. Incidentally, there is indeed a Koorogi Bashi located by Yamanaka Onsen（山中温泉）in Niwa's home prefecture. Niwa was the composer while Kenji Kadoya（門谷憲二）was the lyricist. Kadoya has also written for singer-songwriter Mieko Nishijima（西島三重子）, a lady for whom I also think has some similarities with Niwa in terms of song stylings.

"Koorogi Bashi" the drama was an afternoon show sponsored by Pola Cosmetics. Incredibly, I still remember seeing at least the opening credits for a typical Pola drama when I was a kid gallivanting around my grandfather's home in Wakayama Prefecture, and Niwa's "Koorogi Bashi" sounds like the type of song for such a drama. There is that wistful combination of piano, flute and strings as Niwa gives this beautifully lilting performance as Kadoya's lyrics relate all of the emotions and stories related to this most dramatic bridge.

Niwa is also an arranger who graduated with a degree in piano from the Tokyo College of Music. Her father is composer Keio Iida（飯田景応）while her mother is singer Hiroko Misaki（岬ひろ子）. While releasing 8 EPs and a couple of full LPs between 1970 and 1982, she has also provided her fair share of television themes and songs for people including Hitomi Ishikawa（石川ひとみ）, Teresa Teng（テレサテン）and Yujiro Ishihara（石原裕次郎）.