Kono Oto Tomare! (Kono Oto Tomare!: Sounds of Life)

Gen Kudou, a koto maker, believes that his delinquent grandson Chika would never understand the profoundness of the traditional musical instrument. In an attempt to make up for his naivety and understand the words of his late grandfather, Chika tries to join the Tokise High School Koto Club.

Even though the club is in dire need of members, new club president Takezou Kurata is unwilling to easily accept Chika's application due to his bad reputation. Nonetheless, after seeing Chika's seriousness and enthusiasm, Takezou allows the problem child to join, along with koto prodigy Satowa Houzuki and three of Chika's energetic friends. Kono Oto Tomare! follows the merry band of musicians as they aspire to play at the national competition.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Adaptation:	Kono Oto Tomare!
Sequel:	Kono Oto Tomare! Part 2

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Characters & Voice Actors

Kudou, Chika

Main

Uchida, Yuuma
Japanese

Houzuki, Satowa

Main

Tanezaki, Atsumi
Japanese

Kurusu, Hiro

Main

Matsumoto, Sara
Japanese

Kurata, Takezou

Main

Enoki, Junya
Japanese

Takinami, Suzuka

Main

Namikawa, Daisuke
Japanese

Mizuhara, Kouta

Main

Iguchi, Yuuichi
Japanese

Adachi, Saneyasu

Main

Ishiya, Haruki
Japanese

Sakai, Michitaka

Main

Furukawa, Makoto
Japanese

Takaoka, Tetsuki

Supporting

Hosoya, Yoshimasa
Japanese

Kanzaki, Mio

Supporting

Aoi, Shouta
Japanese

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Staff

Cook, Justin

Producer

Herek, Samantha

Assistant Producer

Mizuno, Ryouma

Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Takakuwa, Hajime

Sound Director

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Opening Theme

"Tone" by Shouta Aoi

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Ending Theme

"Speechless" by Yuuma Uchida

Reviews

Oct 28, 2023

mairwaa

Recommended

It's not anything flashy, but it's heartwarming and sweet

So it's about diverting expectations, proving others wrong, doing your best despite everything. what pleasantly surprised me was that the side characters who were designed to look, act and sound like mobs were actually legit characters of their own, all while still maintaining their,,, humble appearances. A lot of emphasis on hard work. The "hardwork vs genius" problem is done beautifully and despite me thinking the trope is overdone, i loved it in Kono Oto Tomare.

But also it's not the best adaptation, but the koto playing is beautiful. And by it's not the best it's just a ...

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Jan 1, 2024

PlatsEdits14

Mixed Feelings

I really enjoyed the first season of Kono Oto Tomare!

When I first watched the anime I was so confused about the beginning of the story but after finishing the whole first episode it started becoming more interesting to watch that I can't stop watching. Some people might probably not like music genre anime, but for me this was my first music genre anime and I really liked it alot, and the fact that it also has some romance part in it makes it even more better.
The backstories of every character is good and way more realistic than most animes nowadays.

Kudou's smile somehow reminds me of ...

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Jun 29, 2019

Krunchyman

Not Recommended

Glancing at the promotional poster for “Kono Oto Tomare!” had me confused, that’s because I thought the students were holding bazooka’s. Which could have made sense given the American name, “Stop the sound.” Despite my lack of knowledge of the koto, however, I soon realized that splattered body parts would be a rare occurrence. Quite a shame, I know.

Musical-centered anime follow a similar framework to sports anime. The participants usually start with mediocre talent and low expectations, but through the power of bullshit (i.e. friendship), they overcome all/most obstacles in pursuit of their goal. Like when the vice principal challenged ... the crew to learn the koto in a month and play a song in front of the student body. The subsequent veneration from the student body was a cliched response that has been utilized more times than a crack pipe at Charlie Sheen’s estate…or car, or on the set of “Two and a Half men,” or at Wendy’s as he wears his Burger King crown with glee — “Smoke it your way, bitch!”

Manufactured plot points aside, the characters are recycled tropes of the worst kind. Chika (he’s actually a dude — outré, I know) was the archetypal ‘tough guy’ with a concealed gentler side. With the wisdoms of his father constantly ringing in his head, and the strengthening bonds of friendship, he blossomed into an amiable companion who supported his fellow koto enthusiasts. Satowa, the resident bitch, deceived the various men in her life to do her bidding. One might liken her to a succubus, but let me assure you, she’s not putting out. Similar to Chika, her aggressive demeanor cloaks her insecurities and longings to have friends. Both character arcs proceed accordingly, with no meaningful nuance to distinguish itself from its predecessors.

Takezo Kurata was an apathetic, meek boy who didn’t establish himself as someone worth caring about. His character arc was rather predictable, with a gradual rise in self-confidence as the series progressed toward its finale. The other, initial koto members — Kouta, Saneyasu, Michitaka — were stock characters with no discerning characteristics worth mentioning. Miya Sentarou, a member of a rival koto team, did have a humorous moment when he started ‘powering’ up during a live performance, and reached a state of kaio-ken (or, maybe he was having an aneurysm — tomayto, tomahto). Otherwise, though, Sentarou was rather tropey.

An interesting facet about “Kono Oto Tomare!” was the lack of koto music. Performances were often cut short or relegated to a considerable amount of internal dialogue/flashbacks from the main characters. Frankly speaking, evading the primary focus of the show for a contrived love story and frequent reminiscing seemed like lazy, bland storytelling. The difficulties of learning a new instrument is fascinating in its own right, without the ‘aid’ of superfluous, emotional conflicts. Eliminate the soap opera and focus on the trials and tribulations of the learning process.

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Poll: Kono Oto Tomare! Episode 13 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Jun 29, 2019	126 replies	by Alex_TheForest »» Mar 9, 4:11 PM
Poll: Kono Oto Tomare! Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Jun 22, 2019	59 replies	by Alex_TheForest »» Mar 9, 1:32 PM
Poll: Kono Oto Tomare! Episode 11 Discussion Stark700 - Jun 15, 2019	47 replies	by Alex_TheForest »» Mar 9, 12:39 PM
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