Chapter 6 is much more subdued than the previous one, but the things we get to learn are just as potent. This time, it’s an Akira-focused story!

Also I’m rethinking whether I should call their club the ensemble club or the chorus club. The latter is easier to understand, so I might just go with that.

Summary

Akira, Jin, and Shinji go over to Akira’s place to celebrate him finally joining the club on a technicality. As the three shoot the breeze, Akira talks about his vast collection of children’s books (and general love of books), his lack of TV and other forms of media, as well as the fact that his widowed mom being the reason he enrolled in Hashimoto Technical High School. For his part, Jin explains his motivations, namely his love of chorus groups and his desire to do everything in his power to make singing buddies (of which Akira is the first).

When Jin decides to try another song with Akira, he makes a discovery: Akira can sing much more clearly if he’s reading the lyrics, as if the comfort he feels from books transfers over. Soon after, however, a new face shows up at Akira’s door: a disheveled lady of unknown identity.

Technicality

The requirement for Akira to join the chorus club was that he had to sing. Jin decides that Akira qualifies after reciting part of a song, but Shinji objects: Akira didn’t really “sing”—he just talked! Jin, however, replies that plenty of pop songs have spoken portions. If it’s part of a song, it’s singing!

There’s something very appealing about this technicality, in that it reminds me of discussions I’ve heard and read over the years as to whether something like rap counts as “music.” There’s a always a certain type who will dismiss things that don’t fit their definition of “song,” and to see Jin gave a wider criteria gives me hope that Hashikko Ensemble won’t be unnecessarily critical of certain genres or styles.

Akira’s Spotlight

This chapter reveals a lot about this soft-spoken fellow, fleshing out his background in simple but profound ways. That flashback of him singing in previous chapters finally has context, as we learn that he was part of a class vs. class competition in middle school, and regrets not being able to sing better. We learn about his family circumstances—including his mom being a nurse—and even his hobby too. I’m actually surprised that I didn’t even notice that the manga hadn’t revealed anything about his interests until know, and chalk it up to the characters being inherently interesting and charismatic. It feels a lot like Akira’s potential lies in taking the internal peace he can create while reading, and bringing it out into the world.

Non-Nuclear Families

When Akira mentions his family circumstances, the other two also mention that they also have “non-standard” families. Shinji’s parents are divorced, and he lives with his mom. Jin lives with his dad. While his parents aren’t divorced, they do have separate homes, and he seems to have some issues with his mom.

The fact that the main trio of Hashikko Ensemble all have families different from the typical “mom, dad, two kids” setup feels special. It’s one thing if only one of the characters is in one of these situations, but the fact that all three are “different” makes it seem like anything but. Their families have some influence on them, like how Akira wants to start working to support his mom, but no one comes across as the odd one out.

Songs

“Kanade” by Sukima Switch makes another appearance! It’s the song Akira’s class sang in middle school.

“Believe,” written and composed by Sugimoto Ryuuichi. It was used as the theme song for the NHK nature show Ikimono Chikyuu Kikou.

Final Thoughts

During a flashback, Akira is shown lending his earphones to Orihara. However, because they’re not noise-canceling, Akira accidentally hears some of the music. He doesn’t know what it is, but he definitely recognizes it. What could this song be, when Akira barely listens to music as is?

And who’s the girl at Akira’s door? I assume it’s either his mother or his sister, but it’s hard to tell from her appearance. She looks a bit on the young side, but she might just be youthful for her age.