Overview
あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! (also romanized as A・E・I・U・E・O・AO!!) is the opening theme song of the 2017 anime television series ひなこのーと (Hinako Note), a slice-of-life comedy about a shy girl who finds her voice in a school drama club. The song was performed by 劇団ひととせ (Gekidan Hitotose), a vocal unit made up of the five lead voice actresses from the show: M・A・O (Hinako Sakuragi), Miyu Tomita (Kuina Natsukawa), Yui Ogura (Mayuki Hiiragi), Hisako Tojo (Chiaki Hagino), and Marika Kouno (Yua Nakajima). The music was composed by Yuki Matsuura with arrangement by Shuhei Mutsuki, both veteran anime song creators.
True to its name, a string of the five basic Japanese vowels in a playful sequence, the track is built around vocal warm-up exercises and tongue twisters. Its lyrics thread classic Japanese tongue twisters such as なまむぎ なまごめ なまたまご (raw wheat, raw rice, raw egg) and あかまきがみ あおまきがみ きまきがみ (red wound paper, blue wound paper, yellow wound paper) into an exuberant, breathless delivery that mirrors the anime's theatre-club energy. The song regularly broke into the maimai rotation from its debut in the MiLK edition on December 14, 2017, but was removed from the DX BUDDiES catalog on November 2, 2023, following licensing expiration. It was also region-locked to Japan throughout its lifetime. The track crossed over to SEGA's CHUNITHM series as part of the CHUNITHM STAR PLUS edition, where it later received a WORLD'S END chart.
Videos
Charts
Trivia
- The song served as the opening theme for the 2017 anime ひなこのーと (Hinako Note), which aired from April to June 2017 and was produced by Passione.
- The title is constructed from the five Japanese vowels (a, i, u, e, o) arranged to mimic a vocal warm-up exercise, あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお is the Japanese equivalent of singing 'ah, eh, ee, oo, eh, oh, ah, oh.'
- The performing unit 劇団ひととせ (Gekidan Hitotose) took its name from the anime's setting: ひととせ means 'one year,' and the characters form a theatre troupe (劇団).
- The lyrics contain the classic Japanese tongue twister なまむぎ なまごめ なまたまご (raw wheat, raw rice, raw egg) and a variation using あかまきがみ あおまきがみ きまきがみ (red wound paper, blue wound paper, yellow wound paper).
- Composer Yuki Matsuura has written music for numerous anime series, while arranger Shuhei Mutsuki is also known for contributions to the maimai series and other SEGA rhythm games.
- The song was added at the launch of maimai MiLK on December 14, 2017, and was carried forward into the DX era before being retired.
- It was removed from the maimai DX BUDDiES catalog on November 2, 2023, when the licensing agreement with the anime's rights holders expired.
- The song was never released outside of Japan in maimai; it was region-locked to Japanese arcades throughout its availability.
- An English title translation exists as 'A・E・I・U・E・O・AO!!', though the in-game title on Japanese cabinets remained the original Japanese script.
- The MASTER chart (level 12+, constant 12.9) was designed by 玉子豆腐 (Tamagodoufu), a notes designer recognized for technically dense and pattern-heavy charts.
- The EXPERT chart (level 10+, constant 10.6) was designed by rioN, a prolific chart creator who has contributed to many maimai songs.
- The song also appears in SEGA's CHUNITHM STAR PLUS, where it received a standard chart set and later a WORLD'S END chart (狂☆2) designed by くくらら☆CLIMAX, a playful reference to the song's own 'climax' refrain.
- The full version of the song runs 2 minutes and 25 seconds, while the maimai in-game cut is approximately 1 minute and 28 seconds.
FAQ
- What anime is あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! from?
- It is the opening theme of the 2017 anime series ひなこのーと (Hinako Note), a slice-of-life comedy about a shy girl who joins her school's drama club.
- Who composed あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!!?
- The song was composed by Yuki Matsuura and arranged by Shuhei Mutsuki. The vocals were performed by 劇団ひととせ (Gekidan Hitotose), a unit of the five main voice actresses from the anime.
- What does the title あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! mean?
- The title is a sequence of Japanese vowels (あ a, え e, い i, う u, え e, お o, あ a, お o) that mimics a vocal warm-up exercise. The English translation is 'A・E・I・U・E・O・AO!!'.
- Why was あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! removed from maimai?
- The song was removed from the maimai DX BUDDiES catalog on November 2, 2023, because the licensing agreement with the rights holders of the Hinako Note anime expired.
- Is あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! available on maimai outside Japan?
- No, the song was region-locked to Japan throughout its availability in maimai due to licensing restrictions and was never officially playable outside Japanese arcades.
- Who designed the MASTER chart for あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!!?
- The MASTER chart (level 12+, constant 12.9) was designed by 玉子豆腐 (Tamagodoufu). The EXPERT chart was designed by rioN.
- When was あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! added to maimai?
- The song was added at the launch of the maimai MiLK edition on December 14, 2017, as one of the initial songs in that version.
- What are the lyrics of あ・え・い・う・え・お・あお!! about?
- The lyrics are largely playful and built around vowel warm-ups and classic Japanese tongue twisters such as なまむぎ なまごめ なまたまご (raw wheat, raw rice, raw egg). The verses reference the daily lives and theatre club activities of the anime's characters.
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