Hisaishi is one of Japan's most prolific and celebrated composers, creating over 100 film scores and albums to date, including every Hayao Miyazaki animation since they first crossed paths, with the exception of Whisper of the Heart, which Miyazaki didn't direct.
Hisaishi first caught the attention of Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki in the early '80s, when he was hired to compose an "image album" for the film Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind while it was being made.
After hearing the image album, Miyazaki requested that Hisaishi replace the original composer hired to create the music for Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind.
An “image album” is an LP created specifically for Japanese animations, to give a sense of characters’ personalities.
In Japan, sound is as important as visuals. Characters in every film and animation, even inanimate objects or feelings, have their own songs created for them. Protagonists have entire albums created for them. These audio impressions are equally as important as visual and tangible physical elements. What results is a multi-sensory experience.