Kanon Wakeshima

Kanon Wakeshima (分島 花音 Wakeshima Kanon, born July 3, 1988) is a Japanese singer and cellist.Produced by Mana, Wakeshima debuted under the DefStar Records label on May 28, 2008 with the single "Still Doll", the ending theme for the anime adaptation of the manga series Vampire Knight. She also provided the voice for a maid that appears in the eighth episode of the series. Wakeshima's second single "Suna no Oshiro", released on November 12, 2008, was used as the ending theme for the series' second season (subtitled Guilty).

She was nominated for a Best Newcomer award for 2008 in the fourth annual Shojo Beat Music Awards, nominees of which are determined by surveying "record companies, music journalists, music experts, and music fans".

Biography

Before her birth, Wakeshima's music-loving parents wished for her to be a musician. At the age of three, she began learning the cello, marking her entry into the world of music. In junior high school she formed her own ensemble group. At the age of fifteen, she transitioned from her former classical ensembles into playing in the baroque section. Appearing in a variety of recitals and concerts throughout her school years, she began writing her own music and combining singing with her cello playing at the age of sixteen. As she transitioned from junior high school to high school, she began writing her own music and singing. She gave her first vocal performances during a high school festival.

Wakeshima auditioned at Sony Music Entertainment as a singer, originally not intending to include her cello playing with her demo tape, but later changing her mind after experimenting with performing with the piano. She became a finalist at the audition, contracting with the Sony subsidiary DefStar Records and debuting on May 28, 2008 with her first single, "Still Doll". The single was chosen as the ending theme for the first season of the anime adaptation of Vampire Knight.

She uses three cellos, one for performing, one for music videos and one for recording. Wakeshima has given each cello a name. The white cello is known as "Mikazuki-san", which means "crescent moon". This is the cello she is normally seen performing on during live performances. The red cello is known as "Nanachie-san", which means "wisdom". This is the cello commonly seen in her music videos. According to Wakeshima, Nanachie-san is very hard to play but she manages. Her third cello is a brown cello called "Yaeharu-san", which means "multi-layered spring". Yaeharu-san is very special to Wakeshima since she has had it since middle school, and it is the one she practices on and records with. Currently, she has a new silver cello named "Momotose."

She has recently formed a group with An Cafe's bassist Kanon, called KanonxKanon. The group will sing the second theme song for the anime adaptation of Shiki, called "Calendula Requiem".

Overseas performances

Kanon has done numerous performances overseas, including being invited to Japan Expo 2009 in Paris, France and Otakon 2009 in Baltimore, MD. Kanon has also done short concerts in San Francisco and Los Angeles. She was also invited to AM2 2011, an anime convention in Anaheim, where she will have both, a solo and a KanonXKanon concert. Following AM2 Kanon will also appear at Hyper Japan 2011 in London in July.

Discography

Albums

Shinshoku Dolce (侵食ドルチェ, "Sweetness Violation", 2009)

Shōjo Jikake no Libretto: Lolitawork Libretto (少女仕掛けのリブレット～LOLITAWORK LIBRETTO～, "A Libretto on What Makes a Girl Work", 2010)

Singles

"Still Doll" (2008) Oricon Singles chart peak rank 33

"Suna no Oshiro" (砂のお城 "Sand Castle", 2008) Oricon Singles chart peak rank 39

"Tōmei no Kagi" (透明の鍵, "Transparent Key", 2009) (digital download, theme song of the online game Avalon no Kagi)

As KanonxKanon

"Calendula Requiem" (カレンデュラ レクイエム, 2010)

"Koi no Dotei" (2010)