Nodame&#039;s friend studying at piano course. She played a pianica at festival with disguised S Orchestra.

Shinichi Chiaki is a first class musician whose dream is to play among the elites in Europe. Coming from a distinguished family, he is an infamous perfectionist; not only is he highly critical of himself, but of others as well. The only thing stopping Chiaki from leaving for Europe is his fear of flying. As a result, he's grounded in Japan. 
During his 4th year at Japan's top music university, Chiaki happens to meet Noda Megumi; or as she refers to herself, Nodame. On the surface, she seems to be an unkempt girl with no direction in life. However, when Chiaki hears Nodame play the piano for the first time, he is in awe at the kind of music she plays. To Chiaki's dismay, Nodame moves into the apartment next to his and finds out that she is head over heels in love with him. 
Nodame Cantabile tells the story of Chiaki and Nodame, as they not only learn to deal with each other, but learn lessons from one another as they strive for the top of the musical world. 
[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Saeko Chiba took up ballet at a young age with ambitions of becoming part of Takarazuka Revue. However, having failed the entrance exam for Takarazuka Music School in her third year of middle-school she joined the Minami Aoyama Shōjo Kageki Dan (南青山少女歌劇団, also called Nanshō for short) a stage group for teenage girls. Having had several lead roles over the three years she spent with the troupe, Saeko was then cast in the lead voice acting role of Kotori Haruno in the Sega Dreamcast game Diamond Daydreams. Having had a taste of being a seiyū and deciding that she preferred voice acting to performing on stage, Saeko decided to pursue the career full-time.

Saeko has also pursued a singing career with [Yuki Kajiura](https://anilist.co/staff/100077), who wrote music for some of the Nanshō stage shows, writing and producing almost all her material. Her first single was Koi no Kiseki, the theme song for the PlayStation game Meguri Aishite. She has since released nine singles and two albums, along with various character song and drama CDs. She has also performed theme songs for games such as Alundra 2 and Atelier Judie.

Saeko was also part of the group tiaraway with fellow Nanshō member [Yuuka Nanri](https://anilist.co/staff/95366). The duo released three singles and an album before breaking up on March 6 2005.

On August 26th, 2007 she married (on her 30th birthday), and on February 17, 2011 she gave birth to her first child, a daughter.

__[Website](http://www.taraplatt.com/) | [Twitter](https://twitter.com/taraplatt)__

__Birthplace:__ Fairfax, Virginia, USA.
__Graduated:__ Rutgers University
__Spouse:__ [Yuri Lowenthal](https://anilist.co/staff/95225/Yuri-Lowenthal)

__Tara Platt__ is an American actress, author, certified hypnotherapist, therapeutic imagery facilitator, neuro-linguistic programming practitioner and shambhalla feng shui consultant.

The son of a famous pianist, music student Shinichi Chiaki dreams of studying abroad and becoming a conductor like his mentor. Unfortunately, his fear of flying grounds his lofty plans! As he watches other classmates achieve what he has always wanted, Shinichi wonders if he should quit music altogether. Then one day he meets fellow student Megumi Noda, also known as Nodame. This oddball girl cannot cook, clean, or even read a music score, but she can play the piano in incomparable Cantabile style. And she teaches Chiaki something that he has forgotten: to enjoy his music, no matter where he is. 
 
(Source: Kodansha USA) 
 
Note: Includes four bonus chapters and the side story "NodaCan BS".

Rena Ishikawa