Tsubaki is Kousei's childhood friend and next-door neighbor, who treats him like a little brother. She is athletic and part of the softball club in school. Often dismayed at Kousei's inability to move on after his mother's death, she attempts to get him to play the piano again in order to make a clear decision about his future. 

(Source: Wikipedia)

Piano prodigy Arima Kousei dominated the competition and all child musicians knew his name. But after his mother, who was also his instructor, passed away, he had a mental breakdown while performing at a recital. This resulted in him no longer being able to hear the sound of his piano playing. Two years later, Kousei hasn’t touched the piano and views the world without any flair or color. He was content at living out his life with his good friends Tsubaki and Watari until, one day, a girl changed everything. Miyazono Kaori is a pretty, free spirited violinist whose playing style reflects her personality. Kaori helps Kousei return to the music world and show that it should be free and mold breaking unlike the structured and rigid style Kousei was used to.

__Height:__ 157 cm (5'2")
__Agency:__ I'm Enterprise (2010-2022), Aoni Production (2022-present)

[Profile](https://www.aoni.co.jp/search/sakura-ayane.html) | [Blog (old)](http://www.joqr.co.jp/blog/sakura/) | [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/ayane.sakura.mg/)

__Non-anime roles:__
- Nearl - Arknights (VG)
- Yae Miko - Genshin Impact (VG)
- Yae Sakura - Honkai Impact 3rd (VG)
- Julia - Goddess of Victory: Nikke (VG)
- Dolla - Goddess of Victory: Nikke (VG)
- Devonica - Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger: Adventure Heaven (Movie)
- Rio Sonogami - Date a Live: Rio Reincarnation (VG)

Chicago native Erica Mendez is a longtime anime and video game fan who put in the work and became a voice actress. She has been fortunate to play some fan-favorite characters, including: Retsuko from Aggretsuko, Ryuko from KILL la KILL, Raphtalia from The Rising of the Shield Hero, and Sailor Uranus from Sailor Moon. As for video games, her voice can be heard as Kamisato Ayaka in Genshin Impact, Bernadetta in Fire Emblem: Three Houses and additionally in Street Fighter V, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round, and Pokemon Masters to name a few. She’s also ventured into script adaptation and has done work on Little Witch Academia, Sailor Moon SuperS, and Dragon Pilot. 

If that weren’t enough, she also directs from time-to-time, having done so for I Want to Eat Your Pancreas and the Netflix series, Carole & Tuesday. Keep up with Erica's role announcements and incoherent rambling by following her on <a href="https://twitter.com/tsunderica?lang=en">Twitter</a>.

Kosei Arima was a piano prodigy until his cruel taskmaster of a mother died suddenly, changing his life forever. Driven by his pain to abandon piano, Kosei now lives in a monotonous, colorless world. Having resigned himself to a bland life, he is surprised when he meets Kaori Miyazono, a violinist with an unorthodox style. Can she bring Kosei back to music, and back to life? 
 
(Source: Kodansha Comics) 
 
Note: Nominated for the 2012 Manga Taisho Awards.

OVA bundled with the 11th Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso manga volume. 
 
The OVA focuses on Kousei, Emi and Takeshi when they were younger, showing their troubles during their competitions and the beginning of their rivalry. 
 
(Source: Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso Wikia)

Tsubaki Sawabe