“The Tribe of Pianists”
Creative Staff
Story/Art: Morihiro Hayashi
Translation: Casey Loe
Lettering: Mark McMurray
What They Say
The door of fate now opens… Piano prodigy Ichiro Yaso left the world of classical music after an incident at a competition. He vowed never to play the piano again, but now that he has a mentor claiming to be Beethoven, it may be time for his redemption!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Series come and go all the time, and there are both positives and negatives about it. The regular inflow of new projects in various magazines means you’re regularly treated to something new, even if it plays within the familiar field of the genre of the magazine itself. The downside is that invariably, there are only so many projects that can be supported, and something you love may end up being canceled. The arrival of the Star of Beethoven manga brings us a new series from a first-time creator, Morihiro Hayashi, that blends the modern world and classical music with the well-known person of Beethoven himself coming back to life.
The series takes an odd turn, at least to me, with this chapter. With Lexi and Marsha having gotten both Ichiro and Beethoven together, which has been their goal for a bit, they now just stand to the side and listen in. There are bigger things afoot with how Beethoven is here, but none of that is answered. These two do listen in and try to understand what’s being said, but some of it is just beyond them in different ways. Lexi talks about how Ichiro didn’t use his hands to defend himself because of how he prized them and he can’t understand that beyond the simplicity of making money or getting girls. Marsha has a bit more respect for the situation overall, but even here it seems like their finding both of these people has led them to do… nothing? Or did I miss something?
The dialogue between Ichiro and Beethoven does have some good stuff to it, with Ichiro talking about how the piano has always been in his life, but it hasn’t felt essential, while Beethoven talks of how he was raised in a middle-class music family and the awfulness of that. The main question that gets asked of Ichiro is about what ideal he is playing and working towards, what it is that truly motivates him, but Ichiro still hasn’t truly found that. There is a nod that he’s doing this to surpass Beethoven as his master, but it leans into some discussion of the long and dark shadow Beethoven has cast over many in the past two centuries and the bleak end many have made. Again, interesting stuff and it does help to bring the two to a better place to move forward, but it’s just unclear what it was that Lexi and Marsha were actually here for after all is said and done.
In Summary:
With a clean place after going through how Beethoven left it, the series is now set for the Reiro Academy opening day ceremonies and all the school drama that’s to come. I’m a bit miffed on what just unfolded when it comes to part of the recent story, but mostly we just have our two leads now ready to move forward again and I’m curious to see what comes to light with it and how the pair will handle the new challenges. I do like that we’re made clear more on the kind of shadow that Beethoven has cast since his life and death, as that clears up certain aspects of it, and provides something for Ichiro to strive both for and against as he charts his own life and course.
Content Grade: B-
Art Grade: B
Text/Translation Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Manga Plus
Release Date: June 1st, 2025
