Introduction
The members of After School Tea Time are fantastic musicians. Their music isn’t just cute and fluffy, it can be fast and aggressive at times as well. But even these girls were beginners at one point in their lives. And even after forming the club, they still had to develop their skills together.
Akiyama Mio
The bass player of the group. Although it’s noted that she can play the guitar at a decent level, she chooses to play bass because it doesn’t attract as much attention. She’s able to teach guitar to Yui in the begining of the series. Going over things such as chords and techniques.
She most likely started playing the bass guitar a little bit before Ritsu began learning how to play drums. Mio is quite knowledgeable about classic rock musicans, which we can see when asking Yui about her favorite guitarists. She’s able to compose music and write lyrics as well.
She utilizes advanced techniques such as slap/pop and bass walking.
Tainaka Ritsu
As you an imagine, the most energetic member of the group plays the drums. After watching a performance of, “The Who”. Ritsu becomes obsessed with the high energy drumming of Keith Moon. Begging Mio to form a band with her, she saves up enough money to buy a used Jazz drumset.
Much of her intricate drumming comes from styles such as jazz and rock n roll. Most likely due to Keith Moon’s influences being Tony Meehan and Gene Krupa.
Kotobuki Tsumugi
Being from a rich family, it makes sense for her to play something like the piano. She’s won a few competitions and started playing at the age of 4. Although she mainly played classical piano before joining the club, due to her willingness to learn new things, she was able to play more in the style of rock and pop.
She later incorporates things such as synth effects and piano rolls into her playing as the band develops. Mugi has the ability to gain influences from anywhere. When Ritsu plays with her keyboard, Mugi gets inspired to create her own song.
She mainly uses sound pads such as: Square lead and rock organ.
Nakano Azusa
Azusa comes from a musical family. She states that both her parents play in a jazz band, which make her almost join the jazz club at school. But later decides not to join, stating that it wasn’t the style of jazz she was accustomed to.
Like Mugi, Azusa most likely started playing from a very young age. She owns several guitars and is able to size the skill of other’s very quickly.
She’s a very serious musician and expects those around her to be just as serious. She’s able to play many advanced techniques, beyond Yui’s ability. But she is humble at her craft and feels she still has much more to learn.
She primarly plays the harmony and solos of the club’s songs.
Hirasawa Yui
Out of all the members, Yui learns how to play music the latest. She has no musical background other than playing the castanets in Kindergarten. Before the training camp, she was only able to memorize chords and play 3 note songs. Yui also had to have her sister Ui, decipher reading chord charts and basic TABs.
Yui has perfect pitch, which means she is able to distinguish and remember the names of tones without a musical reference. When tuning her guitar, she corrects the strings without using a tuner. She is also able to memorize certain complex musical phrases, but has a hard time with technique.
However, much of her skill in music comes from practice and the occasional lesson from Azusa and Sawako Sensei. She at first struggles learning certain parts in songs. But is able to learn them when told to slow down and break down sections.
Conclusion
The members of After School Tea Time are great musicians, but they weren’t always like that. Just like everyone else, they had to learn their craft. But what makes them even more amazing is when they put together their skills and play as one band.
Anime by Chance 