Editing Castle in the Sky (section)

== Music ==

{{Infobox album
| name       = Castle in the Sky
| type       = soundtrack
| artist     = [[Joe Hisaishi]]
| released   = August 25, 1986
| genre      = {{plainlist|
* [[Anime music]]
* [[Film score]]
}}
| length     = 39:17
| label      = [[Tokuma Shoten]]
| producer   = [[Joe Hisaishi]]
| prev_title = Arion
| prev_year  = 1985
| next_title = Curved Music
| next_year  = 1986
}}

[[File:Joe Hisaishi 2011.jpg |thumb |upright=0.7 |[[Joe Hisaishi]] ''(pictured in 2011)'', the composer |alt=Joe Hisaishi on stage at a concert]]

As with ''Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind'', [[Joe Hisaishi]] composed the score for ''Castle in the Sky''.{{sfn|Hisaishi}} Miyazaki and Hisaishi went on to become close collaborators, and Hisaishi has since provided the music for all of Miyazaki's feature films.{{sfn|Napier|2018|p=71}} Three months before the film's theatrical release, the [[image album]] – a collection of demos and musical sketches that serve as a precursor to the finished score – was published by Tokuma on compact disc. A third version of the soundtrack, rearranged for full [[symphony orchestra]] and recorded by the Tokyo City Philharmonic<!-- Do not confuse with Tokyo Philharmonic! -->, released in 1987 on [[compact disc]].{{sfn|Hisaishi}}

For the English dub produced by Disney in 1998, Hisaishi was called upon to rewrite the soundtrack to be more suitable for audiences in America. The new soundtrack was recorded by the [[Seattle Symphony]] and featured in the 2003 English dub released by Buena Vista.{{sfn|Nausicaa.net|1999}} Hisaishi was advised by Disney staff that non-Japanese audiences prefer comparatively more music in films. As a result, the American soundtrack is much longer, while the original Japanese version featured just an hour of music for a film exceeding two hours in length. Though Hisaishi felt that American film scores used an overly simplistic compositional approach, he commented "But when I redid the music of ''Laputa'' this way, I learned a lot."{{sfn|''Keyboard''|1999}}

The credits sequence of the film features an original vocal song titled "Carrying You" performed by [[Azumi Inoue]], with music by Hisaishi and lyrics by Miyazaki. The song was released in 1988 as a compact disc single, featuring an additional chorus version performed by the Suginami Children's Choir.{{sfn|Oricon|2018}}

{| class="wikitable plain-row-headers sortable"
|+ Music releases for ''Castle in the Sky''{{hairspace}}{{sfn|Hisaishi}}
! scope="col" | Release&nbsp;date
! scope="col" | English title
! scope="col" | Japanese title 
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes 
|-
| {{dts|May 25, 1986}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa Image|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky Image Album ~The Girl Who Fell From the Sky~''}}
| {{lang|ja|天空の城ラピュタ イメージアルバム 〜空から降ってきた少女〜}}
|
|-
| {{dts|August 25, 1986}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa Soundtrack|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky Soundtrack ~The Mystery of the Levitation Stone~''}}
| {{lang|ja|天空の城ラピュタ サウンドトラック 〜飛行石の謎〜}}
|
|-
| {{dts|January 25, 1987}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa Symphony|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky Symphony Version ~Huge Tree~''}}
| {{lang|ja|天空の城ラピュタ シンフォニー編 〜大樹〜}}
|
|-
| {{dts|March 25, 1988}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Carrying|"Carrying You"}}
| {{lang|ja|君をのせて}}
|Azumi Inoue single
|-
| {{dts|February 25, 1989}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa Drama|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky Drama Version ~Revive the Light!~''}}
| {{lang|ja|天空の城ラピュタ ドラマ編 〜光よ甦れ!〜}}
|
|-
| {{dts|November 25, 1989}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa Hi-Tech|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky Hi-Tech Series''}}
| {{lang|ja|天空の城ラピュタ ハイテックシリーズ}}
|
|-
| {{dts|October 2, 2002}}
! scope="row" | {{sort|Laputa USA|''Laputa: Castle in the Sky USA Version Soundtrack''}}
| {{lang|ja|〜天空の城ラピュタ USA ヴァージョンサウンドトラック〜}}
| The extended soundtrack written for the 2003 English dub
|}