[Harmony Songs for Duets] Songs that feel great to harmonize

Our Canon (VS. Chevon)Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra

Our Canon (VS. Chevon) / TOKYO SKA PARADISE ORCHESTRA

This is the theme song for the Sunday drama airing in the April 2025 season, “Dame Mane! – Managing a Hopeless Talent –.” As with most dramas, the timing when the theme song kicks in near the end is just perfect, and since this song has no intro, I was moved every time by vocalist Mayu Tanikinu’s gentle voice.

As you listen, the unison one octave below in the chorus really stands out.

This serves as an important foundation in the low end! The way the chorus comes in after the C section with call-and-response is also lovely, so I’d love to line up the timing and sing that part too.

Basically, the harmony is sung one octave below, so it might be too low for some women, but be careful not to strain your throat.

WINDING ROADAyaka × Kobukuro

Kobukuro – WINDING ROAD (Ayaka × Kobukuro)

This is the first single by Ayaka x Kobukuro, released in February 2007.

The song was reportedly born after Ayaka and Kobukuro—who were on the same record label—appeared on the same music program.

Now, if you’re thinking of singing this at karaoke: since both Kobukuro and Ayaka are highly skilled and the chorus arrangement is rich with R&B elements, casually harmonizing on the spot might be a bit tough.

It’s a three-part harmony, so picking it out from the track can be fairly challenging, too.

It’s a selection for more advanced singers, but if you’re confident in your vocals, by all means try harmonizing and have fun with it!

PlanetaryPenthouse

Penthouse – Planetary［Official Audio］

With Shintaro Namioka and Maho Oshima as a male–female twin-vocal band, this is a super groovy, cool track that blends R&B, city pop/soul, and jazz elements.

If you try to harmonize on Maho’s parts, it can be pretty tough unless your breathing and timing match theirs perfectly, so I recommend listening repeatedly and practicing along! Especially from the second verse on, there are lots of overlapping lines and harmonies.

The live footage makes it easy to understand, so be sure to watch it and study!

mild daysHitsuji Bungaku

Hitsujibungaku – mild days (Official Music Video) [TV Anime “Silent Witch: The Magical Record of a Silenced Wizard” Ending Theme Song]

Hitsujibungaku is a three-piece female band, and it seems that vocalist Moeka Shiozuka mainly writes the lyrics and composes.

The new song “mild days” also features beautifully tight harmonies! What seems like the B section might actually be the chorus, but from there she sings an octave higher, layering softly, and the atmosphere shifts all at once.

She also sings upper harmonies while taking the line an octave up, so at first you might not notice and end up singing the whole thing an octave higher.

But if you practice carefully while listening closely to the vocals, you’ll pick up the knack quickly! The song is also on the shorter side at about three minutes, and the repeating melody makes it easy to memorize.

366 daysShota Shimizu ft. Izumi Nakasone (HY)

Shota Shimizu feat. Izumi Nakasone (HY) “366 Days Short Ver.”

This is Shota Shimizu’s 14th single, released in September 2012.

It’s a collaboration with Izumi Nakasone, resulting in a track that showcases lovely mixed male–female choral work.

The blend of their voices is excellent, and I think Shimizu’s naturally high, somewhat androgynous—even boyish—tone contributes a great deal to that match.

The chorus arrangement is a relatively straightforward two-part harmony, so if you listen carefully to the karaoke guide melody and thoroughly learn each part, harmonizing and singing together shouldn’t be too difficult.

It should also sound beautiful as a harmony between two female voices, so please give it a try.

hydrangeaDivorce Legend

Rikon Densetsu – Hydrangea (Official Music Video)

Since this song was used as the theme for TBS’s Tuesday drama “Taigan no Kaji – This Is My Way of Life!,” I think many of you will find it familiar.

With Rikon Densetsu, harmonies tend to come in right at the key moments, and that selective use feels very band-like.

Most of the harmonizing happens on word endings, often as a lower harmony, giving the vocals a gentle feel.

In the last chorus, they go all-out with octave-unison lines and harmonies, which really brings the song’s atmosphere across.

The range isn’t too wide either, so it should be an easy challenge even for those who aren’t used to harmonizing.

GraduationKobukuro

Kobukuro “Graduation”

This is Kobukuro’s 31st single, released in March 2020.

It’s a beautiful ballad that’s very characteristic of Kobukuro.

Even if you sing it solo, I think it requires a fair amount of vocal ability, but this time I’d like to focus on the harmonies.

When you look at the harmonies, it’s basically two parts: the main and the harmony, and the harmony part is mostly the higher harmony.

That makes the melody line relatively clear and easy to pick up.

The most important thing to watch out for when singing this kind of higher harmony is to make sure the chorus doesn’t stand out more than the main vocal.

In that sense, the person handling the harmony part might be better off not having too bright a vocal timbre.

In any case, I think this song falls into the category of being easy to harmonize, so definitely give it a try.

When you nail it cleanly, it sounds really cool!