Solfege

Taking its name from the skill and practice of sight-reading music, Yoshinaga's new yaoi title takes an elegant approach to a story of forbidden love. Music teacher Kugayama is spoiled, wealthy and lazy—he is also in the closet. A handsome boy named Tanaka comes to him to prepare for an entrance exam for music school; problems at home cause Tanaka to start missing his lessons, and he soon moves in with Kugayama. One thing leads to another, and the two become lovers. In time, Tanaka moves away and begins a very successful career in opera; Kugayama hits the bottle and hits on a boy who resembles his departed lover. That affair goes sour, landing the teacher in the hospital; Tanaka finds him there, years later, and extends an offer to bring him out of his years-long doldrums and reignite his love for music. The sex scenes are fairly explicit throughout, and the dialogue laughable in places ("Finally—now I can get back to my carefree gay lifestyle"), but the characters themselves are believable and Yoshinaga tells their story with compassion and care. (Apr.)