I just went to look it up, and it was a totally different Fuse Akira song, which I had no recollection of at all, lol. As much as I love the first half of the show, I really should clarify that this is what I mean when I say Hibiki, I guess.

So I'm honestly a little confused here. Hibiki's second OP? Are we talking about the few episodes before the cancellation that added Todoroki and Zanki, because that's literally just the same opening with some new footage. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a completely new opening.

Apparently there was indeed a different opening song from #34 onwards that all of us seem to have forgotten completely!

The original OP for Hibiki was a pure instrumental track. I love that song too, but I was responding to the video dreamcastegirl posted which is the Shonen Yo song. Which is the ending theme, which I also love.

From episode 34 - 47 the opening song was changed to "To the Original You"

During the Heisei celebratory year of Zi-O, Shonen Yo was used as Hibiki's contribution to the Heisei musical remixes and themes, suggesting that Shonen Yo is considered by Toei the modern musical representation of Hibiki. Essentially, it was retconned to be Hibiki's OP.

Thank you for explaining better than I could, ShiShi! For the record, I also love the instrumental OP, but absolutely Shounen Yo is the heart of the show, what I was calling the "theme tune."

I must admit, having listened to the second opening just now, I don't mind it, but I guess it speaks volumes that I forgot it existed.

Yeah, I'm not following you. There wasn't an episode 34 of Hibiki. It was cancelled at 29 and no other episodes ever aired; you cannot convince me otherwise.

OH! HAHA! I'm slow. Yes, yes, of course, forgive me, I was momentarily confused, but you're absolutely right.

I like the first opening too but I liked the second opening in a more conventional sense given I can just watch shows with short instrumental openings on British TV all the time, it's nothing really that offensive considering it's not really massively different to Shounen Yo and it's not really got much to do with the actual production issues people hated the most so I never got why there seemed to be a load of those YouTube comments hating it in 2011 time lol.

I've come around to thinking that Hajimari no Kimi e deserves to be a sort of "adopted" part of Hibiki by virtue of still being all the exact same people making the song as Shounen Yo. Like, even if the series didn't get prematurely canceled (as Switchblade would say), they probably still would've used it, you know? I feel like it's kind of an unfair victim of circumstance more than anything. I've given it a hard time myself in the past (I mostly just hate how abruptly it always starts in those episodes that totally don't exist), but it's a good song, and not any less Hibiki than the original OP/ED duo.

Kagayaki is still my favorite Hibiki song, though? It's very subtle, and manages to perfectly capture Hibiki without the aid of any lyrics whatsoever, which I find impressive, and very fitting for the series' musical motif. Especially after listening to the demo versions included on the show's final soundtrack, where you can feel Toshihiko Sahashi go from

"Eh, it still needs a little something..."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6QG_I0dYHQ

All the way to "Ooh, I think I'm on to something here!" (Note how this one even has the space for Asumu's narration at the start)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrmE2zshL0s

Which then of course led to the treasure that is the "final" version, in quotes because Sahashi did like a dozen different arrangements of it to create a truly evolving theme song from episode to episode, which is not something you see every day. (Hibiki was a pretty cool show, huh?)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EewkftlfMGk

All right, if we're going to talk about Hibiki's music, then let's get into it. :p I agree with you about this song, it's not really awful at all—I mean, I like Fuse Akira as a singer, or, rather, I always liked his presence at Kouhaku, and hearing his voice always makes me feel warm and nostalgic for those winter Christmas/New Year feels.

Yet there is one piece of music from the show no one has yet mentioned! That's right! Good morning, indeed! I remember when I first saw this, and I was like, so thoroughly charmed and in love with it; it's just an absolutely beautiful moment crowded with all the sentiment and warmth that I associate with this show.