Nodame Cantabile has been adapted as a live-action television drama broadcast in 11 hour-long episodes from 16 October to 25 December 2006 on Fuji TV, covering events up to volume 9 of the manga. This was followed by a four-hour sequel television special, Nodame Cantabile New Year's Special in Europe, adapting further events in the manga after Chiaki and Nodame move to Paris, broadcast on Fuji TV on 4 and 5 January 2008. These were directed by Hideaki Takeuchi from scripts by Rin Etou, and starred Hiroshi Tamaki as Shinichi Chiaki and Juri Ueno as Megumi "Nodame" Noda.
Music direction was by Daisuke Mogi with original music by Takayuki Hattori, with several works of classical music featured in each episode.The orchestral music was performed by Nodame Orchestra, which consisted of members specially selected for the live-action drama with professional support from the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. The Orchestra was conducted by James DePriest, Permanent Conductor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra, who would later have his name and likeness used in the Nodame storyline as the musical director of the fictional Roux-Marlet Orchestra. The opening theme for both the drama series and special was the First movement ("Andante Cantabile") from Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, and the ending theme was Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, both performed by the Nodame Orchestra conducted by Toshiaki Umeda.
An episode of PuriGorota: Uchū no Yūjō Daibōken (プリごろ太 宇宙の友情大冒険), the fictional anime series that Nodame watches, was created by J.C Staff for the drama. The anime was written and directed by Ken'ichi Kasai, the director of the first season of the Nodame Cantabile anime. Segments of the PuriGorota anime were shown during episode 4 of the Nodame Cantabile drama, with the complete anime released as a DVD extra with the Nodame Cantabile anime series.
Two live-action movie sequels to the television drama, with the same actors, have been announced with an anticipated release in December 2009 whilst the second film to be released 3 months later in 2010. Filming began in May 2009 and lasted for five months, and included location filming in Vienna.
