Megumi Noda, or "Nodame" is a piano student at Momogaoka College of Music. An extremely talented pianist who wants to be a preschool teacher, she prefers playing by ear rather than reading the music score. She is messy and disorganized. Shinichi Chiaki is Momogaoka's top student. Born into a musical family, he is talented in piano and violin and has secret ambitions to become a conductor. An arrogant multi-lingual perfectionist who once lived abroad in the music capitals of the world as a young boy, he is trapped in Japan because of his childhood phobia of airplanes and the ocean. They meet by accident and sparks fly!

Sophie grew up in a wealthy and musically talented family. Luoshan is the daughter of Sophie's parents' chauffeur. When Luoshan's father dies in an accident while driving drunk, she is adopted by Sophie's family and takes the name Susan instead of Luoshan. Thereon, Susan plans to take whatever Sophie has.