Rin'
Encyclopedia
Rin' is a Japan
ese pop
group which combines traditional Japanese musical instruments
and style with elements of modern pop and rock music. It is a female trio of Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music
alumni who graduated in 2003. The band made their performing debut in December 2003, at Meguro
Gajoen, and in April 2004, their first single, called "Sakitama," was released by avex trax
.
Chie Arai and Mana Yoshinaga play koto
, sangen
, and jushichi-gen, while Tomoca Nagasu plays biwa
and shakuhachi
. All three perform vocals.
According to the band's website, the name Rin' comes from the English word 'ring', the Japanese word Wa (和, meaning both 'ring' and 'Japanese-style'), and from the trio's hope to create a 'ring', or circle, of music.
Since their debut, the band has performed in many venues around the world, and have released four singles and several albums. A number of their songs have been used as themes for anime and movies, most notable is Fuhen used in the Samurai 7 anime. .
Their chief international album, Inland Sea, was released worldwide: in Europe
and the United States
on April 25, 2006 and in Japan on August 30, 2006, featuring guest performances by Leigh Nash and Lisa Loeb
.
According to the band's website, as of 13 February 2009, Rin' had put an end to their activities and decided to disband.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
group which combines traditional Japanese musical instruments
Traditional Japanese musical instruments
Traditional Japanese musical instruments comprise a wide range of string, wind, and percussion instruments.-Plucked:*Biwa - pear-shaped lute*Ichigenkin - one-string zither*Koto - long zither*Junanagen - 17-stringed zither...
and style with elements of modern pop and rock music. It is a female trio of Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music
Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music
or is one of the oldest and most prestigious art schools in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, and Kitasenju, Adachi, Tokyo...
alumni who graduated in 2003. The band made their performing debut in December 2003, at Meguro
Meguro, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It calls itself Meguro City in English.Meguro hosts fifteen foreign embassies and consulates. One of Tokyo's most exclusive residential neighborhoods is located in Meguro....
Gajoen, and in April 2004, their first single, called "Sakitama," was released by avex trax
Avex Trax
, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
.
Chie Arai and Mana Yoshinaga play koto
Koto (musical instrument)
The koto is a traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument, similar to the Chinese guzheng, the Mongolian yatga, the Korean gayageum and the Vietnamese đàn tranh. The koto is the national instrument of Japan. Koto are about length, and made from kiri wood...
, sangen
Shamisen
The , also called is a three-stringed, Japanese musical instrument played with a plectrum called a bachi. The Japanese pronunciation is usually "shamisen" but sometimes "jamisen" when used as a suffix . -Construction:The shamisen is a plucked stringed instrument...
, and jushichi-gen, while Tomoca Nagasu plays biwa
Biwa
The is a Japanese short-necked fretted lute, often used in narrative storytelling. The biwa is the chosen instrument of Benten, goddess of music, eloquence, poetry, and education in Japanese Shinto....
and shakuhachi
Shakuhachi
The is a Japanese end-blown flute. It is traditionally made of bamboo, but versions now exist in ABS and hardwoods. It was used by the monks of the Fuke school of Zen Buddhism in the practice of...
. All three perform vocals.
According to the band's website, the name Rin' comes from the English word 'ring', the Japanese word Wa (和, meaning both 'ring' and 'Japanese-style'), and from the trio's hope to create a 'ring', or circle, of music.
Since their debut, the band has performed in many venues around the world, and have released four singles and several albums. A number of their songs have been used as themes for anime and movies, most notable is Fuhen used in the Samurai 7 anime. .
Their chief international album, Inland Sea, was released worldwide: in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on April 25, 2006 and in Japan on August 30, 2006, featuring guest performances by Leigh Nash and Lisa Loeb
Lisa Loeb
Lisa Anne Loeb is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She launched her career in 1994 with the song, "Stay ". She was the first artist to have a number one single in the United States while not signed to a recording contract.Loeb's efforts now include music, film, television, voice-over...
.
According to the band's website, as of 13 February 2009, Rin' had put an end to their activities and decided to disband.
Members
Members (born November 20, 1979) (born December 22, 1980) (born May 10, 19??) |
Instruments
|
Singles
- (7 April 2004)
- (30 June 2004)
- Release
- Release(Instrumental)
- (20 April 2005)
- (31 August 2005)
- Flashback: Rin' Version
Albums
- (12 May 2004)
- (featured as the ending theme to the anime series Samurai 7Samurai 7is a 2004 anime TV series, produced by Gonzo and based on Akira Kurosawa's highly regarded 1954 movie Seven Samurai. The series was directed by Toshifumi Takizawa and its music was composed by Kaoru Wada and Eitetsu Hayashi...
) - weakness
- Smile On: English ver.
- Will
- Eternal
- (featured as the ending theme to the anime series Samurai 7
- (29 September 2004)
- The Grace
- innocence
- Nomado
- Hanging in there
- (14 November 2004)
- Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
- Last Christmas
- Rin' Xmas Medley: Silent Night / 赤鼻のトナカイ / I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus / Jingle Bells / We Wish You a Merry Xmas / Silent Night
- Merry Christmas Mr.Lawrence
- White Christmas
- In My Life (※初回限定版のみボーナストラック)
- (Live album, 30 March 2005)
- Inland Sea (released in U.S./Europe on 25 April 2006, in Japan on 30 August 2006)
- New Day Rising (feat. Leigh Nash)
- Solemn
- What the Rain Said
- Never Knew What Love Meant (feat. Leigh Nash)
- Moss Garden
- Anti Hero (feat. Lisa LoebLisa LoebLisa Anne Loeb is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She launched her career in 1994 with the song, "Stay ". She was the first artist to have a number one single in the United States while not signed to a recording contract.Loeb's efforts now include music, film, television, voice-over...
) - Inland Sea
- Sea of Tranquility (feat. Leigh Nash)
- Superflat(Part II)
- Past Imperfect
- AA170
- (Japan-only bonus track)
- (5 December 2007)
- Genji
- (feat. alanAlan Dawa DolmaAlan Dawa Dolma , professionally known as Alan , is a female Tibetan-Chinese singer active in the Japanese music industry....
)
DVD
- (17 November 2004)
Other
- Rin' featuring m.c.A・T "Flashback" (31 August 2005; used in Kamen Rider Hibiki & The Seven Senki)
- Crossover Japan '05 CD/DVD (28 September 2005)
- Provided traditonal instrument sounds to the backing track for the single "Samurai Heart" [侍 Heart] recorded by Japanese pop group "AAA". Released December 2006 by Avex Trax music as part of a double A side single package called "Black and White", which featured the tracks 'Samurai Heart' and 'Winter Lander'. (Rin' only play on 'Samurai heart' and track is credited to 'AAA', not as a Rin' single).
- In 2008 Rin' collaborated with Japanese composer "Conisch" on the soundtrack to a Japanese TV drama series called "Hana goromo yume goromo" 「花衣夢衣」. This resulted in an album of this music being released through EMI Music Japan (4th June 2008). Although this work is not acknowledged on the Rin' websites (as it is released by a record label different than their usual Avex Trax), the group get equal title credits, appearing as "Rin' & Conisch". The album has 34 tracks, lasts 69 minutes and mixes Rin's traditional Japanese instruments with a full western orchestra.