Tsugaru-jamisen
Encyclopedia
Tsugaru-Shamisen is a genre of shamisen
music originating in Aomori prefecture
in the northernmost area of the Japan
ese island of Honshū
. It is today performed throughout Japan, though associations with the Tsugaru
area of Aomori remain strong.
Tsugaru-Shamisen has a large and steadily growing repertory. Details are of course arguable and there is some variation among performers. Interviews with noted shamisen virtuosi such as Takahashi Chikuzan and Yamada Chisato and recordings issued by stars of the past allow one to produce the following table. Most of the titles given below exist in two versions: in song form (a vocal line with shamisen and drum (taiko
) accompaniment) and as a solo shamisen piece (see sixth group below). Recently, younger performers have been attempting to combine Tsugaru-Shamisen playing styles or motives with jazz, rock, and other forms of more commercial music. With the exception of the shin min’yō of group E these songs are usually considered to be “traditional.”
The songs of group D — though no less traditional than those of groups A, B, and C — were not, it seems, a major part of the bosama repertoire. Instead, they tended to be sung by non-professionals, generally without shamisen accompaniment. But with the Tsugaru-jamisen “boom” after World War II, these songs began to receive renewed attention. Shamisen accompaniments were composed or arranged by such performers as Takahashi Chikuzan (Takahashi 1983:142). Somewhat earlier there had been a nationwide movement to produce “new folk songs” (see Hughes 1985:144-54, 281-309; Kojima 1970), resulting in the songs listed in Group E. More recently still, solo shamisen versions of the songs of Group D have been arranged. Solo versions of the older songs have become the center of the repertoire, leading to the development of long solo improvisations (Group F) and ensemble playing (Group G).
One of the most the interesting characteristics of the Tsugaru-Shamisen repertoire is what might be termed its cumulative nature. As can be seen from the listing of songs in Group B, newer variants of songs tend to coexist alongside older versions, rather than replacing them. Although the older songs and their shamisen accompaniments or shamisen solo versions have no doubt themselves been somewhat transformed from what they were many decades ago (and they of course were never an entirely uniform to begin with), it remains certain that the “old,” “middle,” and “new” versions are differentiated not merely stylistically but also historically. Their structural differences contain, as it were, a congealed history.
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...
music originating in Aomori prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
in the northernmost area of the Japan
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 island of Honshū
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
. It is today performed throughout Japan, though associations with the Tsugaru
Tsugaru, Aomori
is a city located in northeastern Aomori in Tōhoku region of Japan. As of 2009, the city had an estimated population of 37,957 and a density of 150 persons per km². Its total area was 253.85 km²...
area of Aomori remain strong.
Composition
The genre is played on a large shamisen with thicker strings than those used for most other styles. Tsugaru-Shamisen is easy to recognize by its percussive quality (the plectrum striking the body of the instrument on each stroke) and the lilt of the rhythms performed. Unlike most other Japanese music, some Tsugaru-Shamisen pieces are in triple time, though the three beats are not accentuated in the manner of Western music.Tsugaru-Shamisen has a large and steadily growing repertory. Details are of course arguable and there is some variation among performers. Interviews with noted shamisen virtuosi such as Takahashi Chikuzan and Yamada Chisato and recordings issued by stars of the past allow one to produce the following table. Most of the titles given below exist in two versions: in song form (a vocal line with shamisen and drum (taiko
Taiko
means "drum" in Japanese . Outside Japan, the word is often used to refer to any of the various Japanese drums and to the relatively recent art-form of ensemble taiko drumming...
) accompaniment) and as a solo shamisen piece (see sixth group below). Recently, younger performers have been attempting to combine Tsugaru-Shamisen playing styles or motives with jazz, rock, and other forms of more commercial music. With the exception of the shin min’yō of group E these songs are usually considered to be “traditional.”
The Tsugaru-Shamisen repertoire
- A. Kudoki bushi (Quasi-narrative songs)
- “Suzuki Mondo”
- “Jonkara kudoki”
- B. Tsugaru (no) mitsumono (“Three Tsugaru Songs”)
- “Tsugaru jongara bushi”
- shin bushi (new song)
- naka bushi (middle song)
- kyū bushi (old song)
- shin kyū bushi (new old song)
- “Tsugaru yosare bushi”
- shin bushi (new song)
- kyū bushi (old song)
- “Tsugaru ohara bushi”
- shin bushi (new song)
- kyū bushi (old song)
- “Tsugaru jongara bushi”
- C. Tsugaru (no) itsutsumono (“Five Tsugaru Songs”)
- “Tsugaru aiya bushi”
- “Tsugaru san-sagari”
- D. Kyū min’yō (“Old folk songs”)
- “Yasaburō bushi”
- “Tsugaru jinku”
- “Dodarebachi”
- “Ajigasawa jinku”
- “Tosa no sunayama”
- “Tsugaru ondo”
- “Torajōsama”
- "Tanto Bushi"
- Others
- E. Shin min’yō (“New folk songs”)
- “Waiha bushi” (composed in 1932 by the singer Narita Unchiku [1888-1974])
- “Ringo bushi” (composed by Narita Unchiku in 1954)
- Others
- F. Kyokubiki (shamisen solos and improvisation). Potentially all songs of B, C, D, and E (most commonly B), as well as free improvisation, freely entitled by performers.
- “Iwaki” (Takahashi Chikuzan)
- “Arashi” (Yamada Chisato)
- Others, etc.
- G. Gassō or kyoku-awase (ensemble playing of multiple shamisen, occasionally supplemented by other instruments such as percussion, taishō-goto, koto, etc.). Most often versions of “Jonkara bushi;” sometimes other songs of groups B to E above; occasionally newly composed pieces or free improvisation on standard patterns.
Playing method
The Tsugaru-Shamisen is characterized by many distinct phrases and styles. The player will often strike the strings and skin very hard and fast with the bachi. A technique unique to the Tsugaru-Shamisen style in recent years is the tremolo played with the back of the bachi without hitting the skin.Discussion of the repertoire
Group A presents songs that are only rarely heard today, though they were once the mainstay of the repertoire of itinerant, often blind, musician-beggars known as bosama. At the start of the 20th century, these kudoki were gradually displaced by shorter non-narrative songs. The bosama (and, in time, other performers) tended to concentrate their efforts on some five favorite songs (Group C). By the middle of the 20th century three songs (Group B) and their shamisen versions had become the core of the Tsugaru-Shamisen repertoire, which they remain today. Indeed, "Jonkara bushi" — in a version that the old bosama would probably not even recognize — has today become virtually a symbol of the timeless “spirit of Tsugaru.”The songs of group D — though no less traditional than those of groups A, B, and C — were not, it seems, a major part of the bosama repertoire. Instead, they tended to be sung by non-professionals, generally without shamisen accompaniment. But with the Tsugaru-jamisen “boom” after World War II, these songs began to receive renewed attention. Shamisen accompaniments were composed or arranged by such performers as Takahashi Chikuzan (Takahashi 1983:142). Somewhat earlier there had been a nationwide movement to produce “new folk songs” (see Hughes 1985:144-54, 281-309; Kojima 1970), resulting in the songs listed in Group E. More recently still, solo shamisen versions of the songs of Group D have been arranged. Solo versions of the older songs have become the center of the repertoire, leading to the development of long solo improvisations (Group F) and ensemble playing (Group G).
One of the most the interesting characteristics of the Tsugaru-Shamisen repertoire is what might be termed its cumulative nature. As can be seen from the listing of songs in Group B, newer variants of songs tend to coexist alongside older versions, rather than replacing them. Although the older songs and their shamisen accompaniments or shamisen solo versions have no doubt themselves been somewhat transformed from what they were many decades ago (and they of course were never an entirely uniform to begin with), it remains certain that the “old,” “middle,” and “new” versions are differentiated not merely stylistically but also historically. Their structural differences contain, as it were, a congealed history.
Notable players
- Shirakawa Gunpachirō
- Takahashi ChikuzanTakahashi ChikuzanTakahashi Chikuzan was a renowned Japanese Tsugaru-jamisen performer and composer.He was born in Kominato, a village that is part of the Hiranai township in Aomori Prefecture. He lost his sight at around age two from measles before becoming a live-in apprentice of the Tsugaru-jamisen performer...
- Kida Rinshōe
- Fukushi Masakatsu
- Oyama Mitsugu
- Mihashi Michiya
- Yamada Chisato
- Shibutani Kazuo
- Hiromitsu AgatsumaHiromitsu AgatsumaHiromitsu Agatsuma is a Japanese shamisen artist who plays the Tsugaru-jamisen, a larger shamisen with thicker strings than those used for most other styles.He was born in Hitachi, Ibaraki Prefecture....
- Shin'ichi Kinoshita
- Michihiro SatoMichihiro SatoMichihiro Sato Michihiro Sato Michihiro Sato (佐藤通弘, Satō Michihiro; surname Sato; name sometimes listed as Sato Michihiro; (born 1957), is a prominent Japanese player of the Tsugaru-jamisen.Born in Machida, Tokyo, Japan, his mother was a traditional dancer and musician...
- Yoshida BrothersYoshida BrothersThe Yoshida Kyōdai are Japanese musicians and have released several albums under the Domo Records internationally as the Yoshida Brothers....
- Kevin KmetzKevin KmetzKevin Kmetz is an American guitarist and shamisen player. He is best known as the front man of the shamisen-based rock band, God of Shamisen. He has also recently become a full member of Santa Cruz, California eclectic band Estradasphere along with fellow God of Shamisen member Lee Smith...
- Masahiro Nitta
- Mike Penny
External links
- Takahashi Chikuzan Official Site
- Article on Yamada Chisato
- Nitaboh Official Site (about feature movie around - disputed - origin of Tsuragu-jamisen style)
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOF4JayttSk&feature=related