Customer Reviews

Japanese Music: Music of Okinawa

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This is pehaps the best CD on Okinawa music. It is a fine example of Koten (Classical) music and Minyo (Folk) music, featuring some of the best musicians on Okinawa. Although it came out in 91-10-21, the music is still played today at nearly every major performance on Okinawa, since most of these songs also have a unique dance that accompanies each. Young performers learn to dance by these same songs. It's an Okinawan tradition that has been passed down through generations. The sounds are very crisp and true to the nature of Okinawan Music and their musical instruments, especially the Sanshin (three-string lute). If you want to hear the music that former President Clinton heard when he was on Okinawa, some of these songs are on this CD. Kajade Fu - is a celebration song that is played at the begining of each performance of any Okinawan Musical Event or special occasion, such as a wedding. Tinsagu nu Hana - is a song about teaching your children right from wrong. Kadiku and Atchame Guwa - are normally songs that ends any Okinawan performance, where all the dancers and the audience come up on the stage or in front of the stage and dance together. Some of these songs will continue over and over again until all the people have come up from the audience to dance. All the songs on this CD have a special significance and perhaps a warm memory to those who have spent time on Okinawa. If you have never been to Okinawa, you'll experience Okinawa when you experience this CD. Just try to imagine the beautiful Black Kimonos and the Golden Fans of the classical dancers when they perform to Nubui Kuduchi or the folk dancers dressed in the hand woven Kimonos of the common people as they perform to songs like Shunu Bujo. Then there's the dance confessing the love of a woman to her man when she gives him a hand towel she has woven herself. This song is Kana-yo Bushi. And the last song on the CD (Toshin Doi) was played on CNN evening news demonstrating the colorful music of Okinawa to the United States and the rest of the World, when President Clinton was attending the G-8 summit on Okinawa in the year 2000. This CD is a great buy. It has some of the best songs, the best performers, and will probably be a collector's item. It's also becoming hard to find. You really can't go wrong with the purchase of this CD.

The Okinawan music is probably a bit more accessible to western ears than mainland Japanese minyo (folk). A lot of this CD features the Sadao China group which was sort of a precurssor of Nenes which included some of female singers from Nenes. China has a very smooth, lyrical style of shamisen playing. The other Okinawan ensembles on this CD are also quite good.