tsugaru-jamisen
Tsugaru-Jamisen is a style of playing the Shamisen dating to the early 20th century. The Shamisen is an import of the Chinese Sanxian. This instrument arrived in Japan in the 16th century. It was popular in the court, with geisha, and as a folk instrument throughout history. During the early 20th century, various blind and not blind musicians created a new playing style based on folk music (Wikipedia). This play style was Tsugaru-Jamisen style. It's played very quickly and with flashy finger-work. It can be played solo, in pairs, or more. This is a modern style of playing Shamisen, and it is generally meant to entertain. It is also the style of music that brought Shamisen into global prominence.
The Shamisen is very banjo-like. It can be disassembled, as shown above. The bottom square or body, called a "do" 胴 is drum-like. The neck is fretless. The top has three pegs, traditionally made of ivory but now often made of wood or plastic. Interestingly, the lowest string is laid lower than the others, giving it a unique timbre. It has a buzzing sound known as sawari. The strings are played with a large pick known as the Bachi. This unique timbre sets it apart from other more familiar instruments.
This first song, called Shamisen Under The Cherry Blossoms, was played by Ki and Ki. This song is played in the Tsugaru-Jamisen style. Ki and Ki are excellent musicians, and I'd recommend listening to any of their other Shamisen songs. Linfamy, in his video, says that Tsugaru-Jamisen is played like a guitarist who puts a guitar solo after the intro, verse, chorus, and every other part of the song. Ki and Ki definitely sound like that. In this song, I really like it in the middle, where they both play diverging parts. It sound very pretty. I also really like the outro. What I like about the Tsugaru-Jamisen style is it's generally fast-paced. Which is something that I enjoy in music. The Shamisen is also an instrument with much to offer tone-wise. It is simple in that only one type of instrument is being played, but it still has a lot of tone variation. It is easy and entertaining to listen to.
This second song is called Renovation by Daishi dance and the Yoshida Brothers. The Yoshida Brothers are the most popular Shamisen musicians, and they are known for playing the Tsugaru-Jamisen style. This song includes other western musical instruments, but the song's core is the Shamisen. The Yoshida Brothers are also known for having other instruments, such as drums. This is appropriate because Tsugaru-Jamisen is supposed to be innovative. I really enjoy the use of drums in songs that the Yoshida Brothers do. It complements the Shamisen nicely. This song feels fun. It is fast-paced and energetic. It's played at 129 bpm.
This last one is Just for fun. It's a song by the Yoshida Brothers, and Monkey Majik called change. It attempts to incorporate Shamisen played in Tsugaru-Jamisen style into modern Japanese pop rock. Monkey Majik is a Japanese pop band. I think this attempt to mix the two could have gone better here. The J-pop is fine; it just overpowers the Shamisen playing. It could have been done well, but it needed to be louder. It was hard to make out the Shamisen over the other instruments. It is an interesting attempt; hopefully, more will be done in the future. Around the time marker 3:40, the Shamisen has a solo, which does sound nice. There is also a moment around 2:23 where the Shamisen plays well with the other instruments.
Linfamy, director. Shamisen, a Geisha's Musical Weapon (and a Bonus Story!). YouTube, YouTube, 9 May 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA5WSf1KUJ0. Accessed 22 Mar. 2023.
“Renovation. - DJ Edit for CLUB.” Tunebat, https://tunebat.com/Info/Renovation-DJ-Edit-for-CLUB-Daishi-Dance-Yoshida-Brothers/1PLFM7g62A6BGYhweYfTbS.
“Shamisen.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Mar. 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamisen.
Orren,
ReplyDeleteGreat job on this presentation; I've never heard of the Shamisen before. It somewhat reminds me of a muted version of the banjo, with the same kind of twang but less echo. I wonder if they are somehow related, though the banjo originated in West Africa and the Shamisen in China? It may be a shot in the dark, but they do seem like similar instruments.
It is related to an instrument in china.
DeleteI have never heard of the shamisen before. From what I gather it is the instrument and tsugaru-jamisen is the style. From the examples you have offered the pacing is quick and energetic in this style and I find that fun. The second song was was my favorite out of the three provided since it sounded like something that would play in a movie when a character is running after something, especially in the beginning. I was interested in the instrument that was being played and wanted to see if there were different styles of the particular instrument. Here is a website that give a run down on the different shamisen: https://bachido.com/store/shamisen-styles#:~:text=For%20example%2C%20shamisen%20for%20tsugaru,to%20accommodate%20the%20player's%20size.
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