2. Or Nihhon or Nippon located in the Pacific Ocean of East Asia.
Lies 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 of
China Sea and Taiwan in the south.
Japan’s name means “sun-origin”, which is why Japan is referred to as
“Land of the Rising Sun”.
It is the world’s tenth-largest population.
3. Japan come from Zipangu, Italian name given by Marco Polo, a venetian
traveler of the late 1200’s.
Polo had heard the Japanese islands while travelling through China.
It has dense cities, imperial palaces, mountainous national parks and
thousands of shrines and temples.
Shinkansen bullet train connect the main isalands of Kyushu (famous for
subtropical beaches), Honshu (famous to Tokyo and Hiroshima’s atomic
bomb memorial), and Hokkaido (famous for skiing).
Tokyo as the capital city and known for skyscrapers, shopping, and pop
culture.
4. In Japanese the word music is ongaku, “on” meaning sound and “gaku”
meaning music.
Traditional music of Japan is rich and varied.
Most of its musical form were imported from China but were reshaped
into Japanese styles.
5. MUSICAL ELEMENTS CHARACTERISTICS
Rhythm
Based on ma (a Japanese interval)
Starts slow, fast then slow with a drown
ending; uses duple meter
Melody Uses pentatonic scale
Timbre
Vocal – sung in high tight-throated and
melismatic manner
Harmony and Texture Monophonic
Form
Often follows a three-part form called jo-
ha-kyu
6. TRADITIONAL MUSIC OF JAPAN
Japanese music is classified into SHINTO (music of worship), SAIBARA
(Japanese folk music), GAGAKU (court music), and KABUKI or NOH
MUSIC THEATER (drama music).
Shinto may be classified into:
1. KAGURA
2. SHOMYO
7. • Used in formal occasions at
shrines or imperial functions and
Shinto folk festivals. Shinto
prayers (norito), is recied by a
priest to seek purification and
blessings. Shinto includes song,
dance, and an instrument called
the suzu (a cluster of shaken
pellet bells). Dancers at these
festivals perform inside and
outside the shrines, and their
performances are intespeed
with chants to the gods.
• (Buddhist chants)
• It is written in one of three
languages: Sanskrit, Chinese, or
Japanese. It is sung un unison
with ornamentations, free
rhythm, and phrases or ritual
sections marked off by bells or
percussion instruments.
8. Saibara or Japanese folk songs, on the other hand, are sung in Chinese and in
high, tight-throated, and mellismatic fashions. They are usually set in duple
meter, although some are set in triple meter. Saibara is accompanied by an
instrumental ensemble called hayashi, consisting of four instruments, namely
three drums and a flute.
9. Japanese music uses four type of pentatonic
scale:
1. Yo scale – used in Japanese music including gagaku and shomyo. It is
used specifically in folk songs.
2. In scale (also known as the Sakura pentatonic scale due to its use in the
well known folk song Sakura, Sakura) - It is used in Japanese music,
excluding gagaku and Buddhist chanting. It contains minor notes, and is
used specifically in music for the koto and shamisen.
10. 3. Ryo Scale – sounds more like Chinese scale.
4. Ritsu Scale – sounds more like Japanese scale.
11. (elegant music)
refers to the traditional court music of Japan, which flourished during the Nara
and Heian periods (710-1185). In Japanese, gagaku means “refined” (ga) “music”
(gaku).
It is music of elite.
It is often known as the “art of singing and dancing”.
It is considered as the oldest surviving court music in some shrines and temples.
It has two styles: Kigaku (instrumental music) and Seigaku (vocal music). It may
be classified into four categories which include the ff:
1. Kaingen (instrumental ensemble composed of the wind and string
instruments.
2. Bugaku (dance music
3. Songs
4. Ritual music fro Shinto ceremonies
13. 1. KANGEN
• It is an orchestral music and instrumental ensemble accompanying
the dance in Bugaku. This ensembles means “wind and string
instruments”.
14.
15. 2. SANKYOKU
• Ensemble composed of three famous Japanese instruments namely
the koto (zither) , shamisen (lute), andnshakuhachi (flute). It is used as
an accompaniment for vocal music and serves as an interlude in
between music sections.
16.
17. Traditional Japanese musical instruments are musical instruments used in
the traditional and folk music of Japan. They are composed of string,
wind, and percussion instruments. Japanese music sound like Chinese
music because most of the instruments came from China.
18. CHORDOPHONES
1. Koto
- A Japanese zither of 13
silk-starched strings
stretched over movable
bridges.
sgvffd
19. 2. Shamisen
- One of Japan’s traditional three-
stringed musical instruments.
3. Biwa
- A pear-shaped lute with four strings
and plays both the melody and tempo.
21. 2. Ryuteki
- A kind of Japanese flute
3. Hichiriki
- A Japanese oboe. It is a small double-
reed pipe made of bamboo with six
finger holes. Its length varies from 9
inches or a little more.
25. 2. Shoko
- A small gong used to mark various
temporal divisions and cadence
points.
3. Shime-daiko
- A small Japanese drum played with a
stick called “bachi”.
26. J-Pop or Jeipoppu
• A musical genre that entered the musical scene of Japan in the
1990’s.
• It has its roots in traditional Japanese music, but combines pop and
rock genre.
• Some of the best selling J-Pop artists are B’z, Mr. Children, Ayumi
Hamasaki, Southern All Star, and Dreams Come True.
