The music accompanied stories, the most renowned of which was The Tale of the Heike. Traveling biwa players known as biwa-hoshi were popular for some time. The biwa is a short-necked lute played with a large plectrum known as a bachi. Interestingly, sanshin scores use chinese characters as notes.Īnother Japanese instrument you need to hear is the biwa. The sanshin can be heard in traditional Ryukyuan folk music or at graduations and other special ceremonies in Okinawa. The sanshin is often compared to the banjo, but unlike the banjo, it is plucked. You have the male string, the middle string, and the female string, with the male string producing the lowest notes and the female string producing the highest. ‘Sanshin’ translates to ‘three strings’, and this instrument has just that. The sanshin, a Japanese string instrument made with snakeskin from Okinawa, has more of a twang to it than the laidback beats you might normally associate with island life. The island music of Japan is quite different than that of the Caribbean.
Notable koto artists include Yatsuhashi Kengyo, Tadao Sawai, and Kazue Sawai. The music made from the koto is said to be romantic. Now, you can find some with 20, 21, or 25 strings! The koto is very large - usually about 180 cm (about six feet!) long - and made of kiri wood. Traditionally, the koto comes in two varieties, a 13 -string type and a 17-string type. The koto is a Japanese string instrument that is placed on the ground and plucked and is similar to the Korean gayageum and Chinese Zheng. Regarded as the national instrument in Japan, a koto performance needs to be on your must-see list.
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