Okinawan music (沖縄音楽,Okinawa ongaku) is the music associated with theOkinawa Islands of southwesternJapan. In modern Japan, it may also refer to the musical traditions ofOkinawa Prefecture, which covers theMiyako andYaeyama Islands in addition to the Okinawa Islands. It has its roots in the largermusical traditions of the Southern Islands.
A dichotomy widely accepted by Okinawan people is the separation of musical traditions intokoten (classical) andmin'yō (folk). Okinawa was once ruled by the highly centralizedkingdom of Ryūkyū. The samurai class in the capital ofShuri developed itshigh culture while they frequently suppressedfolk culture in rural areas. Musicologist Susumu Kumada added another category, "popular music", to describe songs that emerged after the kingdom was abolished in 1879.[1]
Ryukyuan classical music (琉球古典音楽,Ryūkyū koten ongaku) was the court music of Ryūkyū.Uzagaku (御座楽) was the traditional chamber music of the royal palace atShuri Castle. It was performed by the bureaucrats as official duties.
The texture is essentiallyheterophonic using a single melodic line. Pitched accompaniment instruments each play a simultaneous variation on the vocal line.[2][3][4]
Traditionally seen as "low culture" by the samurai class, Okinawan folk music (沖縄民謡) gained positive evaluation with the rise of folkloristics led byYanagita Kunio. Folk music is described by the Japanese termmin'yō. Since the kingdom was abolished, some members of the former samurai class spread Shuri-based high culture to other areas of Okinawa. Some of such new elements are today seen as part of folk culture.[1]
Okinawa's folk songs are generally accompanied by one (or more)sanshin.
The suffixes-ondo and-bushi (both meaning "song" or "melody") may also be attached to the title of folk songs, however songs named without these clarifiers are more common.[citation needed]Eisā andkachāshī are Okinawan dances with specific music styles that accompany them.
Warabi uta (童歌) is a general term for nursery rhymes and children's songs.
"New min'yō" (新民謡,shin min'yō), composed in the style of traditional Okinawan min'yō, have been written by several contemporary Okinawan folk musicians such asRinshō Kadekaru,Sadao China,Shoukichi Kina,Seijin Noborikawa, andTsuneo Fukuhara. These songs are often heard in contemporary pop music arrangements.Haisai ojisan (ハイサイおじさん), with music and lyrics by Shōkichi Kina, is typical of this genre.
Okinawa's (new) folk songs are sometimes referred to asshima-uta. The term is not native to Okinawa but was borrowed from its northern neighbor, theAmami Islands, in the 1970s. The application of the term to Okinawan music is disfavored by people who seeshima-uta as a regional brand of the Amami Islands.[5]
The music of Okinawa came under the influence ofAmerican rock music beginning with the end ofWorld War II. Many musicians began to blend the Okinawan folk music style and native instruments with those of American popular and rock music. This is called "Uchinaa pop". One example isRyukyu Underground, who combine both classical and folk music with modernDub music.
The instrument that defines Okinawan music is thesanshin (shamisen). It is a three-stringedlute, very similar to the Chinesesanxian and a precursor to the Japaneseshamisen. The body is covered in snake skin and it is plucked with a plectrum worn on the index finger.
Okinawan folk music is often accompanied by varioustaiko drums such asshime-daiko (締太鼓),hira-daiko (平太鼓), andpārankū (パーランクー). Pārankū, a small hand-held drum about the size of a tambourine, is often used ineisā dancing.
Other percussion instruments such assanba (三板),yotsutake (四つ竹) andhyōshigi (拍子木) can often be heard in Okinawan music.Sanba are three small, flat pieces of wood or plastic that are used to make rapid clicking sounds, similar tocastanets.Yotsutake are two sets of rectangularbamboo strips tied together, one set held in each hand, clapped together on the strong beat of the music. Traditionally they have been used in classical music, but recently they have been used ineisā dancing.[6]
A group of singers called ahayashi (囃子) often accompanies folk music, singing the chorus or interjecting shouts calledkakegoe (掛け声). Alsofinger whistling calledyubi-bue (指笛) is common inkachāshī andeisā dance tunes.
Additional instruments are often used in classical music, and sometimes incorporated in folk music:[3]
The following is described in terms used in Western disciplines of music.
Music from Okinawa uses tonal structure that is different in music from mainland Japan and Amami in particular theintervalic content of the scales used.
The chiefpentatonic scale used in mainland Japan, for example, uses scale degrees 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6, also known as Do, Re, Mi, So, and La in theKodály system ofsolfeggio. This structure avoidshalf step intervals by eliminating the fourth and seventh scale degrees.
In contrast, music from Okinawa is abundant in the half steps. Common structures used in Okinawan music are a pentatonic scale utilizing scale degrees 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, or Do, Mi, Fa, So, Ti, or ahexatonic scale with the addition of the second scale degree, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, or Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, Ti. Half steps occur between the third and fourth (Mi and Fa), and also the seventh and first (Ti and Do) scale degrees. In particular, the interval from 7 to 1, or Ti to Do is very common. A folk tune can often be recognized as being Okinawan by noting the presence of this interval.
| Title | Okinawan name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| "Tinsaku no hana" "Tinsagu nu Hana" "Chinsagu nu hana" | 天咲の花 てぃんさぐぬ花 天咲ぬ花 | "The Balsam Flowers"; awarabe uta; Okinawan children would squeeze the sap frombalsam flowers to stain their fingernails. The lyrics of the song areConfucian teachings. |
| Ishinagu no uta Ishinagu | 石なぐの歌 石投子 | "Pebble Song"; aryūka poem written byGushikawa Chōei; It is known for its thematic similarity toKimigayo, the national anthem of Japan. It uses the same melody as Kajyadifu. |
| "Tanchamee" | 谷茶前 | a song originating in the village of Tancha inOnna, Okinawa |
| "Tōshin dōi" | 唐船どーい | "A Chinese Ship Is Coming"; The most famouskachāshī dance song, it is often performed as the last song of an Okinawan folk music show.[7] |
| "Nākunī" | なーくにー | a lyrical song expressing deep longing |
| "Haisai ojisan" | ハイサイおじさん | a "new min'yō", music and lyrics byShoukichi Kina |
| "Bye-bye Okinawa" | バイバイ沖縄 | music and lyrics bySadao China |
| "Tiidachichinuhikari" "Okinawan Amazing Grace" | 太陽月ぬ光 アメイジング・グレイス『沖縄方言ヴァージョン』 | a song about the Okinawan religion to the tune ofAmazing Grace |
| "Akata Sun dunchi" "Akata Sundunchi" | 赤田首里殿内 | "InsideShuri Temple in Akata Village", a traditional song aboutMaitreya Boddhisatva. It has become a popular children's song. |
| "Bashōfu" | 芭蕉布 | Bashoofu is Okinawanbanana cloth. |
| "Kādikū" | 嘉手久 | a courtshipkachāshī dance song |
| "Shichi-gwachi eisā" | 七月エイサー | aneisā dance song |
| "Warabi-gami" | 童神 | a lullaby |
| "Shima nu hito" | 島ぬ女 | "Island Woman" |
| "Nishinjō bushi" | 西武門節 | written in 1933 by Matsuo Kawata (川田松夫)[7] |
| "Kajadifū bushi" "Kagiyadefī bushi" | かじゃでぃ風 かぎやで風節 | a classical (koten) Okinawan dance song; Also called "Gojin fuu" (御前風), it was played before kings. It is commonly sung with an accompanying dance at Okinawan weddings today.[8] |
| "Jin jin" "Jing jing" | ジンジン | awarabe uta; The title means "firefly"; the lyrics implore the firefly to "come down and drink".Shoukichi Kina and Champloose's version of this song, with slide guitar byRy Cooder, was a minor hit in British discos.Takashi Hirayasu andBob Brozman released a 2000 collaboration album by the same title that is a collection of various Okinawan songs or nursery rhymes. Their song "Jin Jin" is track 6 on this album. |
| "Ten'yō bushi" | てんよー節 | A common song involving red and white flags played at the Obon Festival. |
| "Nada Sōsō" | 涙そうそう | "Great Tears Are Spilling", 2000 single with music byBegin, lyrics byRyoko Moriyama |
| "Hana – Subete no hito no kokoro ni hana o" | 花~すべての人の心に花を~ | music and lyrics byShoukichi Kina |
| "Kudaka" | 久高 | |
| "Ninjōbushi" | にんじょー節 | |
| "Futami Jōwa" | ふたみじょーわ |
