Sadao China
(1945–) is a Japanese musician active in the Okinawan music and shima-uta scene, as a performer on the sanshin, min'yō folk singer, song-writer, and producer, having been responsible in 1990 for the formation of the Nēnēs. Biography China Sadao was born in Fukuoka Prefecture in 1945, the family moving to Amagasaki in Hyōgo Prefecture in 1951. His father, , a musician from Okinawa Prefecture, had moved from Okinawa in search of work, making a living in a spinning mill and by gathering scrap metal from drainage ditches. As a young child, Sadao disliked the nostalgic shima-uta performed by his father and tried to suppress his uchināguchi dialect; he would later recall his embarrassment when his father appeared at an athletics meet with a sanshin and taiko. Nevertheless, he performed in folk songs and dances together with his parents, and in 1951 made his first recording, of the song , on the . In 1957, father and son returned to Okinawa, where Sadao began his studies, at ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fukuoka Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders Saga Prefecture to the southwest, Kumamoto Prefecture to the south, and Ōita Prefecture to the southeast. Fukuoka is the capital and largest city of Fukuoka Prefecture, and the largest city on Kyūshū, with other major cities including Kitakyushu, Kurume, and Ōmuta, Fukuoka, Ōmuta. Fukuoka Prefecture is located at the northernmost point of Kyūshū on the Kanmon Straits, connecting the Tsushima Strait and Seto Inland Sea across from Yamaguchi Prefecture on the island of Honshu, and extends south towards the Ariake Sea. History Fukuoka Prefecture includes the Old provinces of Japan, former provinces of Chikugo Province, Chikugo, Chikuzen Province, Chikuzen, and Buzen Province, Buzen. Shrines and temples Kōra taisha, Sumiyoshi-jinja, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Uchināguchi
The Okinawan language (, , , ) or Central Okinawan, is a Northern Ryukyuan language spoken primarily in the southern half of the island of Okinawa, as well as in the surrounding islands of Kerama, Kumejima, Tonaki, Aguni and a number of smaller peripheral islands. Central Okinawan distinguishes itself from the speech of Northern Okinawa, which is classified independently as the Kunigami language. Both languages are listed by UNESCO as endangered. Though Okinawan encompasses a number of local dialects, the Shuri–Naha variant is generally recognized as the ''de facto'' standard, as it had been used as the official language of the Ryukyu Kingdom since the reign of King Shō Shin (1477–1526). Moreover, as the former capital of Shuri was built around the royal palace, the language used by the royal court became the regional and literary standard, which thus flourished in songs and poems written during that era. Today, most Okinawans speak Okinawan Japanese, although a number ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Okinawan Folk Musicians
Okinawan may refer to: * Something of or relating to: ** Okinawa Island ** Okinawa Islands ** Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawan language, an endangered language spoken by the people of Okinawa Island * Okinawan people, a subgroup of the Ryukyuan people * Okinawan cuisine See also * Okinawa (other) * Ryukyuan (other) The Ryukyu Islands are a volcanic arc archipelago. Ryukyu may also refer to: * Kingdom of Ryukyu, a former kingdom annexed by the Empire of Japan * Ryukyuan languages * Ryukyuan people * Ryukyu (My Hero Academia), a character in the manga series M ... {{disambiguation Language and nationality disambiguation pages ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shoukichi Kina
, is a Japanese rock musician and politician. He, along with his band Champloose, played a large role in the Okinawan home-grown "folk rock" scene in the 1970s and 1980s. His first big hit was " Haisai Ojisan" ("Hey, old man") in 1972, which he wrote when he was in high school. Songs from the 1980 album Blood Lines, like "Hana" and " Subete no Hito no Kokoro ni Hana o", are frequently heard in international markets. He was elected a member of the House of Councillors in July 2004. In 2010 he ran for a second term but lost. Music career with Champloose is a Japanese band from Okinawa blending traditional Okinawan music with a strong Western rock influence. Their name is apparently derived from the word for a traditional Okinawan stir-fry, chanpuru. Singer and lead songwriter Shoukichi Kina's electric sanshin was a particularly distinctive part of their sound. First major single was the classic "Haisai Ojisan" (Hey, old man), written while Kina was still in high school but not ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ryukyuan Music
, also called , is an umbrella term that encompasses diverse musical traditions of the Amami, Okinawa, Miyako and Yaeyama Islands of southwestern Japan. The term of is preferred by scholars in this field. The word "Ryūkyū" originally referred to Okinawa Island and has a strong association with the highly centralized Ryukyu Kingdom based on Okinawa Island and its high culture practiced by the samurai class in its capital Shuri. By contrast, scholars who cover a much broader region lay emphasis on folk culture. Research history Comprehensive studies on diverse musical traditions of the Southern Islands was done by Hokama Shuzen and his colleagues. Prior to that, the scopes of research were limited to each island group (Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, or Yaeyama), or even narrower areas. These studies were done under the heavy influence of folklorists Yanagita Kunio and Orikuchi Shinobu, who searched for the origin of Japanese culture in the Southern Islands. The research on Okinaw ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ryūkyū Shimpō
The was the first Okinawan newspaper."Ryūkyū Shimpō." ''Okinawa konpakuto jiten'' (沖縄コンパクト事典, "Okinawa Compact Encyclopedia")Ryukyu Shimpo(琉球新報). 1 March 2003. Accessed 6 September 2009. It was founded in 1893 by Shō Jun, a former prince of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, and is still in publication today. Historian George H. Kerr says of the newspaper, upon its founding, that it "strengthened leadership and promoted the development of informed opinion on matters of public concern". It has also been described as speaking for the former ruling class of the kingdom. Editor-in-chief Ōta Chōfu, along with others from the newspaper, played a role in the Kōdō-kai Movement, arguing for leadership of the prefecture to remain hereditary within the Shō family, and opposing the Freedom and People's Rights Movement led in Okinawa by, among others, Jahana Noboru.Shinzato, Keiji, et al. ''Okinawa-ken no rekishi'' (沖縄県の歴史, "History of Okinawa Prefecture ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shuri Castle
was a Ryukyuan ''gusuku'' castle in Shuri, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Between 1429 and 1879, it was the palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom, before becoming largely neglected. In 1945, during the Battle of Okinawa, it was almost completely destroyed. After the war, the castle was re-purposed as a university campus. Beginning in 1992, the central citadel and walls were largely reconstructed on the original site based on historical records, photographs, and memory. In 2000, Shuri Castle was designated as a World Heritage Site, as a part of the Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu. On the morning of 31 October 2019, the main courtyard structures of the castle were again destroyed in a fire. History The date of construction is uncertain, but it was clearly in use as a castle during the Sanzan period (1322–1429). It is thought that it was probably built during the Gusuku period, like many other castles of Okinawa. When King Shō Hashi unified the three princi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Classical Guitar
The classical guitar (also known as the nylon-string guitar or Spanish guitar) is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string instrument with strings made of gut or nylon, it is a precursor of the modern acoustic and electric guitars, both of which use metal strings. Classical guitars derive from the Spanish vihuela and gittern of the fifteenth and sixteenth century. Those instruments evolved into the seventeenth and eighteenth-century baroque guitar—and by the mid-nineteenth century, early forms of the modern classical guitar. For a right-handed player, the traditional classical guitar has twelve frets clear of the body and is properly held up by the left leg, so that the hand that plucks or strums the strings does so near the back of the sound hole (this is called the classical position). However, the right-hand may move closer to the fretboard to achieve different tonal qualities. The player typically holds the left leg ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Classical Music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also applies to non-Western art music. Classical music is often characterized by formality and complexity in its musical form and harmonic organization, particularly with the use of polyphony. Since at least the ninth century it has been primarily a written tradition, spawning a sophisticated notational system, as well as accompanying literature in analytical, critical, historiographical, musicological and philosophical practices. A foundational component of Western Culture, classical music is frequently seen from the perspective of individual or groups of composers, whose compositions, personalities and beliefs have fundamentally shaped its history. Rooted in the patronage of churches and royal courts in Western Europe, surviving earl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tsuneo Fukuhara
Tsuneo Fukuhara (; 14 November 1932 – 1 November 2022) was a Japanese composer and record producer. Life and career Born in Osaka, Fukuhara was the adoptive son of composer and record producer . He spent his early life in Okinawa, and studied classical music at the Osaka College of Music. He is considered a pioneer in fusing traditional Okinawan style with elements from other popular genres such as classical music, rhythm & blues and bossa nova, and his peculiar compositions are known as "Fukuhara Melodies" ("普久原メロディー"). Fukuhara made his professional debut in 1961, and during his career composed over 500 songs. Among his best known compositions is the song "Bashofu" (1965), which was recorded by popular artists such as Rimi Natsukawa and Tokiko Kato. During his career he received various awards and honors, including in 2014 a lifetime JASRAC Music Culture Award. Fukuhara died of aortic stenosis Aortic stenosis (AS or AoS) is the narrowing of the exit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Seijin Noborikawa
, born in Uruma, Okinawa, was a master Okinawan musician and ''min'yō'' folk singer, and a headliner of the Utanohi music festival. Biography Noborikawa was born to a farming family in Misato Village (now Uruma) in the Nakagami District, Okinawa. From the age of 7, he became familiar with homemade sanshin, watching Mouashibi and learning folk songs. He was able to dance the Kachāshī by 11. He hardly attended school and started smoking at 8 and drinking at 9. After the war ended, he worked at the US military base. At the age of sixteen, Noborikawa joined the Shibai Matsu Theater of Okinawa and sang folk songs. He thoroughly learned sanshin from Itarashiki Asaken and won the "Amateur Singing Competition" of Ryukyuhoso radio together with Rinshō Kadekaru. From 1955, he became a folk singer who performs solo. He also gained popularity in a trio with Yoshinaga Masayasu and Tsunami Tsunenaga. In 1957, Shuei Kohama, Kina, and others established the Ryukyu Folk Songs Ass ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Uchi-deshi
is a Japanese term for a live-in student/apprentice who trains under and assists a sensei on a full-time basis. The system exists in ''kabuki'', ''rakugo'', ''shogi'', '' igo'', ''aikido'', ''sumo'', ''karate'' and other modern Japanese martial arts. Lifestyle ''Uchi-deshi'' usually live in the dōjō or the home of the teacher, or in separate accommodations near the dōjō. The deshi serves the dojo every day. Duties may include cleaning and secretarial work. In contrast to ''uchi-deshi'', students who live outside are referred to as . Some dojo have uchideshi rooms right in the dojo. Historically, an ''uchi-deshi'' was typically chosen and groomed to become the next head of a school of martial arts when a direct family member was not available. Nowadays, the term is used synonymously as an apprenticeship. It can be a great option for a "gap year" or other period for self-discovery. Related terms In modern times, the role is also referred to as . Other terms include and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |