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Kawakaze ni Tsui Sasowarete

川風に

[Genre]Jiuta
[Style]Kouta

Kawakaze ni Tsui Sasowarete appears on the following albums

Album Artist
Play ButtonTraditional Music of Japan, The - 03
Kawakaze ni is an example of the shortest song in Kouta. As previously mentioned, Kouta is a rather recent style of Shamisen music, and, since the Meiji Era, numerous pieces have been composed in both older and newer styles. The present example is the older style.

The text is a short epic poem describing a boat excursion on the Sumida River in order to enjoy the cool wind over the river. The title comes from the first phrase which says, 'being tempted by the wind over the river.'

The main Shamisen (Honte) is tuned in Honchoshi, while accompanied by the second Shamisen (Kaete) of the same tuning which plays different melodies. The Shamisen of Kouta is usually played with the nail of the index finger of the right hand instead of with a plectrum. Another characteristic of Kouta is a short Shamisen section as the conclusion. This is very rare in traditional Shamisen music. In short, the composer attempts to condense the refined, subtle and attractive taste of the Edo Period in this short song.