Taking a musical trip: Japan
How is music in Japan different from music in the US? When reading the article "Why Does Japanese Music Sound so Different", it seems that music in Japan uses more chords and expresses more of the music than the voice. This means that the background notes play the story and allow the listeners to feel and hear the emotions through the chords and melody. A Japanese musical artist I came across is Kenshi Yonezu, a musician and songwriter. He is also known for his experimental sound and lyrics, according to the article "Top 10 Japanese Music Artists." Below are two songs produced and sung by him that give us examples of how the musical elements differ when compared to music here in the States.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2cckDmNLMI I chose this song because not only are the lyrics interesting, but the elements are different and really fascinating. The chords of the song "KickBack" are very complex, and the melody appears to be different from most songs in the United States. Chords are the notes played hand in hand, and they contribute to the overall emotion of the music. There are multiple chords played in this song, while most songs only use about 4 or 5. I feel like the cultural aspect of these fast-paced elements also plays a part because most Japanese pop music I came across is very quick with the sounds used. My personal thought is that I like how the melody and chorus is much more fast-paced, although the lyrics did throw me off a bit!
The next song I chose to showcase is "Lemon," by the same Japanese music artist, Kenshi Yonezu. In this song, we see less "loudness," but the song is still fast-paced as you hear more. This song has the same chord complexity as the song above. However, there are two other elements I wanted to focus on: tempo, loudness. When it comes to the loudness, as previously mentioned, it is the intensity of the song. This song, "Lemon," has the background music played softly, meaning the mood is sad. Next, tempo. The tempo for this song is set as 87 BPM, the average pop tempo for the US ranges from 100-130. I find this to be useful because I feel like most songs in our States are not as effective and don't give listeners enough of the emotional environment. And when it comes to mode
Social and Cultural Aspects of Japanese Music:
Overall, Japanese music is known to be different because of its three-part melody, when compared to the division of Western music. Japanese music is also known for its more complex harmonies, and some people even say that the characteristics of Japanese songs are easy to spot (meaning most Japanese music has similar or the same musical elements). When it comes to the culture of Japanese music, it states, "Japan is one of the countries with a very rich music culture, and there have been certain types of Japanese music that characterize its culture since ancient times." from the article "Japanese Culture and Fomus Musicians." All the Japanese music created it all relates back to their culture and keeping up with the traditional music traits.
Sources:
"Why Does Japanese Music Sound so Different".
William Malm. "Japanese Music," Brittannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/Japanese-music
Musictax. "Lemon", 2024. https://musicstax.com/track/lemon/04TshWXkhV1qkqHzf31Hn6#google_vignette
Intercontinental Music Awards. "Japanese Music Cultures and Famous Musicians," October 31st, 2019. https://www.intercontinentalmusicawards.com/japanese-music-culture/
It was fascinating to read about Japanese music! I didn't realize how different our tempo is compared to theirs for pop music. I love how the music has more emotion, and the lyrics are more storytelling, which is different from some pop songs in the US!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing about the music of Japan! I like the songs that you selected to showcase the Japanese pop music. The first song actually reminded me a lot of bands like Twenty One Pilots that occasionally do make their way to the top of the charts in the US, but traditionally find themselves categorized in a more alternative genre. I think that a lot of American pop music nowadays shies away from the use of instruments and we have been seeing a continuous increase in the use of electronic music to comprise the accompaniment for songs, so I like that this artist here continues to utilize actual instruments especially the drums that are used to create some pretty complex rhythms. Thanks for sharing this music!
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