Folk songs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes of Nagasaki: the heart of the hometown passed down through song
Nagasaki, with places like Dejima, exudes an exotic atmosphere.
In this article, we’ll introduce folk songs and children’s songs that capture Nagasaki’s customs, practices, and current events.
Above all, many of Nagasaki’s folk songs, in their melodies and in many other aspects, carry historical backgrounds and convey a distinctly non-Japanese feel.
Listening to these Nagasaki folk and children’s songs, you can’t help but picture the streetscapes of Nagasaki.
Please try listening while imagining Nagasaki brimming with that exotic charm.
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Folk Songs, Children's Songs, and Nursery Rhymes of Nagasaki: The Heart of Our Hometown Passed Down in Song (21–30)
Nagasaki NocturneTaro Hakase
This piece, like a grand romance created by Taro Hakase, is surely a perfect masterpiece for appreciating the splendor of Nagasaki’s night views.
Among recent songs that evoke Nagasaki, isn’t “Nagasaki Nocturne” the most polished, delighting the prefecture’s residents as well? Please give it a listen.
Hama-bushi
Hama-bushi is a new folk song from Nagasaki City, composed in the early Showa period, and thus relatively recent as a folk song.
It was created by Aipachi, a Maruyama geisha, together with Jūjirō Koga, a scholar of Nagasaki studies, and is said to have been a zashiki song spread by the geisha of the Maruyama pleasure district.
Jasmine of Nagasaki: Hydrangea
This song adds Japanese lyrics to the piece “Molihua” (Jasmine Flower), which came to Nagasaki, Japan from China, and it is known by names such as “Ajisai” (Hydrangea) and “Suizenka” (Narcissus).
Molihua refers to jasmine, a flower used for tea, and the Chinese lyrics praise the flower’s beauty and its delightful fragrance.
Isahaya Jinku
This is a song from the hanamachi (entertainment district) of Isahaya City in Nagasaki Prefecture, sung within communities of geisha and courtesans.
It is said to be derived from “Sumo Jinku,” which was popular in the late Edo period.
The lyrics currently sung were written around 1934 by Mr.
Takihira Tsuchihashi, who was the mayor at the time.
Tasukue Haiya-bushi
Haiya-bushi is a Japanese folk song that begins with the shout “haiya” and was sung as a lively party song in tatami rooms.
Variants of Haiya-bushi have been passed down in many regions.
Tasuke Port on Hirado Island in Nagasaki Prefecture is said to be the origin of Haiya-bushi nationwide, and from there it spread and was sung in ports across Japan.
Unzen Ondo
This is Unzen Ondo, with lyrics by the Nagasaki poet Mizuro Nishioka.
With Unzen Ondo, which he released two years after graduating from junior high school in Nagasaki, his talent as a poet was recognized.
Invited to Tokyo by composer Haseo Sugiyama and vocalist Fumiko Shike, he went on to produce many works.
This song is an example of his excellence as a lyricist.
Woman of NagasakiKasuga Hachirō
It’s probably about infidelity.
There were a lot of songs like this back then.
It’s an adult love song about a woman from Nagasaki.
Even listening to it now, it evokes something, so I can understand why it was a hit at the time.
These days, it’s popular as a go-to karaoke song for older folks.
In conclusion
How was it? Were you completely captivated by the image of Nagasaki from that time? Every folk song and children’s song truly evoked Nagasaki, and many of them were brimming with that exotic atmosphere, weren’t they? Please try to find one song that brings Nagasaki to mind!