Children’s songs, school songs, and nursery rhymes with a river theme. Beloved classics about nostalgic watersides.

Song of Leaving My HometownMineko Ando

Song of Leaving My Hometown

It was first introduced in the 1913 publication Shin-saku Shōka, Volume 5.

The original melody is the German folk song/art song Der letzte Abend (The Last Evening), with lyrics written by Yoshimaru Kazumasa, the lyricist known for Early Spring Song (Sōshunfu).

The lyrics describe a farewell to the grasses and trees, the mountains, and the river of one’s hometown.

Let's play by the riverTsubasa Suzuki & Rocket Crayon

Tsubasa Suzuki & Rocket Crayon: Let's Play by the River

This song was created mainly by Rocket Crayon (Takashi Yamaguchi and Satoshi Takada), who are active while working at a daycare center as childcare workers.

Yamaguchi composed the music, and in addition to the two members of Rocket Crayon, Hirotaka Nakagawa and Tsubasa Suzuki—both also involved in children’s songs—participated as lyricists.

The Valley of the Red RiverTokyo Meistersinger

Valley of the Red River / Tokyo Meistersingers

The Red River refers to the Red River in Texas, USA, and this folk song tells of a romance between a white settler and a Native American woman during the Westward Expansion era.

With Japanese lyrics by Kanji Kobayashi, the version sung by Mieko Hirota and the Tokyo Broadcasting Children’s Choir was broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 1963.

Waterwheel on the riverbankKatsue Harayama

Children’s song game: Waterwheel on the riverbank

It’s a traditional children’s song.

You can play it in various ways, like forming a circle and switching directions at “gurutto mawatte,” or changing “futarizure” (a pair) to three or four people.

Other children’s songs that mention a waterwheel include “Yodo no kawase no” and “Ido no kawase no.”

Spring StreamJapan Choral Association

Spring Brook (children’s song)

It is said to be a Ministry of Education school song published in 1912, with lyrics by Tatsuyuki Takano and music by Teiichi Okano.

Its first appearance was in “Elementary School Songs for the Fourth Grade,” and although the lyrics have undergone changes, it has been sung continuously up to the present day.

There are theories that the river in the song was modeled on the Kobokegawa, a tributary of the Udagawa, and theories that it refers to a river in Nagano Prefecture, where Takano was from.

riverTsukumi Kashi-no-Mi Children’s Choir

Kawa Tsukumi Kashi-no-Mi Children’s Choir

This is a two-part choral piece with lyrics by the poet Genma Senke and music by Kunihiko Hashimoto, known for works such as “Radio Kouta” and wartime songs.

Be careful not to confuse it with other pieces titled “River,” such as “River” from the choral suite Mizu no Inochi (lyrics by Kikuo Takano, music by Saburo Takata), or the four-part choral work “River” with lyrics by Tamiko Hirai and music by Fuyuki Ishigeta.

The banks of a wide riverMixed Chorus Kusatsu Cantabile

The Banks of the Wide River <Mixed Choir Kusatsu Cantabile>

It is a folk song of Scottish origin, known overseas as “The Water Is Wide” or “O Waly, Waly.” In Japan, the song appeared in the NHK morning dramas Hanako to Anne and Massan, which brought it renewed attention in recent years.