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

Children’s songs and school songs that entrust the babbling and flow of rivers to music are filled with a unique sentiment that deeply resonates with the Japanese heart.

From nostalgic tunes hummed in childhood to memorable songs learned at school, many people still remember river-themed pieces even as adults.

In this article, we introduce works that sing of the river’s beauty as it changes with the seasons and of the creatures that live in and around it.

Please enjoy as you bask in fond memories.

Playlist

Children’s songs, school songs, and nursery rhymes with a river theme. Beloved classics about nostalgic watersides.
show_chartTitlePlaylistOne point
1Song of the RiverLyrics by: Akira Mine / Music by: Yoshinao NakataLyricist Miné Akira, who devoted his heart to child welfare, and...
2The river is calling.Guy BeartThe irreplaceable sound of the river’s murmur and the vibrant pulse of life…
3The kappa knows.Lyrics by Yoko Sakurai / Music by Hajime Sakita
The kappa knows.Lyrics by Yoko Sakurai / Music by Hajime Sakita
A meddlesome kappa living by the river, with lurking dangers at the water’s edge…
4riverLyrics by Saburō Hayashi / Music by Wakako FukudaWoven by likening life’s journey to the majestic flow of a great river...
5A Little Bear in the RainLyrics: Masao Tsurumi / Music: Akira YuyamaAn innocent tale of a cub enjoying the rain
6KawanakajimaLyrics by Juichirō Hatano / Music by Sakunosuke KoyamaA valiant song depicting a historic battle
7Rivers in JapanKoperu’s SongThe song produced by Copel, an early childhood education brand, …
8A Day of the RiverLyrics by Toshihiko Shinzawa / Music by Hirotaka NakagawaSet a child’s day by the riverside to music just as it is…
9boatmanLyrics by Toshiko Takeuchi / Music by Mitsuaki KōyōThe rhythm of rowing the boat, “Gitchirako,” feels so pleasant…
10Sea? River? A mnemonic song about where fish liveKawa-chanNot only rivers, but also the sea and ponds—the habitats where fish live...
11It’s the sea, it’s the river.children’s songPlay songs that nurture rich imagination
12basket basketchildren’s songThe breath of Edo infused into play songs
13Watermill in the ForestLyrics by Minoru Shimizu / Music by Masao YoneyamaSpring’s hope as the waterwheel turns—energy for tomorrow infused into the music
14Like the flow of a riverHibari MisoraHibari Misora’s posthumous work depicting the river of life
15hometownLyrics by Tatsuyuki Takano / Music by Teiichi Okano
hometownLyrics by Tatsuyuki Takano / Music by Teiichi Okano
A nostalgic hometown song, long of unknown authorship
16Friendly PathLyrics by Yasushi Mitoma / Music by Mitsuaki KawamuraIn the days before school commuting groups and the like existed, this...
17Whose river is it?Lyrics and Composition: Minami RanboIt was broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 1995...
18School of MedakaLyrics by Shigeru Chaki / Music by Yoshinao NakadaMedaka no Gakkō: Music Resonates in People’s Hearts
19FlowerLyrics: HAGOROMO Takeshima / Music: RENTARŌ TakiThe spring classic “Hana” (Flowers), a masterpiece by HAGOROMO Takashima and Rentaro Taki
20Our town is on the riverbank.Lyrics by Miné Akira / Music by Hayashi HikaruA town of the high-growth era and a song of hope
21From the unaccompanied female chorus piece “Even the Seeds Chirp”: Spring RiverNagoya Municipal Moriyama Higashi Junior High SchoolNobutaka Takatomi set music to a poem by Santōka Bocho.
22Song of Leaving My HometownMineko AndoA hometown song with lyrics written by Ichishō Yoshimaru
23Let’s play by the riverTsubasa Suzuki & Rocket CrayonA nursery rhyme by Rocket Crayon, the childcare worker
24The Valley of the Red RiverTokyo MeistersingerA folk song that sings of a tragic love in the era of the American West
25Waterwheel on the riverbankKatsue HarayamaA fun children's song sung in a circle
26Spring StreamJapan Choral AssociationA song with lyrics by Tatsuyuki Takano and music by Teiichi Okano
27riverTsukumi Kashi-no-Mi Children’s ChoirA choral piece with lyrics by Genma Senke and music by Kunihiko Hashimoto.
28The banks of a wide riverMixed Chorus Kusatsu CantabileScottish folk songs are popular overseas.
29Across the riverDisneyPocahontas’s iconic song that celebrates intercultural harmony
30Rasa SayangDick LeeA song that adds Japanese lyrics to a Southeast Asian folk tune
31running riverHarmony OchiaiA choral piece depicting the water cycle is popular in junior high schools.
32Down the Mother VolgaHitotsubashi University and Tsuda University Chorus HumanitySong of the Volga River and Russian Ships
33Summer has comeTokyo Broadcasting Children’s ChoirA summer song, singing of early-summer scenery.
34Afton’s flowKobe Central ChoirSong by a Scottish poet, Afton Water
35London BridgeFunabashi Sazanka Children’s ChoirMother Goose: The song about a bridge being washed away
36fireflySaeda ManiwaA twilight scene where fireflies dance beneath the willows.
37BeginningNagoya Municipal Shiroyama Junior High School
BeginningNagoya Municipal Shiroyama Junior High School
Choral works by Naoko Kudo and Makiko Kinoshita
38Song of the Small RiverKumiko Osugi
Song of the Small RiverKumiko Osugi
Kumiko Ōsugi sings the anime theme song.
39MoldauShiroyama Junior High School, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture
MoldauShiroyama Junior High School, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture
The famous piece “The Moldau,” a symphonic poem by Smetana.
40Little loaches and little crucian carpHibari Children’s ChorusA mixed chorus piece born from rice-planting songs
41Bengawan SoloGusan MartohartonoA song that sings about the Solo River in Indonesian music
42Waves of the Amur RiverTomakomai ChoirAmur River folk song, Red Army chorus
43maple leavesYoko Seri
maple leavesYoko Seri
Lyrics by Tatsuyuki Takano; a song selected for Japan’s 100 Best Songs (Nihon no Uta 100-sen)
44At the spring riverFuyuki Hizuki
At the spring riverFuyuki Hizuki
A love song that aired on Minna no Uta
45Suwannee RiverNHK Tokyo Children’s ChoirComposed by Foster for a Black troupe