The Spirit of Japan: A Collection of Famous and Popular Shamisen Pieces
The shamisen is the quintessential traditional Japanese instrument.
Of course, it’s used to perform classic pieces, but it’s also a highly versatile instrument that shines in solo performances of intense songs and in collaborations with rock bands—traditional yet packed with showmanship.
In this article, we’ll introduce a wide range of songs that feature the shamisen.
We’ve included everything from older works to the latest tracks!
If you’re thinking about starting the shamisen, you might find this helpful—so be sure to read to the end!
Playlist
| The Spirit of Japan: A Collection of Famous and Popular Shamisen Pieces | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| show_chart | Title | Playlist | Review |
| 1east | The Subscription ListTaimeizō · Taimeijūrō Association |  play_arrow | Kanjinchō is the most famous piece in Kabuki and Nagauta... |
| 2east | SenbonzakuraKurousa-P |  play_arrow | The intense rock-style arrangement of our piece is irresistible… |
| 3east | Tsugaru Yosare-bushiSawada Katsunari |  play_arrow | Tsugaru Yosare-bushi is one of the five major folk songs of the Tsugaru region... |
| 4east | Nambu Tawarazumi-utaKinsaburō & Maya |  play_arrow | “Nanbu Tawatsumi-uta” is a folk song handed down in Sannohe District, Aomori Prefecture, a... |
| 5east | cherry blossom |  play_arrow | It’s a classic song that everyone’s heard at least once... |
| 6east | Soran BushiTsugaru shamisen Wagajin |  play_arrow | Soran Bushi is a folk song from Hokkaido that everyone knows... |
| 7east | Thirteen SandhillsMitsubishi Michiya |  play_arrow | The history of this piece is long; it was composed in the mid-Edo period, and… |
| 8east | Akita Nikata-bushihanawachie |  play_arrow | Akita Nikatabushi is a high-... marked by a delicate rhythm. |
| 9east | Kuroda-bushiFujimoto Haneyuki |  play_arrow | Kuroda-bushi is a folk song from Fukuoka City in Fukuoka Prefecture. Chiku... |
| 10east | Rōkyoku: Farewell on Nanbusaka in the SnowMinami Haruo (Kouen) |  play_arrow | Rōkyoku, together with rakugo and kōdan, is one of the “Three Great Japanese Narrative Arts”… |
| 11east | Yosakoi BushiSansuien ni yoru shisō |  play_arrow | A folk song handed down in Kochi Prefecture. Its title comes from the final chant. |
| 12east | -Poem of Fate-Agatsuma Hiromitsu |  play_arrow | Hiromitsu Agatsuma won a shamisen competition at the young age of 15... |
| 13east | ZERO TO ONEKUNI-KEN |  play_arrow | KUNI-KEN is like fiercely pounding... |
| 14east | horizonNagamura Koji |  play_arrow | “Horizon” is an event special program by Ishikawa TV te— |
| 15east | Sweet EsquivaKoyama Yutaka meets Shima Yusuke |  play_arrow | Yutaka Oyama, the third-generation head of the Oyama school of Tsugaru shamisen... |
| 16east | The Four Seasons of TsugaruEndo Erina |  play_arrow | Tsugaru’s Four Seasons is based on a Tsugaru-style folk song, with Aka... |
| 17east | Sado OkesaKizu Kaori |  play_arrow | It is a folk song handed down in Sado City, Niigata Prefecture. Sa... of Sado Island |
| 18east | Tsugaru Aiya-bushiKinoshita Tsuneari |  play_arrow | This song was sung by sailors of the Kitamaebune (northbound trading ships) around the Edo period... |
| 19east | Moon over the Ruined Castle |  play_arrow | A beautiful Western scale with, here and there, the resonances of a Japanese (wa) scale... |
| 20east | Kokiriko-bushitoukyou futari |  play_arrow | The Kokiriko-bushi is a folk song from the Gokayama region of Nanto City in Toyama Prefecture… |
| 21east | Rapidtoukyou futari |  play_arrow | Tsugaru shamisen by Hibiki Sawada and Tounan Iwata… |
| 22east | Paradise Has No BorderShimura Ken × Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra |  play_arrow | Ken Shimura and Hirokazu Agatsuma with Tokyo Ska Paradise... |
| 23east | It’s the cat, it’s the cat.Unknown |  play_arrow | “The Careless Song” and “Neko-ja Neko-ja”... |
| 24east | spring rainNAGANO Motose |  play_arrow | Also known as “Ōshukubai,” it is a Hizen piece by a person named Shibata Hanamori… |
| 25east | Old PineKineie Tokushima Shibu |  play_arrow | “Oimatsu” is a representative nagauta piece, composed in the late Edo period by the fourth-generation ... |
| 26east | deep seaNiya-NIYA- |  play_arrow | A Tsugaru shamisen arti… from Yagishiri Island in Haboro, Hokkaido |
| 27east | Jonkara ShinsetsuTakahashi Chikuzan |  play_arrow | Mr. Takahashi Chikuzan, through his energetic live performances in the postwar period, ... |
| 28east | Tsugaru Ohara BushiKinoshita Shinichi |  play_arrow | Shinichi Kinoshita is a master shamisen virtuoso whose superlative technique fuses tradition with the modern. |
| 29east | Nagauta: Echigo LionKagurazaka no ryōtei nite |  play_arrow | “Kakubei …,” a traditional performing art of Minami Ward, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture |
| 30east | Thank youYoshida Kyōdai |  play_arrow | A celebrated song of gratitude by the Yoshida Brothers that fuses Tsugaru shamisen with contemporary music |
| 31east | -EN-Agatsuma Hiromitsu |  play_arrow | The fervor and dynamism of Japanese festivals as portrayed by the Tsugaru shamisen |