Collection of winter nursery rhymes, folk songs, and children's songs. Includes fun winter hand-play songs too.
Do you like winter?Although winter is very cold, there are many unique ways to enjoy it: you can see a beautiful silver world created by pure white snow, and you can feel a special kind of warmth you can only experience in winter, like hot pot dishes or sitting in a kamakura snow hut.There are also lots of fun events like Christmas and New Year’s!Children are probably looking forward to making snowmen, having snowball fights, and enjoying Christmas presents and cakes, aren’t they?In this article, we’ll introduce nursery rhymes, folk songs, traditional children’s songs, and hand-play songs themed around various aspects of “winter.”There are many songs that will turn a winter that’s “just cold” into wonderful memories, so please give them a listen!
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Collection of Winter Nursery Rhymes, Folk Songs, and Children's Songs: Fun Winter Hand-Play Songs Too (51–60)
spool (of thread); winding thread; Itomaki (traditional toy spinning top), depending on context
We wind the string and make all kinds of things with a hand-play game! You’ve probably heard it at least once.
In winter, we sometimes switch to a Christmas version and add exciting items like Santa’s hat and glasses.
By singing the song over and over, the children’s anticipation grows as they wonder, “What will we make next?” Both adults and children, use your imagination to create all sorts of things!
The Snow PainterSakushi: Noritake Akihiko / Sakkyoku: Ando Takashi
“The Snow Painter” expresses falling white snow by likening it to paint.
The lyrics were written by Akihiko Noritake and the music composed by Takashi Ando.
It’s perfect for winter recreation to add simple finger-pointing and hand-clapping actions that match the lyrics describing snow falling on rooftops and fences.
The piece is just under a minute long, so learn the repeating melody and enjoy singing and dancing with the children.
It’s a children’s song ideal for winter listening, evoking beautiful natural scenery covered in snow.
The wind and the snow are my friends.sakushi: kobayashi jun’ichi / sakkyoku: neruson & rorinz
“Kaze mo Yuki mo Tomodachi da” (The Wind and Snow Are Our Friends) was created based on the American children’s song “Frosty the Snowman.” Composed by Nelson & Rollins with Japanese lyrics by Junichi Kobayashi of the Department of Children’s Literature, it depicts children energetically playing amid scenes of blowing wind and falling snow.
With its lively rhythm and cheerful melody, it’s perfect for hand-play activities accompanied by piano.
The warm sound of the piece seems to blow away the chill of winter.
Why not listen to it alongside the original song, which tells the poignant story of a snowman?
skiing
It was released in 1942 (Showa 17) and became widely sung.
The lyrics were written by Shigure Otowa, known for penning popular songs during the Showa era, and the music was composed by Hirai Kōsaku, who also wrote the children’s song “Tonbo no Megane” and numerous school anthems for elementary and junior high schools.
Incidentally, both received the Medal with Purple Ribbon during their lifetimes.
The Ministry of Education school song “Ski no Uta” is an entirely different piece.
Collection of winter nursery rhymes, folk songs, and children's songs. Fun winter hand-play songs too (61–70)
winter song
This song is a children’s tune that was broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” from December 1971 to January 1972.
Even if the title doesn’t ring a bell, many people will probably think “Oh, that one!” when they hear the melody.
It’s based on a Bulgarian children’s song composed by Hristo Nedyalkov with lyrics by Dimitar Spasov.
The Japanese lyrics were written by Tomoko Nakayama, a translator and children’s literature author.
The onomatopoeic lyrics make it a very fun song, and it seems this part appears in the original as well.
White Road
This song sets Japanese lyrics to the second movement of Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto in F minor, “Winter.” The lyrics were written by Yoji Umino, and the song was first broadcast in 1975 on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” sung by Hi-Fi Set.
A remake sung by Mirei Kitahara was produced in 1983, and that version continued to air for many years.
It’s a piece whose familiar melody is paired with lyrics that leave an impression of gentle nostalgia and sadness.
Hymn to the Snowy Mountains
This song sets lyrics to the American folk tune “Oh My Darling, Clementine” and turns it into a mountaineering anthem.
It is said that in 1926, while visiting Kazawa Onsen in the snowy mountains with fellow members of the Kyoto Imperial University Mountaineering Club, Eizaburo Nishibori created it to pass the time.
The lyrics wonderfully convey a love for the mountains, don’t they? At Kazawa Onsen, there is a monument to the song “Yukiyama Sanka” (Hymn to the Snowy Mountains).
Many artists have recorded this piece, but the version by the Dark Ducks is probably the best known.