Japan World Music And Japanese Folk Music CDs

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Isolated for centuries, and still reveling in its uniqueness even as it voraciously sucks up influences from other countries, Japan has a musical tradition that stretches back centuries and includes some of the most interesting styles and instruments found on Earth.

Among the more popular Japanese instruments are taiko drums, shakuhachi, and the sanshin and shamisen. Modern musicians like Agatsuma, Joji Hirota and the Yoshida Brothers are adapting traditional Japanese music for the modern world, creating in the process music that crosses genres and continents while retaining the intangible and inescapable Japan-ness found in everything the country does and is.

Japan folk CDs for sale

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Articles (world folk music CDs)

Luk thung is the country music of Thailand

Thai: ลูกทุ่ง Also: plen luk thung; luuk thung; loog thung; look thung; luk tung Generally described as Thai country music, luk thung is a style of music that has become quite popular in Thailand since the 1960's. It is generally slow paced (although there is a livelier variety), and the lyrics often deal with the plight of poor people in rural...

Newari folk music of Tibet

The Newars, an indigenous group in the Kathmandu valley of central Nepal, create a unique form of music in which percussion plays lead, and wind instruments provide incidental color. The musical direction is dictated by nature, particularly time and seasons. The style of music from this region consists solely of percussion and wind instruments - no strings...

Ranad ek and ranad thum, the xylophones of Thailand

Thai: ระนาดเอก (ranad ek); ระนาดทุ้ม (ranad thum) Also: ranat ek/thum; ranad thume The ranad ek is a kind of high-pitched xylophone from Thailand with either 21 or 22 bars made of bamboo or other hard wood. The lower-pitched ranad thum is based on the ranad ek, but has longer, wider keys. In both, the bars hang together on...

Khene, the bamboo reed flute from Laos and Issan

Thai: แคน Also: khaen; kaen; khen The khene, a long bamboo reed instrument, is the most beloved musical instrument in Laos, and the Lao instrument most familiar to the rest of the world. Often a common part of daily life, in some families as indispensable as chairs and tables, the khene is revered worldwide for its highly unique buzzing sound. The...

Japan folk CDs