Research Project

For my research project I am going to focus on Music and the Music Industry.

One thing I want to look into what types of music are popular by following the Oricon charts as well as asking Japanese people what types of music they listen to. I love to listen Japanese music but my perception of what is popular might be completely wrong or different.

The music industry is also very different. Here in the U.S artists are often discovered in clubs performing at local bars. Auditions aren't usually common. It's more about putting yourself out there and hoping to be discovered. However in Japan, people train from an early age to enter the music industry. They go on lots of auditions or try to enter music based television shows. So the process of making it as an artist is completely different.

Another thing I want to look into are idol groups and the age of artists in Japan. Age hardly seems to be a problem in Japan as kids as young as like 15 or even younger are singing in groups or as solo singers. These young groups are also really popular in Japan. However, in the U.S younger artists are viewed as inexperienced and often ridiculed like artists Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus. So I would like to look into why there is such a interest in these younger groups and why age isn't as important to Japanese society.

Japanese music has a different style as well the instruments being used to composed song. I want to research how modern Japanese music came about and what influences it drew from.

There are probably other things I would like to look into dealing with Japanese music and the music industry, but at the moment these couple of things are good enough to get started.

5 Things I Want To Do In Japan

When I go to Japan, there are a ton of things I want to do. I honestly don't know much about what's in Japan so my top 5 list might be kind of generic. It's really hard to pick just 5 though

1) Go to concerts

As a dedicated Japanese/Korean music fan, there are a lot of artists I would like to see in concert when I'm Japan. I've never really been to a real concert since I don't care for American music. So while I'm in Japan, I really want to have the chance to see my favorite artists in action. 3 artists in particular I want to make an effort to see are AAA (Attack All Around), Namie Amuro, and Perfume.

AAA is a group of 7 members who were all back up dancers for major artists at one point but then were recruited for the singing and dancing ability and made into a group. They are my favorite music artists and I really hope to see them. I don't know when or where their concerts are but I'll have to look into it.

On the other hand my plan to see Perfume and Namie Amuro are a little more set in stone. Perfume is a 3 member electropop girl group who are really popular in Japan for their unique dance style and sound. They are the first electropop group to hit #1 on the Oricon charts since around 1970. Me and my friend Seika, a full time Ursinus student who lives in Japan want to see them at some point. So when Seika is back in Japan we were planning on going during winter break or summer break when we both have time off. I would have to take the Shinkansen to Tokyo and then the subway to Tokyo to meet Seika. From there we would probably head to arena in the city.

Namie Amuro who is known as the queen of R&B in Japan is also a really popular talented artist. I plan to go with my friend Shin (from AIU and current Ursinus student) in November when we have some time off during finals week. Shin plans to buy the tickets during the summer when they go on sale. From there, we will probably take the shinkansen to Tokyo. Shin knows where he's going so I'm just going to follow him. :)

2) Go to a Kaiten Zushi

Japanese food tends to scare me. But if it looks good and has a nice presentation or style, then I am likely to try it. So restaurants called Kaiten Zushi really intrique me because you get served the food in such a cool way. Kaiten Zushi are also known as Conveyor Belt Sushi restaurants because your seating area is bordered by a conveyor belt. On the conveyor belt are little dishes of fresh sushi or other things such as fruits, desserts and drinks which customers are free to pick from. Your total bill is calculated by the dishes you pick. I love Sushi and I know it won't taste different if it's on a conveyor belt. But to me it just seems like a more fun way to eat sushi. I'm more of the type of person who needs to see what food looks like before I decide to eat it. So the fact that I can see everything right in front of me before I choose appeals to me.

Food that is on the conveyor belt too long is usually refreshed with new plates. Some Kaiten Zushi restaurants have high tech identification systems which detect when certain plates have been out for too long. Therefore, you are usually supplied fresh food. Fortunately for me, there is a kaiten zushi shop located 20 minutes away from AIU by bus. Thus, I can easily get to one of these interesting sushi-go-round shops.

3) Spend a week with a Japanese family

Although I am going to Japan, I will be living in dorms at AIU. Thus, I won't be able to experience a typical Japanese family and home. However, because of the Japanese friends I have made at Ursinus I am hoping that during my stay in Japan, they would let me stay at their house for a little bit. I have talked to them about houses and found out that their whole house is about the size of maybe like my kitchen and family room. But they also have unique rooms such as a tatami room and their eating area usually consists of a small table close to the floor in which people sit on the floor and eat. Being able to eat homecooked food would also be fun as well and to see how their family operates. I have no definite plans on how I would be able to do this at the moment but I hope I will have the chance.

4) Game Center (Joypolis):

Game Centers are basically arcades in the U.S. If you have ever heard of Dave & Busters, they are basically like that, just large areas in which you can play high tech video games. They are popular among gaijin but Japanese often find them to be too noisy. Joyopolis unlike regular arcades is almost like a video game amusement park. They have your typical racing games however you compete against 30 other people in front of huge screens. They even have cars on rails that you get into and they ride around as you try to shoot stuff. Of course they have your typical games. But the arcade itself is very flashy and fancy compared to most American arcades. I love games so I really would like to visit Joypolis if I could.

5) Neko Cafe:

In Japan there are cafes known that serve you not only coffee and other snacks but allow you to play with tame cats that wander and laze around the cafe. The cafe charges you hourly after you pay an entrance fee. You are free to play with the cats as you eat. Since people usually aren't allowed to have pets in their apartments, cat cafes allow for people to ease their lonliness or just have fun with animals. Cat Cafes are not only a place to enjoy feline company but to learn about cat welfare issues such as the stray population in Japan.

I have a cat, Sophie at home. So when I'm in Japan I won't be able to see her for a whole year which is really depressing because I love her a lot. So being able to play with a bunch of cats will make me feel good. Plus the concept of being able to have tea or coffee while in a room with like 20 cats just seems really interesting. I love cats so much so if the 1 in my house is fun, I can only imagine what 20+ cats would be like. There are no cat cafes in Akita however there are some in Tokyo. During the winter I plan to go to visit my friend Seika who lives in Tokyo and meet another friend Yuki who will come to Tokyo from Sendai. From there we will all take a trip to a local neko cafe.

Akita Festivals

Major Akita Festivals

Akita Kanto Festival

Akita which resides in the Northern part of Japan is home to many unique cultural events. One of them is the Akita Kanto Festival. It is held from August 5-7 and the purpose of the festival is to wish for a plentiful and successful grain harvest. About 1.3 million people attend the festival. A Kanto is a group of candle-lit lanterns attached to a bamboo frame. Each of the lanterns is supposed to represent an individual grain of rice which is Akita’s most well-known and famous crop. The performers balance these heavy poles on their hands, head, back, and other body parts to demonstrate their balance and strength. During the festival you can see at least 200 Kanto which amounts to at least 10,000 lanterns. Since the festival often spans a couple of days, on the last day of the festival a Kanto contest is usually held in which participants try to show their strength and technique with their Kanto poles. The festival goes back to the 18^th century when people prayed for bountiful harvests and the ridding of illness and evil spirits from one’s life.

Kamakura Festival

The Kamakura festival is held on February 15^th and 16^th in Yokote City in the Akita prefecture. For this festival, young adults put on masks and go around to all the houses and scare the children, thus bringing good fortune. The word Kamakura means a small igloo-like structure that is made entirely of snow. Since Yokote City is located in the northern prefecture of Akita, construction of these small igloos is relatively easy due to the abundance of snow as a result of the cold climate.

The kamakura has a height of approximately 2 meters. Inside there is one big room and an altar for people to place a statue of the water deity so that they can pray for things such as academic success, safety for their family, and a successful harvest. Blankets are laid on the ground so people don’t have to sit on the cold snow. Also a small cooking stove is installed so that families can enjoy foods such as toasted rice cakes and amazake which is a fermented rice drink.

Oftentimes smaller snow domes are constructed and a candle is put inside for decoration.

Namahage Festival

The Namahage festival takes place on the Oga peninsula of Akita Prefecture during New Year’s. At this time, young men dress up as namahage or fierce demons by wearing scary masks and clothes made out of straw. They go around and burst into all the houses in the village and in a scary voice encourage people such as young wives and children to obey their parent-in laws and work and study hard. Other members of the household protect their wives and children by insisting that they are good people. They then send the namahage away by providing them with food and sake.

In Akita in particular, the Namahage Sedo festival also includes a sacred dance called Chinkamayu no Mai which is unique to this region of Japan. The young men playing the Namahage then dance to drum music. Finally, the namahage march down the mountain with torches and pass out rice cakes to all the attendees. These cakes help keep disaster and illness away from those who eat them.

Omagari National Fireworks Competition

This firework competition is the 3^rd biggest in Japan. It is held on the 4^th Saturday of August on the Omono-gawa which is a river in Akita. More than 600,000 people come from all over Japan to see some of top 30 or so firework makers launch their handmade fireworks in colorful display of lights and sound. The town of Omagari only has a population of 60,000 people so the audience is at least 10 times the size of the normal population. The fireworks are split into 3 categories: day fireworks, night fireworks, and the most creative. During the night fireworks, companies have 2 and a half minutes to display their designs to music of their choice.