The Tides of New Okinawan Folk Music

by BISEKATSU

Ever-evolving Okinawan Minyo Folk Music

New Okinawan folk music began at the beginning of the Showa period (1926-1989) with the spread of records and the exposure to Kasho Machida, which stimulated the creation of new music. Choki Fukuhara established Marufuku Records in 1926 and two years later composed his maiden effort, "Imin Kouta," which was made into a record in 1933. There was also the hit song "Ai-no-Amagasa" which came from the playhouses making new Okinawan operas. Shosei Uema wrote the script, Chosei Takara was in charge of the music and the year it was first produced was, as expected, 1933.

Up until that point, the folk songs of Amami, Miyako and Yaeyama were added to the plays by changing the tempo, or new compositions were sung in the ancient meter of Ryuka. But it wasn't until about 1933 that completely new Okinawan folk music began to emerge.

Other artists to debut in the period from around the start of the Showa era until after WWII include Seihin Yamauchi, Choho Miyara, Matsuo Kawata, Ryojun Higa, Saburo Omune, and Teihan China. They were all active as writers of Okinawan music. After the war, with radio broadcasts, jukeboxes, and cable broadcasting, the mediums by which people listened to music increased and new Okinawan folk music began to be created everyday. Among these excellent new musicians are Rinsuke Teruya, Chosho Maekawa, Shuei Ohama, Rinsho Kadekaru, Shotoku Yamauchi, Shoei Kina, Kotoku Tsuha, Seijin Noborikawa and Sadao China. They began to sing the new Shimauta folk songs. Women singers to emerge include Kamado Shinbashi, Kame Itokazu, Kiyo Funakoshi, Setsuko Ishihara, Hiromi Shiroma, Misako Oshiro and Yuki Yamazato.

After WWII, one of the most essential persons in supporting the environment for Okinawan music was Jiro Takara, unforgettable as the producer who brought up Marutaka Records. And of course, headlining all this is Tsuneo Fukuhara, who as producer for Marufuku Records put out more hits than anyone else in the history of Okinawan Music.

Those that he taught are still supporting Okinawan music today. One of the most notable of those having been influenced by Fukuhara is Sadao China, the composer who is currently producing the NeNes. Also included in this is Rinsuke Teruya's son Rinken, of the Rinken Band, who is building a large base for the Okinawan music industry.

BISEKATSU (Yoshikatsu Bise)
Born in 1939 in Naha City, Okinawa. Mr. Bise is a vigorous witness to the exciting history of music in the Koza area since he moved there in his middle school days. While managing Campus Records he was also the producer of over a thousand songs and composer of over one hundred, including "Juku-no-Haru".

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