A8+Japanese+Music

=ようこそ　日本　おんがく =

Music industry in Japan is now one of the biggest industries in the world and affecting the music scene in other countries.

__**Traditional**__
Japanese music flows, in an attempt to reflect the feeling of nature. The tempo usually starts out very slow and gets faster, returns to being slow again, and has a drawn-out ending. The music is generally calm and soothing. There are three main types of traditional Japanese music: theatrical, instrumental, and court music.



__**Gagaku**__
Gagaku means "elegant music". In ancient Japan gagaku was used as court music. It has been around since the 5th century. Gagaku can be performed as kangen (concert music) which uses winds, strings and percussion or as bugaku (dance music) for which the stringed instruments are omitted. It was introduced into Japan with Buddhism from the Korean Pennisula. Music was that was introduced from China was called togaku and music from Korea was called komagaku. Due to the Onin War (1467 to 1477) Gagaku music was stopped in Kyoto for over 100 years. Gagaku can be heard today in Shinto temples, weddings or court events.

__**Kabuki**__
Kabuki is a type of Japanese theatre that is known for the use of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. In the beginning female characters were played by men and women. But soon the women began attracting the wrong types of audiences and gaining too much attention from men. In 1629, women were banned from appearing in kabuki performances. So the men (usually in their teens) took the women's role. Kabuki music usually has taiko, shamisen and tsuzumi instruments being played.



__**Traditional Instruments:**__
しゃくはち- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qg4pOW3Pn8 こと- [] しゃみせん- [] たいこ- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n-6KC2RdGQ

__**Modern**__
J-POP TOMOHISA YAMASHITA __GLAY__ __Takuro__: real name Takuro Kubo : guitar (leader and primary songwriter) __Teru__: real name Teruhiko Kobashi : vocals __Jiro__: real name Yoshihito Wayama : bass __Hisashi__: real name Hisashi Tonomura : guitar

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 * Glay** (グレイ , //Gurei//) is a rock/pop band from Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan formed by guitarist Takuro and vocalist Teru during high school in 1988. Glay primarily composes songs in the rock and pop genres, but they have also composed songs using elements of different styles such as reggae and gospel. As of 2008, they had sold an estimated amount of 28 million records of forty-three singles and 23 million copies of fourteen albums.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qqmwsxFOK4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJrDFKaM-Mk
 * __Other links:__**