So. I’m cruising YouTube and came across this video. All the info is written in kanji so I have no idea who she is but her style is different from most modern players. I like it. Opinions?
I am almost sure that it Is Chikuzan II
Her name Is Ninume Chikuzan.
She was ( THE ) student from Chikuzan Takahashi, actually, his most famous student.
She plays Chikuzan’s original songs,and maintains the legacy of Chikuzan.
Yes, it’s 二代目高橋竹山 (Nidai-me Takahashi Chikuzan). Saw her with Chikuzan live in San Francisco s-o-o many years ago. (Seeing/hearing them at that concert is actually what got me into shamisen, which until then I, um, couldn’t stand(!). Listened to Tsugaru recordings for a couple of years and then, once I liked the sound, went “backwards” to study jiuta style… :-D) I was never able to find any vids or anything with her in them until just about a year ago, and now - yay! - there are quite a few on YouTube.
ah finally! I remember reading about this lady, thanks for the upload Chet!
holy wow
Amazing.
COOL thanks for that clip I am chronically lazy often when it comes to “researching” on youtube . . .
Shinji: Ah, Takahashi Chikuzan is who I kept thinking about as she played. So I wasn’t imagining a similarity, then? Cool.
I’m glad to find out about her. She plays with so much more heart than pyrotechnics. That’s the same thing that I like about Sato Michihiro’s playing, and now we’ve found another.
By the way, that’s the widest bachi blade I’ve ever seen used for Tsugaru!
That’s one epic bachi. I bet it could be used to put bread in a stone oven.
I enjoyed the video. It felt a little bit rushed for my taste though.
ha yes, i really like her playing too, she reminds me a bit of Chie Hanawa, very heavy hand and agressive playing and sound, i like that type of sound!
That’s one epic bachi. I bet it could be used to put bread in a stone oven.
I enjoyed the video. It felt a little bit rushed for my taste though.
I believe my bachi and her bachi are the same. Mine is black with dark bekkou, and water bison horn. Hers looks like the lighter version of it 
I saw her perform on Youtube. From France I believe. She was excellent!
It looks like a jiuta bachi. I have one, they’re HUGE. 
Takeyama Takahashi, I think.
I thought she seemed familiar, I have another one of her performances in my Youtube Shamisen Favorites playlist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBeknbp_iEc&list=PLAfzkphZSNtgJ2ABnmUbCzp4qAbg6qHx0&index=10
BTW, I got that name by copy and past the Youtube info into Google translator so it may not be Takeyama Takahashi…but check out the other Youtube video if you like her. And Florian mentioned Chie Hanawa, another great female performer! I really like her style. I wonder if they ever come to the states to perform?
Yes, Gael, Google-san made a mistake–can you believe it? Actually, a Japanese person could conceivably make the same mistake. The two kanji, meaning ‘bamboo’ and ‘mountain’ can be pronounced ‘takeyama’ or ‘chikuzan.’
Interesting that she performs standing up. Also, that bachi–it looks like acrylic or something, with bekko-like spots painted on it. Is real bekko ever that transparent?
John, I was told by my dealers in Japan that the more “light” or “yellow” there is in the bachi (as opposed to the dark brown areas) and the more transparent the bekko, the higher the price. (Good news for me, because I prefer the darker colour…) FYI, I have personally seen and touched real bekko bachi of this quality in Japan. The faux bekko bachi out there do not currently have this much transparency, or at least not that I have seen to date.
From what I’ve heard from knowledgeable sources, bekkou material for bachi is running out. Actually, all currently used materials are on the brink of extinction due to different reasons. Bekkou, Kouki, and dog skin, they are all almost all gone without much hope of new sources.
All the more awesome that Chris is developing a new bachi!