Questions about learning/buying tsugaru shamisen

General
#1

Hello,

I am new here, and I have a few questions considering the tsugaru shamisen. Originally, I planned to go to Japan with my scholarship that I got via my home university, but because of the current pandemic I had to reschedule my trip several times and now it was completely canceled… I wanted to go to Japan and learn the tsugaru shamisen the “traditional” way, as I planned this for my research for my Master’s thesis (the Master’s degree program I’m going to take is either intercultural communication or to continue with social and cultural Anthropology). I am very interested in the social sphere of learning a music instrument in Japan (like the iemoto system) and wanted to focus on this for my future Master’s thesis on the tsugaru shamisen. If I go to Japan in the future is still unknown, but I guess it will only be for a 2 – 3 month internship (shamisen learning could be acknowledged too). It still hurts my heart…

Therefore, I have two big questions, as I now have a lot of free time in the current winter semester and the upcoming summer semester (and until I start my Master’s degree program next year).

First is, how can I learn the tsugaru shamisen in Germany (Bavaria)? I thought about some options (like Su Bunjamin), but maybe you all have a better idea (because I wanted to learn it the “traditional” way, with the teacher-student relationship and so on). But I guess, I have to find an alternative (probably online). If you can recommend me a teacher, I would be very happy as I really plan to invest a lot in my research about the tsugaru shamisen (and if there is someone who can tell me more about the tsugaru shamisen itself (and tsugaru shamisen schools), especially about the social sphere of it, that would be welcome too).

Second is, if my considerations for getting the instrument are realistic. I thought of getting myself the Raven tsugaru shamisen via Bachido as I didn’t want to invest in a beginner shamisen ‘cause I want to use my instrument for a longer time and don’t really have the funds to acquire a more expensive one so soon (or at least not as soon as I would have to with a beginner shamisen). As I want to play the tsugaru shamisen, are there a few things I should consider as well before buying blindly (like koma, ito and so on)?

Thanks in advance for all the answers! I’m very happy to join this amazing community.

#2

Hi there, welcome.

I cannot adequately weigh in on your options in Bavaria. Outside of Ms. Bunjamin, you might get in touch with Mitsune. They’re a shamisen trio based in Berlin, and would hopefully be able to direct you better.

http://www.mitsune.de/about

Beyond that, I know some teachers here in Japan that do lessons via the internet. Hamatani Takuya (Shamisen Rakuya) could cover you for Tsugaru [among other things, honestly.]. You might also get in touch with Oyama Kouzan, as I think he might be doing online stuff too.

https://shami1000rakuya.com/shamisen-class/#lesson

http://www.shamimaster.com/

Regarding gear:

The beginner’s shamisen is a nagauta. It can be used for tsugaru playing, but will sound quite different. The Raven (and all the others save the Starling) are more standard tsugaru models, aside from some neck shape differences.

To play shamisen you need:
A shamisen (with neo)
Strings
koma

It is advisable to have
A bachi
A yubisuri/yubikake
hizagomu
At least one back up set of strings.

It is a good idea to get
A doukake, if you don’t have one.

If you have a natural skin, consider:
A bachigawa

It might be nice, but not necessary to get:
A neokoma

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#3

Hello, thank you for your fast answer!

I did not know Mitsune beforehand; I am definitely going to ask them too. Otherwise, I was already thinking of Oyama Kouzan as well.

So would the Raven be an appropriate choice for a first shamisen that I want to use a while longer? (I actually meant beginner shamisen generally, as not only bachido is selling those)

Thanks for putting everything I need together, but my question was more about what I have to look for especially. Like which kind of ito do I need, I saw that there are different gauges (and does the color matter, as there are black/red ones besides the yellow ones too)? Moreover, do I need the bachigawa if I am going for synthetic skin?

#4

Ah! I see.

I cannot speak specifically for the Raven’s quality, as I have only played on the Eclipse (Yuzu Natsumi brought hers to a jam some years ago). I’m based in Japan, so it’s just been easier to source my instruments elsewhere.

However, if the Eclipse is at all indicative of the quality of instruments Tokyo Wagakki is producing… I wouldn’t be concerned about its viability over the long term. If you bought from a store in Japan, they’d probably steer you towards either a true beginner’s karin (花梨) instrument or a higher level kouki (紅木) instrument.

The Raven, in traditional wood “tiering”, is right in between these two - it’s made of shitan. To me, that puts it in a good place overall. You’ll have some of the warm, protective fuzz of karin but you’ll still be able to get clear tones with proper technique. The higher hardness will also help with wear and tear, as compared to karin.

It’s possible that you could find cheaper starter options on the secondary markets of like or higher quality - but you’d definitely be taking a risk with that.

You need shamisen strings. The gauge and material are up to you. Silk is ideal but breaks much more quickly than tetoron or nylon. Nylon is tangy. Tetoron has a thunky sound to it. Some pro tsugaru players use Silk/silk/nylon others use silk/tetoron/nylon. Chikuzan style players sometimes use Silk/Silk/Silk.

Strings are broken up by gauge and type. Thus, a gauge 25 string intended for the first position is named 25-1. In addition to numbered gauges there is a special subset for Gidayu. These are referred to by either 太口 or 中口, with the former being bigger.

Here are some typical gauges according to Sansuien.

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Yellow is the traditional color, it derives from the turmeric used to keep away insects. Some shops do stock other colors, but you’d need to shop around.

My preferred brand is Marusan Hashimoto (specially the green packs). Generally, I use silk for my first and second strings and nylon for my third string. For tsugaru, I use 太口 - 1, 15 - 2, and 14 - 3

Strictly speaking, you don’t need a bachigawa with a natural skin - it just helps extend the life span. I don’t use one on my min’yo ;p.

I am not sure if Hibiki benefits from a bachigawa. @Kyle_Abbott can probably chime in here.

For other accessories, a lot of it comes down to personal preference.

Tsugaru typically uses lower koma (2.3~2.6) but some people use higher ones (2.8~3.0). Higher action will lead to a stonger focus on the string and a generally louder sound. They will be more difficult to play. I generally use ~2.6 or so.

Tsugaru style bachi tend to be smaller (say 17 ~ 18 cm long) and are traditionally heavy for their size (120g +) - but there is a growing trend towards very light, stiff bachi made from acrylic. However, some players use bigger picks to great effect. It all comes down to preference. My usual bachi is quite standard, but I will occasionally use my larger min’yo pick to play tsugaru with no issue.

A tsugaru style yubisuri is not necessary, but may help you slide up and down the neck better compared to a more traditional one since it offers more coverage. However, I generally don’t find it worth dwelling on. I have both, I used whatever is closest.

Does that clarify things?

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#5

Oh, thank you so much! This clarifies a lot.

1 Like
#6

Cheers, then.

If you have any other, specific questions please don’t hesitate to ask.

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#7

I can confirm if you wanted to start a bit faster it might be fun to contact Su Benjamin and Kyle Abbot and do your prep studies via zoom. The preparation before you meet your Far East teacher and any contacts you make before your trip might assist in your journey. They can recommend Japanese teachers or other steps…good wishes…

#8

Thanks for the tag, Mr. B! Sorry just a super short message, been getting a taste of the Amazon fulfillment services life by packing Shamibuddy boxes all day. Anywho! Hibiki not only doesn’t benefit from bachigawa, but because the surface as a softer texture, it actually doesn’t stick very well to it. :slight_smile:

#9

Thank you for your answer. I was considering this as well as I already got into contact with Su Bunjamin.

#10

Thanks for the answer!

#11

Hi Isabella,
I wrote my Masters thesis and my PhD dissertation on the Tsugaru shamisen - feel free to private message me if you’d like me to send you the pdfs, or to ask about what other academic resources are out there.

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#12

That is the best explanation regarding strings I have ever seen, thanks! I am looking at all silk, will definity post my thoughts once I manage to snag them. (No pun intended)

Cheers!

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