In going through my parents’ closets, I came across approximately 20 booklets of shamisen music, produced in Japan probably in the 30’s. Everything is in Japanese, so I can’t tell if they are simply exercise books or sheet music for songs. Does anyone know if there is a market for these booklets and, if so, where I can take them? Or, are they valuable only because they are shamisen music?
Thanks,
Debra
Hi Debra,
I’m not sure what the market for this sort of thing is like, but I’d be interested in knowing more about your collection and helping you find out. I don’t think I’ve come across Japanese sheet music from that era before.
I have several 40 to 80-page booklets of shamisen music from the late 60s which have a price of 300 yen printed on the back. Recent editions of the same booklets sell for about 850 yen.
If you want to scan a page from the table of contents, and the last page (which will tell you the publisher and date) of one of them and email it to me, I could probably tell you more about it, and could look around on Japanese auction sites to see what they sell for.
I may consider buying them myself if they are for genres I am interested in.
Oh darn. Gerry beat me to it. 
Welcome to Bachido, Debra!
I will send you both a photo of the last pages. 
Could you send me those pictures as well? Also, a photo of the front covers would be super helpful if you have the time! I’m super curious! What a find!
So far here are responses:
From Joe: …If from the 30’s, your parents books represent the change from the memorization of music to playing from written notation! …
and more: These books are definitely sheet music for Nagauta. They are in the very old system of “Iroha”, the old poem used to teach hiragana. Each syllable stands for a position on the neck of the shamisen i=1 ro=2 ha=3 ni=4 etc. My teacher plays this style. The Kineya school is one of the few schools that still use this system today, but most westerners have a hard time learning this system and are taught the more modern (1938 I think) numeric system instead. The date on the back reads Showa 8, which would be 1933; right before the westernization of shamisen scores.
From Gerry:
I’ve had a quick look, and the last page says that it was printed in 1933 (Showa 8) in Nigyou-cho, Nihombashi, in Tokyo.
It is the sung part for Gidayu, a musical form most often associated with the Bunraku puppet theatre, though it is also performed on its own.
This book, from what I can see of it, just contains lyrics, written in a very stylized hand, much of which I (and most Japanese today) can’t decipher.
The pages seem to be in good shape, especially for their age, but it seems like the covers are missing… (me: I have no idea what a cover would look like and, yes, the paper is in excellent shape.)
With this additional information, I asked my mother in law about the booklets. She did use these books to sing along with her shamisen teacher. I’m very surprised they survived the trip to Arkansas, which was where she went for internment camp.
I think we are interested in selling the booklets and making sure they have a good home but we don’t have any idea of their value/worth.
Debra
sounds epic 
can’t wait what Gerry or someone else makes out of these…
Did anyone find out about them?
I’d be willing to buy them!