Description
Book SynopsisComposer Nakayama Shimpei (1887-1952) wrote more than 300 popular songs in his lifetime. Most are still well known and recorded regularly. An entrepreneur, he found ways to create popular songs that powered Japan's nascent recording industry in the 1920s and 1930s. An artist, his combination of Japanese and Western musical styles and tropes appealed to Japanese sentiments in a way that not only reflected the historical and social context, but anticipated and explained those historical changes to his listeners. This book seeks to apply contextual analysis of Nakayama's popular songs to the events that occurred in the context of Japan's development of a record industry and popular music market between 1887 and 1952. The book evaluates Nakayama's positions within the world of musicians, and as a bridge between intellectuals and pure artists, on the one hand, and the Japanese people on the other to understand how popular songs can enrich and deepen our understanding of the history of polit
Trade ReviewPatrick Patterson tells the story of Nakayama Shimpei, the father of modern Japanese popular music, who created songs for a new generation of urban working-class transplants during a time of intense political and social change. The story of Nakayama’s songwriting, which blended Western and Japanese music traditions, is also the story of the creation of a new cultural identity for twentieth-century Japan during an age of industrial capitalism and globalization. This book is a must-read for students and scholars of popular music and modern Japan. -- Jayson Makoto Chun, University of Hawai'i
Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. The Field of Cultural Production in Modern Japan, 1872–1912 2. Shimpei Bushi: A Hybrid Popular Music 3. The Unity of Music and Words 4. Nakayama Shimpei and New Folk Songs, 1919–1929 5. Inventors of Tradition 6. Modern Urban Folk Songs, 1920–1935 7. Mainstreaming the Marginal in Japanese Culture, 1925–1952 Conclusion: Coming Full Circle
