San-sagari is a way to tune the shamisen. Compared to the standard tuning, for san-sagari, you tune the third string one tone lower (C-F-Bb). Standard tuning is called hon-choshi (C-F-C) and the other type of tuning is called ni-agari (C-G-C), which means the middle string goes up one tone.
“Tsugaru San-sagari” was based off of the Shinano Oiwake folk songs from Nagano Prefecture and the song became popular throughout the country. There are other San-sagari songs like the “Tsugaru Ondo” and “Yasaburo Bushi”, but“Ohara Bushi” is a hon-choshi song. Originally, “Tsugaru San-sagari” was mainly a song to be danced to, so the rhythm of the song is constant. Whenever it is sung for dancing, the duple meter becomes more apparent so that it is easier to dance to.

“Tsugaru Aiya Bushi” is the song that I played at the All Japan Tsugaru-shamisen Competition and won first place. Since it was the finals, competitors had to choose their song by lottery. Although it was random, I was fortunate enough to have chosen this song which is my teacher Ryuji Goshiki’s speciality song. This song is taught as one of the first songs when you start learning Tsugaru folk song singing. Professional vocalists use their own arrangements and change up the tune during the second verse. With that said, this song has a lot of depth to it and is difficult to play even if you studied singing along with the shamisen.

Kyu bushi along with shin bushi and shin kyu bushi are played in simple duple meter. However, for this naka bushi, it is not entirely played in triple meter, but a rhythm quite similar to it. For those who listen to pop music, it may be easier to understand it as triple notes. Playing this piece can be challenging, so there are less people playing kyu bushi and naka bushi nowadays. 
Now, this time, I asked Fujiko Yanagida to sing for this song. Ms. Yanagida was born in 1928 and she is now 92 years old (91 at the time of recording). Her voice projection shows no age and her singing is enchanting and has a distinct tone. I was able to experience Ms. Yanagida’s own style of Fushi (Bushi) and hear this song being sung, which is a rare opportunity. Ms. Yanagida joined a folk song troupe, the Mikami Tsuruko Ichiza, at 17 years old and travelled to places such as Hokkaido for a year to sing. In the folk song industry of today, no such troupe exists, but until the beginning of the Showa period, folk song groups would travel around the country to perform. We can definitely say that Ms. Yanagida has had the experience as an entertainer singing Tsugaru folk songs.

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During the process of planning the recording, I asked an acquaintance of mine if they knew any vocalists who sang with a more traditional tone. This was when I was introduced to Ms. Yanagida, who I was told to have a distinct voice. I requested a sample of her voice and I was given a video to watch. This video was from 20 years ago, so I was worried if she’ll still be able to sing the same. However, upon listening, I knew it would be a big problem if there were no recordings kept of her voice. That was when I asked her if I may accompany her in a song. 
I believe this song reflects Ms. Yanagida’s life story. In the middle of “San-sagari”, one part of the lyrics says “I want to show my heart as it is”. When she sings this part, it’s very believable. Similar to the phrase “Kane no naru ki”in Ohara Bushi, her life overlaps with the lyrics. 
I could tell that she just wants to sing and keep singing. She was grateful to have been given an opportunity to sing again after experiencing many struggles. With her unique singing and her Tsugaru accent, she is like the hidden spice in the songs. She reminded me of the blues singer, Etta James (1938-2012) because she’s so remarkable, has a passion to sing, and is very charmingly cute. She’s not your typical grandma. She’s a woman!

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Ms. Yanagida sang “Tsugaru Jonkara Bushi” (naka bushi) when she won at the Aomori Prefecture Folk Song National Competition. The third track of this CD, is the same naka bushi, but was sung in triple meter. This song is sung in duple meter and is actually a rare choice to do so.
When referencing other naka bushi songs to create this track, there is one Tsugaru-shamisen ensemble song called “Rokudan”. Regardless of which school, it is played as a shamisen ensemble. Originally, Rinshoei Kida (First founder) and the great teacher, Masakatsu Fukushi (First founder) created this song. Then, Masakatsu Fukushi rearranged the song into an ensemble piece, which my teacher Ryuji Goshiki learned. My teacher played the song at a folk song bar he worked at called “Shichigosan”where the song gradually became known to the country.
Up until now, part one to three and four to six had been played with the same rhythm. However, the original piece learned by Goshiki, had different rhythms for part one to three and four to six. This pattern is followed in this naka bushi song. 

At first, I debated on whether I should add a “Jonkara Bushi” (shin bushi) solo track here, but since I played the naka bushi twice already, I decided to choose an entirely different song. Through this song, I wanted to project my gratitude towards all the people I had met throughout this process, my joy with working with Ms. Yanagida, and being fortunate enough to record during the coronavirus pandemic. I also chose this song because I love the blues. (Laughs)
Same with the blues, when I listen to great teacher Chikuzan Takahashi (First founder) and my teacher play, I can feel their sense of life through the music. In that way, I believe there’s a connection between the blues and Tsugaru-shamisen.

These past several years, I have been playing alongside a band at a live music bar in Uguisudani (Tokyo). I was first introduced to the band by the guitarist, Masayuki Sugaya, who I had played with at an enka performance. The leader of the band was Senbei Ito and we had tons of fun playing different types of folk songs with various arrangements. For example, we played the Hokkaido folk song, “Dounan Kudoki” with a reggae arrangement. And when I asked Mr. Ito to make an arrangement for this shakuhachi folk song, “Kenryo Bushi”, I wondered what he would come up with. It turned out amazing and I was honored to be able to sing to it.