Japanese great guitarist~shamisen

[MrSostos]

My late wife Yoshie was a Shamisen teacher and used to play for me...now I can only listen to Shamisen on youtube. I think she would have liked to see a different version - style. She was however very much traditional (Yamato Nadeshiko she used to say).

[umfreebitchbaby]

:-o awesome

[galeck]

she is awsome

[guitarplayer354]

What instrument is this?

[DrZook]

@guitarplayer354 It is a shamisen also spelled in English as "samisen". The word shamisen appears in the title of the video but I guess you missed that. Don't you feel silly now? Just teasing. No offence intended. LOL! :)

[guitarplayer354]

@DrZook thanks i never noticed in the tittle until now lolol

[MrBazboro]

Beautifull



[DerAnstifter]

Hey, japs! do her skills make her a good geisha?

[SatanUberAlles]

Now I see why g00ks are always ripping off white music !

[imsuuperduuper]

@SatanUberAlles

are you always this retarded or did i just catch you on an off day? hmmm?

[julio361995]

@AnoraKnowles

IT REMINDS ME OF A JACKIE CHAN DRUNK-MASTER

[TheParadoxgeist]

that lady is pluking the fuck out of that thinga-ma-gig

[AnoraKnowles]

This has a highly aggressive sound, I think about a ninja clan sneaking in and taking out some corrupt politicians and his body guards and sneaking out in the night.

[MageThief]

Just love the sound of the shamisen, give me goosebumps all over.

[Elemental237]

reminds me of the wii commercial XD

[Kittehsaurify]

Even though this isn't a guitar it's still amazing. People need to stop being ignorant to music they have never been exposed to.

[Chumbbo]

i never know you could you use a hair brush for a guitar pick

[deejaytai1]

Her skill is absolutely SPELLBINDING.

[FinalNinjaZero0]

Nitaboh!!!

[monkeychunger]

Shamisen Hero...

The hardest video game ever made!

[darthboyan]

Is there a trick about the precision shes re-tuning her instrument in the beginning i play cello and this looks almost para-normal for me

[Nemorzuz]

thats the music akuma headbangs to!!!!

[waxwax]

Kick ass!

[llewellyn51]

Her style is Tsugaru Jamisen hence the heavy hand work.It originates up around Aomori and Hirosaki in Tohoku prefecture.If you get the chance head north and check out the museum and hands on display, it is awesome.

[maltiseconure9]

Why the hell is "anime" and "ninja" in the tags? lol

[jonathan8156]

@maltiseconure9 she loves anime, And *looks both ways and whispers* Shes a ninja

[xxxAzinWashxxx]

@maltiseconure9 Don't forget "geisha"! FUUU

[DrZook]

@maltiseconure9 There are 8 ninjas in the video. You cannot see them because they move like wraiths, subtle as the wind.

[Vinomadd]

@maltiseconure9 If it brings the uncultured to some authentic art, then tolerate it.

[stevecrossguitar]

if she ever teams up with that boy out of "deliverance".......lawd have mercy....

[badback22]

Dont we all love talent. Great upload THX

[delta9LouDog]

fuck i hate people who think every stringed instrument is a guitar

[smokescreenninjato]

@delta9LouDog i like people who include guitar in the tags because they help people who havnt heard of this instrument before find this

[crazycabbar]

@delta9LouDog it says japanese guitar.not guitar.

[cookieheart100]

@delta9LouDog i guess you hate yourself if you came to this video

[hazardguy11]

great

[1ZipperSuitedSunGod]

Phew... *Cold Sweat*



[Kaiserzel]

LUOVE IT!

[cbwd40]

I need moor!!!

[RzXVeRSaTiiLe]

sounds like a retarded chinkanator

[AtomikDyke]

How can they play insanely powerful music with a straight face on? I guess that's the jap way. serious kudos.... \m/u.u\m/

[AceKaiser]

This is a lively shamisen. I really like it.

[DragonoftheEastblu]

Black Sabbath was the first metal band but the Japanese where the first metal guitarists. 

[macfrankist]

They made eating more complicated, now playing guitar as well.



[HarleyMikeJrSWA737]

the strings are made of silk arent they? isnt that hard on them?

[BD621]

Like it? LOVE it!

[MrDarwinsDog]

Every player is into the physical experience of playing; it feels good when it is a part of you. To get this power with quick finesse on such a light instrument is impressive. She has something - and lucky us watching. What is her name?

[Miko2173]

@MrDarwinsDog iwasaki shizuka. This chick is bad ass. lmao

[theonamous]

That was Beautiful! She looks good too!

[anthemlog]

Fantastic.

[1m34b5m78]

dj krush used this? thought i recognized it

[MultiWarmachine]

monster!!

[jespersen1]

I don't know what was that ?

I think it's only can be liked in Japan

[CelticKraut]

Sounded like a banjo for a while. Cools

[latinumbavariae]

Sounds a bit like those old blackn'deckerblackn'deckerblac­kn'deckerblackn'decker-commerc­ials.

[MarciPikachu]

しずかさん! <3

[ausfuhrpramienjagar]

She just may be the Carlos Santana of Japan!......."Jagar"

[FriedChickenofDeath6]

HAI!

[tokman20]

damn this is cool. do they play cords as well with this or is it just single notes?

[SweetSugarLemonade]

... O.O omg.. I want to learn this! Y^Y so jealous..

[islandoffmorocco]

dj krush beyond raging waves.

[islandoffmorocco]

oh wow dj krush sampled this in beyond raging waves!

[daradidam]

she can shred with that HUGE pick (!!!)

[jasonracey]

japanese banjo

[OwnedOver9000]

Beautiful!!

[roockage]

I am Brazilian and I love how it sounds, true art is beyond land borders!!!!

Respect!

[jmatzkin]

I've just subscribed to two channels that feature this woman's beautiful playing. I don't know what to say. Wow. (That's not good enough, but it's the best I can do.)

[MageThief]

Love the shamisen.

Check out Yoshida Brothers if you like this, they kick ass.

[tjvistan85waver]

ROCK AND ROLL!!!!!

[xRainyyDayy]

AWESOME! 1000/5

[skywalker74]

I love the sound of the shamisen and her performance is awesome.

[abhax]

Awesomeeeeee.... \m/

[NeoSymphony]

This is Shamisen Metal LOL

[slayermanbob]

lol this really kicked ass..... like dead serious i feel like this woman should be playing with explosions behind her at monsters of rock concert.

[luc4metal]

100% 5 stars YOU ROCK!!!!

[kukulutus]

you  ROOOCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!

[erdiazHeavy]

Yeah!! \m/

[23unknown32]

I wanna headbang to this solo :>

[irenakolek]

and the public watching that concert probably do crowd surfing there!!!!! woaaaah, shamisen rules!!!!!!!!!!! O-o

[SargentandGreenLeaf]

this instrument sounds like ass, it has no low end tone whatsoever, the musician is mediocre at best, its a banjo missing a couple strings

[Nicorette1234]

@SargentandGreenLeaf wow your dumb lol

[Bvzijverden]

@SargentandGreenLeaf I see, you my friend have never been to Japan, if you've been there then you you will respect the Shamisen and know that it's part of there great culture.

[SargentandGreenLeaf]

@Bvzijverden click clack clickity clack clack, im playing guitar with a fro pick

[ludacrysonbykes]

the oriental banjo , nice !

[thekrystalmethod]

god, that looks soooooo hard to play. I wanna learn! :D haha

[hellscreamWC3]

I listen to this......and want to ride my horse across the plains....killing rival samurai!

[katsumiizumi]

@hellscreamWC3 one man army ftw :)

[bleupagoda]

Hah, sounds like a Polvo song!!!

[slowdog294]

Very intense. Fine playing! And she is good looking, too.

[mohmarine]

Does anyone know that Japanese banjo-type instument?

It's in the song 'Butterfly', in 'Dance Dance Revolution'. I have been trying to track it down.

[TheSushiPizza]

Turn this into a techno song

[nanakii85]

more ninjas, I love this

[Rekatar]

i want to throw away my electric guitar and buy one of these!!!

[KJRUSS0]

@Rekatar Or maybe....someone should electrify one of these!

[QueenIgraine]

Oh yes! She's wonderful! Dang, get down girl!

[danielorbis666]

muy bueno excelente

[MASTERCHIEF123451]

awesome

[nodoki]

klavereen...this is Iwasaki Shizuka in this vid, but i will be forever grateful to you for telling me about the new link to Isimura Natsumi, domo arigato gozaimasu

[kipourosalban]

@albinottosson you are so damn right man :)

[syke84]

its more like a metal solo...... all she need a pedal... \m/

anyway.. its awesome.. great playing...

[pjlemon]

Shamisen hero

[klavereen]

I think her name is Isimura Natsumi. There is another vid of her here on youtube, where she plays exactly the same number, but she's much younger there...

[drybonesfan]

Wow... she's epic, and it sounds so cool! SUGOI!! Anata wa SUGE DESU YO!

[xishimarux]

Yes. So Metal! Gotta love that heavy style.

[coatlecue]

it takes an understanding of the japanese mindset and culture to apoporeciate thier various forms of entertainment. this may take years,but to some its worth it. a highly structured and formalised peopole. its like a mixture of vulcan self control,and klingon poassion and honour. the girl a plump asian,before western influence,she would be delicately reminded that it shows a lack of control since she is seen in public, the damage of a singularly cool and yes stiff society has been poisoned

[happychap75]

@coatlecue nice comparison hahaha

[Arinnco7]

Killer skills!

She peforms stone-still.

That's awesome.

[davydyyz]

i wanna know too :s what scale is she using!!? :s

[StevieHendrix92]

@davydyyz most eastern music revolves around the pentatonic. This is like the major scale save you omit the 4th and 7th

[davydyyz]

wooo, thanks, i have read about something like that a few days (i till searching for information about this XD haha) mmm... but i wonder if there are diferent scales... one of my friends give me a sheet with some names of the japanese scales, and i wonder if is somthing like the gregorian modes... do you know somthing else? they look like pentatonics, but looks like diminish too, its awesome the music of this country, thax for the answer again n___n

[Tomgrandelf]

What scale is using??

[Strifedragondude]

dude! this sounds very similar to a banjo! lol someone say japanese hoedown?? xD jk but I love this guitar

[Logrei84]

that is fuckin awesome

[FuckinDrGonzo]

This is rather primitive!

[BaTrungSuoiNghe]

very traditional music, nice!

[quebranozes2]

cool video, nice player...

but these compositions have to many repetitions...sounds kind of disturbing when that happens

[littleblackwolf3]

wow she's awesome ^.^

[ltd1000]

beautiful!

[guit8rgal]

Amazing :)

Really catchy :D

[leopard1192]

the redneck of japan :P but yes metal indeed

[mindingosafado]

@:58 reminds me of banjo&fingerpickin

good stufffff

[leozar69]

you play good =^-^=

[p4ulg1lb3rt]

METAL!!! \m/

[UsagixAkumuxKohara]

@p4ulg1lb3rt heavy metal (y)

[SIipknoTl]

@p4ulg1lb3rt this is not a metal its a fighttttt between the strongest guitar in the history of human beens and the human naition lol xD

[Urizhel]

wooaa

Nice played.

I love shamisen.

[mikscorp]

I think it jjust not your style of music.

[ShamisenHero]

the fingers are moving a lot because she's picking with her left hand with more force than any guitarist could ever generate from their right hand.

[Hikikomori013]

"oh it's just not your style of music".

Specifically, she's playing like it's a shamisen, which uses a different style and techniques than a rock guitar. Like ShamisenHero said, she's actually plucking the strings with both hands and striking the strings on both the up and down strokes.

As to how fast she plays, this is how fast it's supposed to be played, so this is how fast she plays it.

And she plays it well.

[DaBlueMushu]

Part of playing the shamisen isn't just the sound it makes but also how the player and instrument appear. A large portion of proper shamisen protocol isn't something that someone with no training can understand, or training in a different instrument.

[AsystemDown]

fuch protocol. of course japanese are overly obsessive about being the best, and the most honerable. but an instrument is an instrument, and creativity is creativity. the sound an instrument puts out is determined by the player. its a tool.

[CaiteDesu]

@TheMetalGuy852 That's part of plucking and that's how she gets the sound of 2 notes played at the same time... and yes, she probably could have played faster... but that's not the tempo of Tsugaru Jongara Bushi... Also, take note shamisen has NO FRETS.

[tokyostrat]

よい

[eppinizer]

"FREE BIRD!!!"

Seriously though, what is she using to pick? Is she slapping that strings with something?

[luksbanchero]

Is called "Bachi". Try to use google to get more info ^^

[guitar4life33]

"Wii would like to play.."

[Dekorad]

Maybe you should just shut the fuck up, your own guitar solos suck ass.

[StAmander]

STFU, this is actually good, it's not shitty. It's harder to play than the usual guitar, 3 strings and a hachi (me thinks.

[skyfinch]

That sounds nothing like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

[1madaboutguitar]

The tuning pegs look like dragonfly wings

[gembarel]

i believe her name is Iwasaki Shizuka?

[opidacul]

you rock girl!!!!

[theironmarian]

yes! she barks like a dog!

[yuna238]

theironmarian and you bark out of your ass.

[shamisentugma]

what is the difference between tsugaru and nagauta shamisen????

[JSpecGC8]

I think a few of you are talking out of your ass Aomori Style is played heavy the way she is playing!

[killakid443]

is this how japanese hillbilly are?この方法だヒルビリー日本語は何ですか?

[XFuryOfTheStormX]

no its just cultural, hillybillys are trash.

[DocHou72]

Well, many would say that American hillbilly's are responsible for Appalachian music. Therefore, even though trash (lol) they would still be responsible for some rich culture. Appalachian music in fact has an air about it that owes a lot to the traditional music of places like China, Japan, and Thailand.

[YipHouseofQin]

How can you compare all those regions as one entity? Music from those regions sound nothing like one another, let alone sound like Appalachian music!

[DocHou72]

There are distinct similarities. I also didn't explicitly state that they "sounded like" Appalachian music. I stated that there was air about the music that owes a lot to the music to these Asian countries. Probably because of the high number of Chinese immigrants early in Americas history. I'll say more later, I have school today.

[DocHou72]

I'm going to give an example, admittedly a sort of weak example, but and example all the same. Go to amazon, go to the soundtrack for the movie Appaloosa, within this soundtrack is a song called Readin' and Writin' it has some of this Appalachian spirit that I am talking about, not as much as I'd like hence the weak example (also using movie soundtracks seems less authentic, still . . . ) then go to the Hero (with Jet Li) soundtrack and listen to the son

[DocHou72]

Accidentally clicked "post" . . . I was trying to say listen to the song In the Chess Court from Hero (this was actually the song that made me realize the connection between Asian and Appalachian music) I'm sure you can nit-pick the less than authentic aspects of movie soundtracks but if we are realistic we can see that my example is close enough to imply my feelings about the authentic songs also. There is a sure "spiritual", if you will, connection within both songs.

[DocHou72]

We can also go on about the fact that all 3 countries have distinctly different musical styles, which is true but as we all know all music came from somewhere and all music in the world, if we take it back far enough, probably came from only a handful of places, much of Asian music has a similar spiritual quality to it, just as I think Appalachian music shares that, which is so interesting because of what I was saying about all music eventually leading back to maybe just one place.

[YipHouseofQin]

oh, sorry but that sounds very far fetched. Even within China, there are so many musical styles that are distinct and likely form different time periods. An example, nan guan music is said to have originated from the Tang dynasty court music, by the time it reached Japan, the music had taken off there and many imply that modern Japanese music is similar to Tang music.

[YipHouseofQin]

(continued from last post) Of course that is not a very good observation, since music changes and never stays the same, hence, convergence!! Ever studied evolution? Convergence happens many times in all organisms. Music can offer a similar result. Just because a music has a "spiritual" quality does not mean anything. I think any music has that quality, it only depends on if you feel that way or not!

[YipHouseofQin]

Again, you need evidence. I don't think Appalachian music had much asian influence. If it did it is likely the chinese from the south, canton region. Even then, they were in isolated communities in large cities and I don't see them having that sort of influence. Things were different back then, people didn't accept the Chinese. How would they have that influence on the music?!

[DocHou72]

I never said that there was without a doubt an influence. I said there is a tangible sound within Appalachian musics and certain musics from Japan and China where I hear a definite parallel. I understand you may not hear the same things as I do but I hear it all the same. I also noticed how seriously you seem to be taking this, loosen up.

[DocHou72]

I wrote a really long explanation of my point on your page directly because I didn't think you were getting a full feel for what I meant but youtube sucks and it didn't process. I'm fed up so I'm done here, I'll try to add you as a friend like you asked but youtube is fuckin' that up too. Figz.

[portguitar]

Japanese "fado" played at shamisen...

[hide7890]

Hahaha I like shamisen, but I agree that the way she plays it make it sound like a banjo.

you should look for some other video and wide your vision of this instrument.

[mattmartian]

lol yep

[xale1980]

shamisen master! very good player!

[farid439]

wow!! look at the fingers

[vidmachine07]

Japanese bluegrass? It's cool.  But maybe not for me.

[differentdude01]

Man, shes killin it!

[sylle999]

do eny of you know what she was playing ???

[thegoldensheep]

lol tsugaru

[catskinner619]

she rock, or kick or pick, wat ever