Enka

The term Enka (演歌) is used in two ways. The first is to describe a traditional type of Japanese music from both the Meiji period (1868?1912) and the Taisho period (1912-1926).

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The second usage of the term Enka is to describe a kind of melodramatic Japanese popular song, which has been likened to American country music in terms of themes and audience. The term is usually used in this way now.

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In recent decades, Enka music has declined both in sales and in recognition as American-like J-Pop music has become more popular. However, there are still many in Japan who like it. Its popularity among younger Japanese people has increased lately because of singer Kiyoshi Hikawa. Enka singers, especially females, usually perform in a kimono. Enka music is based on a pentatonic scale, meaning that it has 5 notes in each "octave", and features a distinctive singing style.

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The following are famous Enka artists:

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• Aki Yashiro
• Ayako Fuji
• Akiko Wada
• Chiyoko Shimakura
• Fuyumi Sakamoto
• Harumi Miyako
• Hibari Misora
• Joji Yamamoto
• Kaori Kouzai
• Kaye Eunsook
• Ken Matsudaira
• Kiyoko Suizenji
• Kiyoshi Hikawa
• Minami Haruo
• Mitsuko Nakamura
• Miyako Ohtsuki
• Miyuki Kawanaka
• Murata Hideo
• Natsuko Godai
• Nobue Matsubara
• Saburo Kitajima
• Sayuri Ishikawa
• Takhashi Hosokawa
• Tendo Yoshimi
• Toshimi Tagawa
• Yoko Nagayama
Enka: External links ►



 

Japanese: When used as an adjective, Japanese refers to anything that originates from Japan. It may refer to more than one article:...

Meiji period: The Meiji period (Japanese: 明治時代, Meiji-jidai) denotes the 45-year reign of the Meiji Emperor, running from 8 September 1868 (in the Gregorian calendar, 23 October 1868) to 30 July 1912. During this time, Japan started its modernization and rose to world power status....

1868: 1868 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar)....