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"Ume wa Saitaka" (Have the Plum Flowers Bloomed?)
Composer Unknown

This is the second song in the series, "Hogaku 2.0 - Hauta Edo Period Ballads Live". "Hauta" is the name of the popular short ballads enjoyed in the Edo period in Japan, around the 17th century. Today, it is mostly performed by Geisha for entertainment purposes. The song is said to be written at the beginning of the Edo Geisha girls as though they are different types of flowers. Atsumi added his guitar arrangement to these songs while preserving the original form to convey the distinctive charms of "Hauta" to modern listeners. The special Ohayashi (the rhythm section) parts add vibrancy to the whole composition. This EP was recorded live at the Kyoto Prefectural Center for Arts and Culture in December 2021.

Guitar and arrangement by: Yukihiro Atsumi
Vocals by: Yachiho
Shamisen by: Kosen
Tsuzumi drum by: Kiyotaka Tosha
Okawa drum by: Etsuho Tosha
Japanese flute by: Densho Tosha
Recording & Mixing - Takashi Mori (BOSCO MUSIC)
Filming & Editing - Makoto Fujiyama
Filming - Yohei Cogi (COGI FILM), Kenji Ushikubo
Sound engineers - Shigeki Matsumoto, Toshikuni Hashimoto
Lighting & Stage manager - Nobuharu Sawai (so:lid)
Set design - Tokutaro Yamauchi, Mitate
Stage production - NowWest1, Tomoko Miyata
Costume provided by TROVE
Sponsored by TsunaGod
Produced by NIPPON NOTE RECORDS
Atsumi's guitar is crafted by Ryosuke Kobayashi Guitars

Artist Profile

  • Yukihiro Atsumi

    Yukihiro Atsumi has had a rich and varied music career in which he has collaborated with a variety of well-known artists within and outside of Japan. Since the age of 18, he has been an active studio musician and guitarist in Tokyo. In 2012, he moved from Tokyo to historical Kyoto to create a new modern take on traditional Japanese music that had never been attempted before. Based out of a traditional-style Kura (stone house) studio in Kyoto, Atsumi focuses on ancient classical Japanese music styles, such as "Hogaku" and "Minyo", to fulfill his mission to bring new classical Japanese music to a worldwide audience and to a younger generation. Atsumi incorporates traditional Japanese musical compositions and styles while implementing western instrumentation, such as the guitar, into his music. This blending dually celebrates the unique aspects of traditional Japanese culture as well as mimics the complex confluence of ancient and modern influences in today's Japan. In 2016, Atsumi launched the "Hogaku 2.0" project, which connects Japanese classical with more modern music through the guitar, and, in August of that year, he released the first album of the series, "Japanese Guitar Song Book". While working on all genres of traditional Japanese music, In 2017, Atsumi hosted many Hogaku 2.0 events at Sanzenin Temple in Kyoto and across Japan where he played traditional Tendai music arranged in this modern style. In 2018, Atsumi collaborated with Japanese hip-hop stalwart, DJ KRUSH, on his 25th-anniversary album, "Cosmic Yard", and released his second album from the Hogaku 2.0 series, "Nippon Note 2.0". In 2019, Atsumi was invited to travel to southernmost Taiwan for a project to update the remaining "Henchun Folk" music. In 2020, the third album in the Hogaku 2.0 series, "Kachofugetsu", was released and played on over 50 different radio stations across 17 different countries worldwide. Also, in 2020, Atsumi joined Tsugaru shamisen player Oyama Yutaka's "Obi" project, released on Sony Records, as producer, arranger, and guitarist. In 2021, Atsumi participated in the full production of Maeyama Shingo's album, "AMAMISM", made up of Amami Oshima folk musicians and singers. Atsumi initiated the "Playing Music Work" project with children in schools in Japan to encourage improvising and having fun with music at an early age. Atsumi also composes music for NHK, TV commercials, other singers, and makes environmental music for hotels and other spaces, ultimately aiming to enrich our lives through music.

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