Carpe Diem #1492 Ainu, the Japanese from the North

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Yesterday we visited the Berbers of Northern Africa and their wonderful music. At first I thought we going further into Africa, but just a few minutes ago I decided to go to the home of haiku ... to Japan. We are visiting the ancient Ainu, a Japanese group of people who are living in the Northern region of Japan.

Ainu group

Ainu music is the musical tradition of the Ainu people of northern Japan.

The oral Ainu culture includes various genres, of which upopo, lighthearted ballads on daily affairs and rituals often accompanied by traditional Ainu instruments, and yukar (mimicry), a form of rhythmic epic poetry often supported by light percussion, are most prominently covered in writings on this oral Ainu culture.

Ainu music carries spiritual resonance in almost all of its forms, and it has played an important role in both the cultural history and the cultural renaissance of the Ainu people. Almost every type of Ainu song is sacred, and even the musical instruments are said to be imbued with souls. Traditional Ainu music can be divided into two major groups — everyday songs and epic songs. Everyday songs in Ainu tradition were sung in many situations and on an impromptu basis. They were often accompanied by the two most prevalent Ainu musical instruments: the tonkori, a plucked zither, and the mukkuri, a jaw harp played by women.

Enjoy the music and let it inspire you ... this is the original music of the Ainu ... a group of people living in the land of haiku ... Japan

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until August 14th at noon (CEST). I will try to publish our new episode later on.