Focus: Music in Contemporary Japan explores a diversity of musics performed in Japan today, ranging from folk song to classical music, the songs of geisha to the screaming of underground rock, with a specific look at the increasingly popular world of taiko (ensemble drumming). Discussion of contemporary musical practice is situated within broader frames of musical and sociopolitical history, processes of globalization and cosmopolitanism, and the continued search for Japanese identity through artistic expression. It explores how the Japanese have long negotiated cultural identity through musical practice in three parts: Part I, "Japanese Music and Culture," provides an overview of the key characteristics of Japanese culture that inform musical performance, such as the attitude towards the natural environment, changes in ruling powers, dominant religious forms, and historical processes of cultural exchange. Part II, "Sounding Japan," describes the elements that distinguish traditional Japanese music and then explores how music has changed in the modern era under the influence of Western music and ideology. Part III, "Focusing In: Identity, Meaning and Japanese Drumming in Kyoto," is based on fieldwork with musicians and explores the position of Japanese drumming within Kyoto. It focuses on four case studies that paint a vivid picture of each respective site, the music that is practiced, and the pedagogy and creative processes of each group. The downloadable resources include examples of Japanese music that illustrate specific elements and key genres introduced in the text. A companion website includes additional audio-visual sources discussed in detail in the text. Jennifer Milioto Matsue is an Associate Professor at Union College and specializes in modern Japanese music and culture.
Presents a collection of Japanese recipes; discusses the ingredients, techniques, and equipment required for home cooking; and relates the author's experiences living on a farm in Japan for the past twenty-three years.
Whether you're dreaming about your first journey, revisiting the trip of a lifetime or simply in love with all things Japan, Be More Japan will transport you to this fascinating country. Dive into the thrilling and serene world of Shinto monks, street food vendors, anime characters, Okinawan centenarians, technological innovators, J-Pop megastars, ancient philosophers, onsen dwellers and so many more. There are so many ways to fall in love with Japan. It's home to one of the world's most unique cultures: a perfectly balanced celebration of past traditions; the vibrancy of now and the need to look fearlessly into the future. From architecture to martial arts; from ramen to robots; kawaii to Kusama; ikigai to ikebana; towering skyscrapers to shrines - Be More Japan uncovers the art and creativity behind modern Japanese living through its kaleidoscope of contrasting places, people and practices. With beautiful design throughout and with each page alive with facts, history and inspiration, Be More Japan invites you to absorb a little Japanese wisdom into your daily life.
This book focuses on Prime Minister Abe’s policy toward international peace and security proposed in 2013 under the basic principle of ‘proactive contribution to peace’. To this end, this book investigates Prime Minister Abe’s policy-making process of the Peace and Security Legislation, which transformed Japan’s security policy and enabled Japan to exercise the right of ‘collective self-defense’, which used to be ‘unconstitutional’. This book evaluates the implications of the Peace and Security Legislation on three fronts, domestic, bilateral, and international, by analyzing Japan’s Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) program, the Japan-US alliance system, and Japan’s policy on international peacekeeping operations in South Sudan. This book is one of the first contributions to the research on Japan’s foreign and security policy under the Shinzo Abe administration and will be of interest to scholars, policymakers, and students of Japan, Japanese politics and international relations of the Asia-Pacific region.
Shinzo Abe entered politics burdened by high expectations: that he would change Japan. In 2007, seemingly overwhelmed, he resigned after only a year as prime minister. Yet, following five years of reinvention, he masterfully regained the premiership in 2012, and now dominates Japanese democracy as no leader has done before. Abe has inspired fierce loyalty among his followers, cowing Japan's left with his ambitious economic program and support for the security and armed forces. He has staked a leadership role for Japan in a region being rapidly transformed by the rise of China and India, while carefully preserving an ironclad relationship with Trump's America. The Iconoclast tells the story of Abe's meteoric rise and stunning fall, his remarkable comeback, and his unlikely emergence as a global statesman laying the groundwork for Japan's survival in a turbulent century.
Japanese Kampo Medicines for the Treatment of Common Diseases - Focus on Inflammation provides researchers and clinicians with a current look at how Kampo medicines can be used to effectively treat inflammatory disorders. Japanese Kampo medicines are a mixture of natural and herbal medicines that are available in Japan for the treatment of various diseases. Given their therapeutic potential, they are often prescribed instead of, or alongside, allopathic medicines. Kampo medicines are becoming more widespread and have proven effective for the treatment of a variety of inflammatory diseases, such as colitis, dermatitis, myocarditis, hepatitis, cardiomyopathy, and nephritis. This book offers background on Japanese Kampo medicines, along with a compilation of the published scientific data for several different types of Kampo medicines. It is an evidence-based guide for all those involved in, or interested in, the research and practice of Kampo medicine. - Includes both preclinical and clinical data published from a variety of sources and compiled into one book - Provides insight for researchers and clinicians on which Kampo medicines will provide the least side effects and offer the most effective therapy for a particular illness - Offers important data that will help to inform future research and widen practice in this area
For decades after World War II, Japan chose to focus on soft power and economic diplomacy alongside a close alliance with the United States, eschewing a potential leadership role in regional and global security. Since the end of the Cold War, and especially since the rise of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Japan's military capabilities have resurged. In this analysis of Japan's changing military policy, Andrew L. Oros shows how a gradual awakening to new security challenges has culminated in the multifaceted "security renaissance" of the past decade. Despite openness to new approaches, however, three historical legacies—contested memories of the Pacific War and Imperial Japan, postwar anti-militarist convictions, and an unequal relationship with the United States—play an outsized role. In Japan's Security Renaissance Oros argues that Japan's future security policies will continue to be shaped by these legacies, which Japanese leaders have struggled to address. He argues that claims of rising nationalism in Japan are overstated, but there has been a discernable shift favoring the conservative Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party. Bringing together Japanese domestic politics with the broader geopolitical landscape of East Asia and the world, Japan's Security Renaissance provides guidance on this century's emerging international dynamics.