Traditional Folk Dances of Japan

This field recording by Mary L. Evans represents a wide variety of traditional Japanese dances with ranging subject matters such as draught, war, famine etc. The recording captures both the music and the noises made by the dancers (grunts, chants, feet stomping) which adds additional energy and depth to the music and draws the listener in further. The liner notes include detailed explanations by Evans of the song meaning and history, as well as information about the dance performances themselves. With photographs and select lyrics (translated into English)

Track Listing

101	Kasa Odori	Young men	03:31
102	Sumiyoshi Odori	People of Sumiyoshi	02:08
103	Mugiya-Bushi Odori	Five to seven boys and girls	04:20
104	Memburyu	Forty or Fifty male dancers	03:42
105	Sado Okesa	Japanese dancers, musicians	02:42
201	Iwasaki Oni Kembai	Six to eight dancers with music played by three flutes, one drum and one bell	04:16
202	Awa Odori	People of all ages	06:26
203	Okubo Odori	Dancers accompanied by one big drum	01:45
204	Gujo Odori	Japanese dancers, musicians	03:05
205	Morioka Stag Dance	Male dancers accompanied by bamboo flutes, samisen, drums and small gongs	03:06