Takashi Hirayasu and Yoshikawa Chuei

Okinawan music refers to the traditional and popular musical practices of the Ryukyu (Okinawa) islands, centered on the sanshin (a three‑stringed lute) and songs in Uchinaaguchi and other Ryukyuan languages. It blends courtly traditions from the Ryukyu Kingdom with village min'yō (folk songs), ritual chant, and later 20th‑century popular styles. Distinctive features include the Ryukyuan pentatonic scale (often heard as scale degrees 1–♭2–4–5–♭6), melismatic vocal lines, flexible rhythm, and heterophonic textures. Characteristic dances such as kachāshī (festive hand‑dance) and drum‑driven eisa are integral to the sound and performance context. In the modern era, artists have fused these roots with folk rock, pop, and worldbeat while retaining the sanshin’s timbre and island poetic imagery.