"Educationalization" of Melodies Antagonized by Music Educators : Transformation of 'Tokyo Ondo' into 'Kenkoku Ondo'

The music educators of Showa pre-war years were strongly inclined against melodies produced by Shimpei Nakayama, an outstanding progenitor of the Japanese popular songs of the time. His melodies were considered as "decadent", "perverted and lecherous rhythms" that bring chaos into the society. On the whole, his works were regarded by the "educators" as "vulgar music" that shouldn't be allowed into the educational scene. But did his pieces really only played the role of disturbing the public morality? or were there any unique educational functions they performed? The author attempts to approach such questions through analysis of the "educationalization" of "shimpei-bushi"="yonanuki-goon-tan'onkai" music style (the musical scale based on the minor scale with the 4th and 7th notes omitted) in connection with trends in national policy. Integration of Nakayama's "yonanuki-goon-tan'onkai", which had been long restricted from classrooms, into the educational field began with the celebration of the 2600th Anniversary of the Chrysanthemum Throne. This was the beginning of the "kenkoku-ondo". The melodies were now highly appraised as "filled with the patriotic passion" and officially recognized for wide public use. And one of the main factors determining such a coup was that Nakayama's music style, which subtly reflected the musical preferences and appetite of the general public, proved to be utterly valid for purposes of the building of the new order of the unified nation state. The country needed the potential to penetrate the masses that the "shimpei-bushi" music - still widely criticized by the "educators" - had. The "kenkoku-ondo" was brought to life as a politically determined remake of "tokyo-ondo" that was a big national hit in 1933-1935 (verses by Yaso Saijou, music by Shimpei Nakayama). The verses popularizing ideology of "kokutai" (national polity) were laid on "shimpei-bushi" music, and all this was combined with the bon-odori style dancing. Such musical combination was aimed at promotion of smooth transitions from the "crusade society" to the "society of strong unified national polity". In Showa prewar-time Japan, for working youth and other general public, popular songs embodied the concept of music itself. Popular songs were in great demand by the masses. In short, under such conditions the significance of the "educationalization" of "shimpei-bushi" - a contemporary synonym for "mass-culture" of the time - was that it managed to embrace and integrate into the nation the "crowd" that escaped the "school culture" methods - promoted by the school songs - and to galvanize the society during the war years.