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What is kankara sanshin?

Jan 14, 2022

Do you like playing musical instruments?
I assume that everyone who reads this blog likes to play musical instruments.

And as you get more and more into music, some of you may eventually come up with this thought.
"I wish everything around me was a musical instrument!"

What are you talking about? I know some of you may be thinking, but it is possible with some instruments.

In this case, as an example of a familiar household or industrial product turned into a musical instrument,
I would like to talk about the "kankara sanshin," an example of a familiar household or industrial product turned into a musical instrument.


What is the Kankara Sanshin? What is Kankara Sanshin?

A sanshin is a musical instrument similar to the shamisen, which is unique to Okinawa.
The Japanese shamisen is said to be an instrument that developed from the sanshin.
The kankara shamisen is another instrument that is a variant of the sanshin.

The body of the sanshin (chiga) is originally made of wood, but the kankara sanshin is made of cans instead.


The History of the Kankara Sanshin
The kankara sanshin was born in postwar Okinawa.
At the time, Okinawa was sufficient in materials and had no materials for sanshin,
The sanshin was constructed using food cans provided by the U.S. military for the body, discarded wood for the neck, and strings from paratroopers.


◆Differences from the shovel shamisen
There is a shovel shamisen as a similar kind of instrument,
The shovel shamisen is a musical instrument in which a large shovel used for shoveling snow is used as a shamisen, and the surface of the shovel is struck with a corkscrew to produce sound.
Therefore, unlike the sanshin, the shovel shamisen is a percussion instrument without pitch.

It is usually used for the purpose of decorating karaoke sound sources in a percussive manner, and is considered to be a kind of banquet art.


How to make a kankara sanshin.

Prepare a paint can about the size of a melon and a long, thin piece of wood to use as a pole.
Once the materials are ready, sand the wood that will be used for the pole.
After that, we will make the small parts such as the "uma (piece)" and the "yokake (thread holder)" out of the wood.

After fixing the string hook to the neck, the neck is inserted into a can with a hole drilled in it.
The neck is then inserted into a can with a hole drilled in it, and the thread is attached to a karakui (thread spool) made from a screw.


◆Conclusion
How do you like it?

The kankara sanshin is a recommended instrument for those who want to try making a familiar object into a musical instrument.
If you like the kankara sanshin after you try it, why not try playing a real sanshin?


If you are worried about whether you can improve on your own, we recommend taking lessons from a professional. The Lesson Grid is available anywhere in Japan to take sanshin lessons.
If you want to improve your sanshin, why not take a trial lesson? We look forward to hearing from you.

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