Fact of the week
Credit to Research Team: Haziq
Prefecture: Aomori

Nebuta Matsuri
The Aomori Nebuta Matsuri is considered to be one of the three biggest festivals in the Tohoku region. Nobody is quite certain how Nebuta Matsuri came about other than mentions of a widely known explanation of a folk tale legend that the Matsuri originated from the shogun Sakanoue no Tamuramaro used flutes and taikos to attract enemy attention in the battle of Mutsu Province which later made him the festivals most popular festival and was later renamed to Nebuta Taisho. However, this explanation is very unlikely, and this festival is the evolution of the traditional Shinto ceremonies such as the Tanabata. Whatever its origins may be the Nebuta Matsuri is one of the most popular festival in Aomori.

The festival is held in Aomori City annually from August 2 to 7 non-stop and features many large lantern floats made primarily of paper for the sculptures. The parade is held at every night during the six day event except for the last day where the event is held in the afternoon. Previous iterations of the floats had many fire hazards such as using candles for the lights which are now fluorescent light bulbs and the bamboo frame were replaced with metal wires.

The construction of the floats which usually take around a year to build are built by teams of around 40 some workers just to build one float as the complex design and the fragile washi paper that is painstaking hand painted and are built to be as big as possible but are usually limited by the surrounding buildings and overpasses that the parade route takes place in, even so the floats can be up to nine meters wide and five meters tall and are usually in the same of gods, historical or mythical figures from Japanese and Chinese culture, kabuki actors as well as characters from NHK’s Taiga Drama.

The floats are not moved by any motors, instead they are hand pushed by 10 to 15 people depending on the size of the float and it will have to be pushed around a three-kilometre route. The floats are pushed and spun around all while being accompanied by teams of taiko drummers, flute and hand cymbals players making that iconic electrifying atmosphere unique to the Nebuta Matsuri. The chanting of “Rassera, Rassera” of the hundreds of people taking part in the procession dancing all while wearing the traditional haneto dancing costume which is needed in order to dance along and participate in the float parade. Without one that doesn’t mean that you cannot enjoy the festival. The event has free seating on the ground all along the three-kilometre-long route.

References:
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3755.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aomori_Nebuta_Matsuri

Fact of the Week
Credit to Research Team: Swee Hng
Prefecture: Whole of Japan
Karaoke in Japan

Hi everyone~ Are you all enjoying your holidays? I sure am! Today for my FTW, I will be doing about karaoke. Did you know that karaoke originated from Japan? (If you knew good for you. If you didn’t, now you do. LOL) I for one didn’t. I thought it originated from America or something. (._.) Karaoke is derived from the words “karappo” and “okesutura” which means empty and orchestra. Put it together and you have empty orchestra.

The history of karaoke
The concept of sing-along music is the precursor to karaoke music. In 1961-1966, the America TV network NBC had such a series known as Sing along with Mitch. Viewers at home get to sing along with the host Mitch Miller as lyrics to the song are shown at the bottom of the screen. However, karaoke was not yet a thing. Later on, in 1971, a musician named Daisuke Inoue from Kobe, Japan, invented the first ever karaoke machine. Karaoke became popular and spread to East and Southeast Asia and then to the rest of the world.

Karaoke boxes
The karaoke machines had a hard time selling in Japan when it was first invented. Reason being that back then, most Japan houses were made of wood so singing at home would be very disturbing to the neighbours. This is why karaoke boxes were born. Karaoke boxes are rooms equipped with karaoke equipment and are usually rented out for time periods. A typical karaoke box establishment usually contains 10-20 of such rooms to be rented. These establishments are usually found in Asia and US. Karaoke box establishments also usually sell refreshments and snacks for customers.

Interesting facts about karaoke

Here are some interesting facts about karaoke:

1. There are more than 100 000 karaoke boxes in Japan.
2. Philippines has the most in-home karaoke boxes averaging at 1 per home.
3. Sinatra’s famous song “My Way” is prohibited in many bars in the Philippines as the lyrics are considered to be arrogant and have provoked attacks on its singers.
4. Karaoke World Championships are actually a thing. In fact, it has been a thing for more than 16 years.
5. An Italian named Leonardo Polverelli holds the Guinness World Record for the longest karaoke marathon at 1295 songs. He sang for 4 days straight for 101 hours 59 mins and 15 secs.
6. China holds the record of longest karaoke session at 456 hours 2 mins and 5 seconds which is a total of 19 days. 6281 songs were sung.
7. Karaoke is proven to relief stress, boost confidence and strengthen social connections.
8. Did you know there is a 20-story karaoke hotel in Japan?

Recommendations

Here are some recommendations for karaoke boxes in Japan:

1. Fioria Shinjuku

This karaoke box is high class and luxurious. It has over 20 rooms and each room have different facilities. There are some rooms with a jacuzzi and some rooms with a loft. There are even a few cosplay rooms.

1. Moshi Moshi Box

This is an information centre that provide karaoke services. The outside of the office looks colourful as it is affiliated with Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. Also, the first song you sing will be free and you will win a crepe if you score above 90 points.

1. Manekineko yotsuya sanchome

Manekineko is the largest karaoke chain in Japan. In fact, there are also Manekineko karaoke boxes in Singapore. In Japan, they are famous for their food. It recently got Halal certified but that does not mean any of their flavours are gone. They have delicious curry, ramen, edamame, gyoza and so on.

That’s all for my FTW. Thank you for taking your time to read it. I hope you have learnt something new. Do enjoy the rest of your holidays. Cya. 😊

All pictures belong to their respective owners

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karaoke_box
http://www.karafun.com/blog/556.html
http://www.karaokekanta.net/historia_en.html
http://www.djbrianc.us/dj-services/karaoke-dj/karaoke-history/

Fact of the Week
Credit to Research Team: Einar Ang
History of Japan’s forest management policy

Despite supporting one of the highest human population densities in the world, Japan is the first developed country with the highest percentage (74%) of forest covered land. This is because Japan’s forest management policy began over four centuries ago.

Exploitative use of forests worked as long as small. The rulers’ demands for timber sometimes led to severe local deforestation, but they were always able to shift the logging to new areas with “old growth” forests that contained an abundance of large trees for high quality lumber. Logging for timber demands of the elite often suited villagers because it opened up land for agriculture while also creating secondary forest, which was the best vegetation for providing organic fertilizer, fuel, fodder, and other forest products for subsistence.

The situation started to change around 1570. By then, Japan’s population had increased to ten million people, and villagers’ needs for subsistence forest products had increased correspondingly. Large-scale military conflict during the 1500s required large quantities of timber for the armies. With the advent of the Tokugawa shogunate and peace, followed by rapid growth of cities and monumental construction projects for castles, temples, and shrines, logging increased during 1600s to a scale never before experienced in Japan. Conflict between villagers and rulers over the use of forest lands – subsistence products for the villagers vs. timber for the rulers – became more intense. By 1670 the population had increased to nearly thirty million, and with the exception of Hokkaido, the old growth forests had been completely logged. The supply of timber and other forest products was running out. Soil erosion, floods, landslides, and barren lands (genya) were becoming ever more common. Japan was headed for ecological disaster.

Japan responded to this environmental challenge with mutually reinforcing positive feedback loops. Managed forestry continued to develop and expand in conjunction with a “virtuous cycle” of mutually reinforcing silvicultural improvements, social institutions for forest land use, and timber marketing institutions. What initially begun began with extending village cooperation to managing forests lands had stimulated a series of mutually reinforcing changes that slowed down deforestation and eventually led to the reforestation of Japan. The deforestation was severe and reforestation took a long time, reaching completion in the 1920s.

Japan’s forest story has continued with new twists and turns since then. There was substantial deforestation during World War II, followed by intensive reforestation during the 1950s to 1970s. The reforestation emphasized sugi and hinoki plantations, even cutting natural forest to make plantations. Japan’s switch to imported wood, fossil-fuel energy, and chemical fertilizers for agriculture, in full swing by the 1980s, eliminated the demand for forest products from satoyama secondary forest and greatly reduced the demand for sugi and hinoki. There was no reason to continue managing the secondary forest, which is now undergoing natural ecological succession and the loss of many plant species adapted to the open and well-lighted environment of managed forests. Many sugi and hinoki plantations have fallen into neglect because the thinning, pruning, and other care necessary to produce high quality timber do not seem worth the effort.

This story of forestry in Japan is not intended to be authoritative or complete. The evolution of Japanese forests during the past three centuries has been complex. The main point of the story is that Japan adapted to a deforestation crisis in the late 1600s by changing from unsustainable forest exploitation to managed and sustainable forestry. Adaptation featured a tipping point that turned the nation from ecological disaster toward ecological health, restoring a natural resource base that put Japan in a strong position for its economic development during the Twentieth Century.

References
Diamond, Jarod. 2004. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. Viking, New York.
Totman, Conrad. 1989. The Green Archipelago: Forestry in Pre-Industrial Japan. University of California Press, Berkeley.
Totman, Conrad. 1993. Early Modern Japan. University of California Press, Berkeley.
Totman, Conrad. 1995. The Lumber Industry in Early Modern Japan. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu.