It is amazing how artists can render specific styles of music to suit such a large range of moods. Though tsugaru-shamisen is described as being rhythmic and loud, in the right context, it can sound quite ethereal. Here, I present Tenbi. According to her artist's Facebook page, she was the winner of the Japanese Folk Association's Tsugaru-Shamisen contest four times. After having released her album Rebirth, Tenbi now travels the world performing with artists from all different genres of music. Her song "Calling" is very interesting in the genres it uses. The rhythm of the shamisen evokes a gritty, acoustic, Blues-Rock feel. The background orchestrals are quiet enough to let Tenbi's playing shine but loud enough (especially when joined by the female singer) to take said playing into an entirely different realm of cross-genre fusion. This makes it not a particularly ambient song, but not your standard workout song either. It's the kind of song that makes you bop your head as you otherwise sit quietly reading a book. This song would be great for a slow piece or even (for all the teachers out there) a super-slow fast song that's good for practice. Not to mention all the potential for fusion pieces. How did you guys like this piece compared to the previous piece from the Yoshida Brothers?
