Michio Miyagi was a blind musician who played the Koto, a Japanese instrument derived from a Chinese Zither. By playing traditional pieces and modifying the instrument to better play western pieces, Miyagi was able to keep interest in an old instrument during a period of rapid westernizing. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
Stamps don’t usually produce sound, except for a few farm out publicity stunt stamps. Therefore it is difficult to convey a musical artist’s talent. On this stamp a different tact is taken. Miyagi is shown to be blind and the complexity of the many strings and moveable bridges of the koto shows the challenges he experienced expressing himself through music.
Todays stamp is issue A1645, an 80 Yen stamp issued by Japan on November 4th, 1994. It was a four stamp issue over several years displaying Japanese cultural icons, in this case koto musician and teacher Michio Miyagi. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 35 cents used.
Traditional Japanese instruments were in decline during the early 20th century as Japan opened up to western culture. Mr. Miyagi was an unlikely person to bring it back. He had a serious eye infection as a child that left him sightless. Already his mother had left the family and he was taken in by his grandmother. He had music lessons on the koto and was certified as a teacher before he was even 10. His family moved to Jinsen, Chosen in the then Japanese colony in modern Korea. Miyagi supported the family by offering lessons. To prepare students for playing the koto, Mr. Miyagi had them apply car wax in a wax on then wax off style. Just Kidding. At 13, he composed his first piece and this made him known in the music community as a child prodigy. He married and then set out for Tokyo to reach a wider audience.
At first there were many challenges. An old Koto master that had offered career support had been assassinated just prior to Miyagi’s arrival. Also in short order his wife died. Things must have seemed dark.
Miyagi the next year was able to remarry a new wife from a rich family. She was able to put him on a concert tour where he was able to feature a section of his compositions. They were often heavily influenced by western music and he was able to attract a younger audience. He began experimenting with new versions of the koto instrument. An 18 string bass koto and an 80 string version were constructed to better add the sound of the koto to western music. In 1925, Miyagi was able to get a foothold on Japanese radio from the first broadcasts. In 1932, French violinist Renee Clemet toured Japan and he convinced her to play her violin on his signature song “Hari no Umi”. The recording was a world wide hit and soon his works were released worldwide. In 1956 Miyagi fell off a subway train to his death at age 62.
The koto instrument has indeed survived. It even can be heard on some progressive western rock tracts. Notably the British bands Asia on “Heat of the moment” and Genesis on “Mama” The American pop/soul duo A Taste of Honey used a Koto extensively on their 1981 hit “Sukiyaki”. The koto was played by band member Hazel Payne and the song was a reworking of an old Japanese song. You can hear it here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUBmtfH6pvY .
Well my drink is empty and I am left to await next year, err Thursday when there will be another story that can be learned from stamp collecting. All the best for 2020. First published i n2019.