Luis Fernando Haruna
Manuel S. Falleiros
Abstract
Based on the development of an arrangement for the Japanese song “Sakura Sakura” which incorporates elements of Latin music, this paper describes the challenges and possibilities of contrasting musical and symbolic elements from two distinct cultures. The concept of culture employed in this research was based on the semiotic analysis proposed by Geertz (1989). A discussion was conducted on the issue of arrangement in popular music based on Aragão (2007) and the principle of the Simple Statement proposed by Nascimento (2011). In terms of musical analysis, the methodology applied was the three-layer theory developed by White (1994). The results show that semiotic analysis can be another tool for creative processes in music, acting as a potential enhancer for the production of new sounds and works that break away from the conventional.
Keywords: Arrangement, Japan, Interculturality, Latin Music, Semiotic.
Introduction
This paper addresses the cultural issue of interculturality in music through the development of an arrangement of the traditional Japanese song “Sakura Sakura,” reinterpreted with elements of Latin music. The motivation for this research lies in the author’s professional experience with diverse traditional musical practices and cultural fusions, which, according to Vilela (2010, p. 27), result in new sonic textures and musical meanings.
The central objective is to explore the challenges and possibilities of juxtaposing a traditional Japanese song with Latin elements, analyzing their points of contact, sonic flexibility, and the symbolic elements of both cultures. The research was structured in stages: initially, the musical analysis of “Sakura Sakura” and Latin music to identify characteristics such as scales, instrumentation, timbres, rhythms, and ornaments. Subsequently, the analysis of the cultural symbolisms present in both musical traditions to understand the correlation between signs and musical elements. Finally, the description of the musical arrangement development process and the interconnection of the musical and symbolic elements of the objects of study.
Theoretical Framework and Methodology
The concept of culture employed in the research was based on the semiotic analysis proposed by Geertz (1989), who treats it as a symbolic representation, a continuous process of human actions that give meaning to their activities. Geertz (1989, p. 10) emphasizes that culture is a context in which social events can be described intelligibly, with density. This concept is widely applied in various fields of knowledge, such as History (COELHO, 2014), Information Science (MORGADO, 2014), Education (PIEGO, 2019), and Literature (SANTOS, 2011).
Interculturality, in turn, is seen as the result of human actions and interactions arising from migratory processes (DELL’OLIO, 2018). The study of interculturality, aligned with Geertz’s (1989, p. 10) concept of culture, focuses on the relationships triggered by contact between people from different cultures. Thus, interculturality is used to understand the result of the contact between distinct cultural signs within the same object, such as a song arrangement.
Aragão (2007, p. 2) defines arrangement as a reworking, organization, and structuring of sounds based on an original work, which, in the context of popular music, cannot be objectively conceptualized (ARAGÃO, 2007, p. 6), but rather considered a continuous update in musical practice. To deal with the difficulty of defining “original” in this context, Nascimento (2011, p. 24) proposes the concept of “Simple Statement” (Enunciado Simples) as a minimal unit of the song (melody with or without lyrics) in popular music, with the arrangement being responsible for materializing it.
Musical Elements of the Arrangement
The choice of the song “Sakura Sakura” was based on its significant cultural relevance in Japan, symbolizing the ephemeral beauty of life through the cherry blossom and the Hanami ritual (ITO, 2023; SALAZAR, 2022; PRADO, 2009). The original melody of the song, structured in the Miyako-bushi scale (PRADO, 2009, p. 83), was preserved in its entirety, constituting the “Simple Statement,” according to Nascimento (2011, p. 24). Regarding the Japanese elements and their fusion, the Miyako-bushi scale was maintained in all lines of the arrangement, even under a Western perspective of Japanese aesthetics (OKANO, 2018), ensuring the original melodic identity of the song. The arrangement employed the characteristic singing style of the song “Sakura Sakura,” incorporating the kobushi—a cadenced vibrato typical of Japanese music—to confer greater expressiveness (NISHIMURA et al., 2006, p. 494). The taiko rhythmic line was developed based on the rhythmic cell known as “matsuri ji” (RODRIGUES, 2023, p. 41), traditionally used as an accompaniment pattern in Japanese festivals, symbolizing the continuity of the Japanese community in Brazil (NAKAMOTO, 2010, p. 57). The shamisen, with a melodic function, doubles the main melody of the song by exploring noises, a common characteristic in traditional Japanese music that creates a contrast between voice and instrument (CANTO, 2021, p. 45). The practice of this instrumentation in Brazil is related to cultural preservation and the development of human sensitivity (SATOMI, 2024; FUCHIGAMI, 2014, p. 2). Furthermore, a flute line was developed that emulates the sonority of the Japanese aerophones shakuhachi and fue, which are associated with spirituality (FUCHIGAMI, 2014, p. 59), with appoggiaturas being used to highlight the influence of the shakuhachi (CASTELO, 2018, p. 80).
Regarding the insertion of Latin elements and their fusion, the “Latin music” understood here has its origins in Cuban popular music, whose rhythmic basis is the clave—a fundamental asymmetrical pattern (DAVID, 2019, p. 40). Although of Cuban origin, the clave is also used for the analysis of Afro-Brazilian rhythmic structures (SANTOS, 2018, p. 60) and played a central role in the arrangement, not only as a sonic pattern but also as a symbol of community and the interaction inherent to Cuban musical practice (DAVID, 2019, p. 69). The percussion ensemble included timbales, an instrument of Cuban excellence (BETANCOURT, 2005, p. 19), with rhythmic lines such as the cáscara (DAVID, 2019, p. 85), whose metallic timbre possesses symbolic connotations in African rituals. In the double bass and piano instruments, within the context of Cuban son, both assume rhythmic functions through the tumbao—rhythmic and harmonic patterns strongly linked to the clave (DAVID, 2019, p. 79). The arrangement adapted these tumbaos, preserving the rhythmic function of the double bass and valuing the low resonance, evidencing the African influence on the genre (DAVID, 2019, p. 84). Finally, the trumpet, an element introduced into Cuban son under the influence of jazz (DAVID, 2019, p. 76), was employed in the arrangement to perform melodic and timbral filling functions, providing an open sonority characteristic of Cuban music (GASTALDI, 2019, p. 21).
Conclusion
The development of this arrangement, which integrated musical analysis techniques with symbolic aspects of distinct cultures, represented a significant challenge. In this work, semiotic analysis emerges as a valuable tool for creative processes in music. Levy (2021, p. 20) highlights that traditional music can be both defining and diluted in its boundaries, possessing a character that is simultaneously perennial and transient. The proposal to synthesize musical and symbolic elements from two different cultures in an arrangement can be viewed through this prism of the transient dimension, being used as a creative element for new sonic textures and musical significations.
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