They're all monster musicians, but my admiration for Shamisen shredder Beni Ninagawa increased 10X after reading up on the Shamisen as an instrument. It's apparently hugly expensive and very difficult to master.

Japan has lots of awesome band and they are so unique..🥰😍🤩👌

hell yea! Wagakki Band is one of the coolest bands out there

Shamisen player 蜷川べにBeni Ninagawa plays the "津軽三味線Tsugaru shamisen," a type of music that originated in the Tsugaru region(western Aomori Prefecture) of northern Japan . Originally used to accompany 津軽民謡Tsugaru folk songs, it is characterized by its percussion technique of striking 撥Bachi=the plectrum and its fast tempo and high number of notes, making it a good match for rock and metal music. Yuko Suzuhana 鈴華ゆう子（vorcal） is a 師範 Shihan=Qualified instructor of 詩吟Shigin=the recitation of the poem( a traditional Japanese performing art), and has also studied 剣詩舞(Kenshibu=Sword dance to 詩吟) since she was a child. She also studied piano at the Tokyo College of Music, and is a very experienced and talented songwriter.

You Sir, make my heart glad, you listen to all my favorite's and then explain why they are great to a know nothing like me. Yuko ( lead vocals) is the mastermind behind this fantastic group, must listens are Senbonzakura and Bring me to Life (ft Amy Lee), Synchronicity , err and lots others

I need to go taste the water in japan , My god they Put on a Show!

They’re really great!

Wagakki Band started out doing covers of Vocaloid songs of 'singers' Hatsune Miku and Kagamine Rin and their first CD release is all covers from them (mainly Miku). Yuko is a huge fan of them and regularly attended conventions and did cosplay of them and met several other band members that way and it grew from there. Senbonzakura and and Tengaku are two of these that gained them a lot of attention. I started following Hatsune Miku in 2011 after one of her first 'live' concerts (virtual singer with a live band) and found Wagakki Band soon after they appeared. Their song Synchronicity is interesting as it is done in a combination of Big Band era and Jazz and is absolutely beautiful and unexpected to hear from them.

There were supposed to headline the Tokyo Olympic Opening Ceremony until covid happened. They are huge in Japan (like, much bigger than any Japanese band you've seen until now).

Homura is a song that I constantly go too to bridge the gap in my guitar playing. I never get sick of coming to the song over and over again and learning the little nuances associated with it. My goal is to play it for my school some day soon in tribute of Machiya (The Guitarist) for giving me inspiration I never knew I had.

じっくり噛み締めながら聞いてくれて有難うございます。 和楽器バンドは私達の宝です😀

This is one of my favorite videos, glad you were able to check them out and glad you enjoyed it. In my opinion, these traditional instruments and the people who play them are dwindling, with all this technology, some tradition can be lost along the way. By them bringing the traditional with the modern and creating something awesome, it keeps the tradition/culture alive in the modern world.

I fell in love with Beni on the Shamisen! I'm surprised its taken this long for you to hear them... Glad you enjoyed them!

This vid holds a very special place in my heart. Not because of how amazing the performance is (it is incredible!), but because of a vid down below that caught my eye and changed my life when I clicked it. It was Thrill and my first time experiencing BAND MAID. 🤘😍🤘

Beni is shredding’ on the Shamisen! So glad you got introduced to this band, one of my favourites. Whenever I introduce this band to friends I use this video.

If anyone is wondering. Machiya plays a Sago guitar, it's a 33 "scale baritone with 29 frets tuned BEADF # B, if you capo at the 5th fret it becomes a 25.5" scale guitar in standard E tuning Machiya had homura with him from a previous solo project, he uses the "Noh" mask on those songs. Akatsuki no ito is written by machiya and is very special for Wagakki Band since the audience uses it as an encore chant. It has only one verse that is repeated except for the shign part at the beginning. the song can be sung to infinity. Try this: Hakushu Kassai kzfaq.info/get/bejne/o8mipbBzs52Xqo0.html&ab_channel=CCW

Ryan! You finally reacted to them! I was about to leave to work when I received the notification of your reaction and decided to wait and enjoy your reaction (and face) to that particular band! This is arguably their best (double) song, unbeatable live, and already quite old for them. I will spare you the names, but the singer was the founder of the group. She was and still is a celebrated Japanese classical "shigin" singer! The lead guitar showed his face in a live concert for the first time during that particular concert. He can also sing as he demonstrated when they had that live collaboration with Emmy Lee of Evanescence. The bassist, for all his effeminate looks has a very deep voice (even for a Japanese) and is actually more manly than many think! The rock (blond haired) drummer, very talented, is the goofy character of the group. The lady who came in early plays the shamisen. She was already a professional shamisen player when she directly approached them in a bar where they were all having a drink. Super popular in Japan! The Japanese drum ("taiko") also has a lot of experience and has become a kind of chief choreographer with shouts typical of Japanese drum players.The two of them make for a very original double drum set. The Japanese classically-trained koto (Japanese flat harp) is also an experienced player and he was one of the first artists recruited by the main singer.. Finally the flute player is playing a classical "Shakuhachi", a type of recorder very difficult to play still, but he does it bouncing and dancing at the same time! Wagakki (meaning "Japanese musical instruments") Band are already considered as veterans in their field. After all, the singer is already almost 40! Another group to closely watch from next week when all covid-19 restrictions will be abandoned for good in Japan! Great fun in store! I'm going to work! Best regards, Robert-Gilles

This is the band that led me to Band-Maid back in 2015! Glad you like them. Try Sembonzakura (probably their most famous), Sabaku no komoriuta (Yuko shines here with vocals), or Ignite. They're all really skilled and their stuff is pretty diverse.

Wagakki Band is a Gift from Japan, to compensate lovers of good music, since the West has been producing mostly mediocre things for years. Musically, Japan saved my life..

Really love this band! Yeah, hope you can react more of them

That voice is like you're in the shogunate era where samurai are still roaming with katana's in their sash.

Yes, finally!!!! This band is even bigger than Babymetal in Japan, for good reason. No band better captures the fusion of traditional Japanese sounds with Western metal instrumentation. Just some background: “Wagakki” is Japanese for “traditional instruments” The “lute” thing is a Shamisen. The “harp” thing is a Koto. The “flute thing” is a shakuhachi. The band was founded by the singer, SUZUHANA Yuko. Yes, you’ve heard these instruments a million times, in movie soundtracks, when they want to convey a Japanese atmosphere. Here is a video that really lets you see up close all the instruments and how they work together: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/h5idmLqcvNfHXX0.html It was originally written for a “Vocaloid” which is an electronic virtual singer-essentially an AI. In Japan (where else?) vocaloids have actually become pop stars. What can I say? America may be the land of technology innovation for things like social media, but in music no one here cares any more. Most of the creative action has moved to Europe and Japan.

Bass players "I need a much larger plectrum than guitarists" - Beni "yeah, sure ..." 😁 . j/k, I'm in awe with her speed and precision with such of a trowel-like pick.

*eargasm* Hoshidzukuyo + Tengaku is a must next Combination from cheerfull song into serious one :) Glad you react to them, and this band won't be dissapointed. Guaranteed

One of my favorite bands. Everyone is a master of their instrument. Did you notice that Machiya’s guitar has twenty nine frets?

Beni is a star one of this song, but it suprised me how much i liked singing in old japanese by Yuko. I love Queen of the night, it has beautifull music video.

Interesting thing about the koto: its origin is from China, and it was carried all across the East and Southeast Asia regions in antiquity. So, there are different versions of it in each area. Each version is subtly different from the others in the construction.

Welcome to the Wagakkiverse. A deep rabbit hole to negotiate.

Always great hearing your reactions Ryan. It is good to see men can also be in bands in Japan. I was starting to believe that Japanese music is a female only phenomena, and rightly so in a lot of cases. The production was beautifully executed. Wagakki know how to put on a great show. Great audio, lighting, camera, and performance.

Congratulations! You've now done my 3 favourite Japanese Band, Wagakki, Band Maid and Asterism.

Bravo!. You can cross my suggestion off the list on patreon now, lol. Being a musician yourself I had an intuition that you would love this band. By now we should catalog the chills in your arms as the gold standard of excellent music. Good job, i loved this video

I love Wagakki Band. Is a fest for the ears with all of this layers of sounds. Recomended songs: Senbonzakura, Synchronicity, Aria of Life. Much better live, the MV's are good but live are spectacular.

We need a “Shut Up, Beni is Speaking” shirt too.

Nothing better than a beautiful woman shedding an instrument and Beni playing the Shamisen is one of them at the top.

You've heard all the Japanese instruments but in BAND-MAIKO, you'll see Akane in Kozutsumi( handy drum).

Another band that sorely needed a revisit from me. I heard them for the first time when I just got into Band-Maid, and at that time Band-Maid was the only thing I could really listen to 😅 . Great band and a great reaction.

WAGAKKI-BAND is the band I love next to BAND-MAID. Japanese folk metal? They play an incredibly wide range of genres of music, so it's not always the songs I like, but good songs are great. The song that will surely surprise you is Synchronicity / Japan Tour 2019. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mbqHfrFn1Jnce3k.html

Thank you so much. First you showed me that i'm not the only one going from one Band-Maid song to the next saying "That's my jew favorite song!", and now this. The fusion between old and new that Wagakki Band brings to the stage is second to none. If i may recommend my personal favorite live performance of them, it would be this: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/eMyZdrOBxLHHc2Q.html

Beni Ninagawa is a beauty with high level skills.

I listen to other bands from Japan that use more traditional rock instruments for songs. I usually watch videos, especially live videos more than I listen to compared to band maid or MTH or unlucky Morphius or Gacharic Spin. But if I were standing on a street and these guys were in one theatre and band maid was in a theatre across the street I would go in and see these guys. Just for the unique experience, it would be an insanely tough choice and hopefully I'll see both one day!

That's all the magic about Rock music, they always a king of rock jamming/fusion well with some trads/old instrument, whatever which country is. Philharmonic stuff with metal (The second Rhapsody album, Yngwie Malmsteen play with that a lot..., and so many crazy guitarist revisited bethov, vivaldi and so much more with electric guitars and just sound perfect (and classical guys revisiting rock/metal classic and work perectly too), celtic stuff with punk (irish-punk), Mongol stuff with metal too (The Hu...) the list is long.... but once again Japanese take this kind of fusion on another level.

Great react! Looking to hear more from you and Wagakki Band!!!!

I went into a wagakki band phase for a while before I came back to bandmaid. To be honest, they sounded better and more unique before started collaborating with Amy Lee. I love anything they did up to 2017. Gobousei live is worth checking out.

They also do a duet with Amy Lee from Evanescence for Bring Me to Life. It's insane. If you want goosebumps, check it out!

Click your heels three times and say, “Hurry up October.”

I recently showed a live version of WGB's original "Synchronicity" to a guitarist friend of mine, probably the most musical guitarist I personally know, and he was impressed with their sophisticated writing. There's so much WGB content out there to enjoy, but in case no one has told you, their former record company, Avex, is notorious for coming after reaction videos that use official videos. The live video are safe, though.

Loved it ..😁

So I checked out Voodoo Chile on Koto you mentioned, really cool👍😁 Have a great weekend Ryan!

I am surprised this is a first time here,

Great reaction. And I just discovered a new t-shirt that I must have.

Thanks for reminding me that I hadn't checked Luna Lee on the Gayageum (Korean type of koto?) for years. Looked back and found Jimi Hendrix-Crosstown Traffic Gayageum by Luna Lee Voodoo Child-Jimi Hendrix / Gayageum ver. by Luna, Jimi Hendrix-Voodoo Child NEW Gayageum ver. by Luna Jimi Hendrix-Stone Free Gayageum가야금 ver. by Luna Jimi Hendrix-Little Wing (Gayageum by Luna) Jimi Hendrix-Manic Depression Gayageum cover. Bold as love- Jimi Hendrix-gayageum Luna

Love this band, my wife plays the Chinese version of the koto, a guzheng, I could listen to her play for hours

Beni Beni Beni! (that's right NOT the Bassist)

Great reaction as usual, Ryan. I have to say that I love Beni (Shamisen). She has some fun videos on YT of her and her kids doing family things. She is very down to earth in real life. BTW, where did you get that awesome t-shirt?

I found this band only recently (regrettably), and was immediately convinced that this band has the highest level of musicianship (musicality/virtuosity) and showmanship (visual/theatrical effects) Actually, I think this band is among the best fusion bands ever existed, and the very best when it comes to originality and showmanship. Moreover, they can play so effortlessly with smiles on their faces! Mesmerizing both visually and auditorily : simply amazing and entertaining! As a live performer, this band is peerless. I can imagine top-notch fusion musicians such as Ballaké Sissoko+Vincent Ségal, and Jean-Luc Ponty would love to play with them.

Epic band

Found them through watching Beni on her KZfaq channel. There is a cover they dod of a vocaloid song in the first playlist lol

Finally!!

Although there is a good amount of Wagakki Band material available for reactions, in some countries they are really' hot' for Copyright strikes and blocks. These two songs often get recommended for a first look but when you explore them further, you will discover that long instrumentals are not usually their thing and many of the songs have a harder rock feel to them.

Wagakki Band are so musically adept and talented, they have started to marry within the band as we, the outside people, are unable to associate ourselves with such skill and expertise.. In other words, the beautiful singer has married the Koto player.. He's batting well above his average there but, he's a talented guy.. I hate that I didn't learn the recorder now... ☹

Beni steps up with her tsugaru shamisen and it is a whole new ballgame.

Beni Ninagawa is awesome!

É insano mesmo!!! 😆✌🏼

In a perfect world , if I can't be Kanami's guitar tech, I want to play in Wagakki band.

watch this, i miss band maiko so much hope this aprill pls.....

彼女の歌を是非、翻訳してみて下さい、私が思うに、これは彼らの意気込みをあらわしてます、日本人の心を歌ってると思いますよ😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

9:20 Right! Sound engineer is a real hero!

Great reaction. I love Wagakki band. Glad you react to the Wagakki band. Please continue. Wagakki Band - 拍手喝采(Hakushu Kassai) / Dai Shinnenkai 2018 ~Ashita e no Koukai~ kzfaq.info/get/bejne/a9l6odmWp9zTfKs.html

This makes me happy. Band maid then wagakki. Hoping you'll react to Galneryus to their song Ultimate Sacrifice (live version)

Great reaction Hope to see more reaction of Wagakki Band... U can check ignited, senbonzakura, or yuki kageboushi MV Totally Awesome Extraordionary band 🔥❤🔥

It was like a religious experience

I know this video is 1 year old, but I have to comment on Beni playing the shamisen and the shredding on a fretless instrument like that. How hard can it get? Hahaha

that bamboo flute goes crazy

First saw this band on KZfaq during the beginning of COVID-19 and instantly was both stunned and mesmerized. I've probably viewed every reaction video from then until now, and I still love the look, the sound and the style. No one grandstands, but they all do their individual parts so well, that it comes across as a harmonious whole.

Nice Kanami t-shirt😊

Best shirt ever!

Social media post - "I just joined a metal band!" "Cool, what instrument?" "Flute." A rough translation of actual posts.

The Japanese word "HOMURA" has the following meanings. Fire. Figuratively, grudge, anger, jealousy, etc. burn your heart. The first song represents such a heart-lit flame. The next song, "Akatuki no ito", is a song with lyrics that connects people overseas with a single thread that crosses the sea at dawn at the beginning of the day. they hope the lyrics convey this heart across the rainbow and the sea as she sings. She sing that it would be great if everyone could feel the overflowing feelings of cutting the weir.

What took you so long? LoL! Wagakki Band is AMAZING. When Yuko-san starts singing.... I lose it. You have a lot of catching up to do. This band has been around for awhile. They have many songs and videos. I won't even recommend anything. Just do a search, and watch everything.

多分、このおじさんみんちょのTシャツじゃなく、べにちゃんのを着てると思うよ。 I feel like pretty soon this gentleman is going to wear Beni's T shirt, instead of Mincho's.

"Japanese scale" you are referring to is the same as pentatonic scale. You can find the exact vocal line on D minor pentatonic scale. Isn't it interesting? 😊

😉😉😉🤘🤘🤘

How do you do. I am an elderly man over 60 years old with Japan people, but I learned about the existence of a "Japanese instrument band" about two years ago. In this video, I was moved by the lyrics of the second song "Thread of the Dawn", so I hope you understand the meaning of this song. The lyrics of "Thread of the Dawn" are written Japan the words of a Japan who remains in ancient history and when he first had the concept of "overseas" to a stranger far away in the sea, "We will sing this song with all our voices full of thought, dreaming of carving out a future where we can respect each other and laugh with each other!" Please forgive me for such a sudden and inappropriate comment. Please forgive me if there is a small mistake due to the translation function of the computer. I sincerely wish you good health Japan the best of all.

Next, Senbonzakura!!

If I was Japanese and play Shamisen I could never do that not because I'm lazy and can't bothered to practice deligently for years it's because I can't even afford the pick she was shredding with the Shamisen with 🤣🤣🤣 Yes a Staridivarius or Amati is astronically expensive but you don't need to go through 3 to 4 300 dollars worth of picks each year.

From what concert? Date/Venue. I would like to see more. TY for the answer.

I have watched this video on a few occasions. Is it just me or is the fretboard on Michiya's guitar elongated? It seems to be awfully long, I have tried to stop it at the right spot to count the frets. But there seems to be more than usual.

Hello , I m french so I am apologize you to be what I am ! But Wagakki band is the band you wouldd know ...

Shirt's right, Kanami is special.

Ryan. Wagakki Band has an official mv that you will love. Senbonzakura.Don’t bother with making a reaction video for it. It’s way to copy right protected. But if you don’t watch it at all I swear you’re missing out.

Amy Lee played with these guys.

Procrastinating is a bitch sometimes ain't it.😁😁😁.

They are nice, don't know much about them, I much preffer the style of Nigen Isu when its about heavy metal japanese bands

My one petty gripe is that so far not ONE reactor has noted the homage to Ian Anderson (flute Jethro Trull).

In 2012, Yuko Suzuhana (vocal / keyboard), Daisuke Kaminaga (shakuhachi), and Kiyoshi Ibukuro (koto) started their activities under the group name of "Hanafuugetsu (flower & wind & moon)". They have released 4 albums and some EP / singles. Wagakki Band was formed in 2013 by recruiting performers of various genres from the desire of Yuko Suzuhana to "disseminate traditional Japanese performing arts to the world in a more pop style." The music video for the song "Senbonzakura" in their first album "Vocalo Zanmai" has attracted worldwide attention and is currently being played 140 million times. They transferred their label from Avex to Warner Music in June 2019, so I think it's a copyright issue, but if you use the MV owned by Avex as it is except for live video, it will definitely be blocked.

Beni is probably the only person in the world who can shred a shamisan AND look a million dollars.

You must watch their cover song, Bring Me to Life, featuring Amy Lee.

PLS React 和楽器バンド / Bring Me To Life with Amy Lee of EVANESCENCE is really good

Recommended song.　→　和楽器バンド / Bring Me To Life with Amy Lee of EVANESCENCE　kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ntFheteKsJ2meoE.html

I'll rather listen to these Masters than to kpop short term hit corporate-sheep mentality. #imho Jrock > Kpop