Japan's min'yo (folk) tradition is long and rich. Each region has its own style, perhaps the most famous of all being the instrumental shamisen style from Tsugaru in Tohoku. The continued popularity of min'yo is partly due to the nostalgia felt by urbanites for their home towns and villages, and many Japanese not only listen to min'yo , but are able to sing a song or two, particularly one from their home region.

Like many traditional musics, the form is tightly controlled by various guilds, a system called iemoto . Long apprenticeships are the norm for musicians, and family-based teaching systems guarantee something is passed on to the next generation. Shamisen master and singer Kiyohide Umewaka, whose father started a key guild in the 1950s, says the dedication required to master the form means that there are few professional players. His father taught top min'yo singer Sanae Asano and the spellbinding young shamisen player Shin'ichi Kinoshita, the latter having played a major part in the shin-min'yo (new min'yo ) wave led by singer Ito Takio, well known for his passionate singing style and willingness to experiment.

Traditional drumming from Sado island , where the Earth Festival (a percussion-based event) is held annually, has now become famous internationally. Ondekoza, the original group of drummers, and its off-shoot, Kodo, are capable of playing very powerful, rootsy gigs with just the various Japanese drums (from the big daiko to small hand-drums), but the bands do often utilize other instruments.

One of the very best places to catch traditional music in action in Japan is at a local festival, or matsuri . At Obon , an ancient Buddhist festival to celebrate the ancestors , locals get down to a Bon odori (Bon dance). Check out the music of Shang Shang Typhoon which incorporates various kinds of festival music into its shows and even has its own festival every year, held just outside Tokyo. Wherever you go, you'll be dancing, and you'll be dragged up by the local granny if you try to sit it out. Dances are often centred around a bamboo tower with a big drum in the centre, moving to either tapes or live min'yo of classic Bon dances. You may catch the mikoshi procession, where young men dressed in what look like jockstraps struggle to carry a portable shrine. Such festivals are all about music, cementing community bonds and having a good time - Japan-style.