Made In Japan Pop

Maiko Training

Miehina

Harusame Lyrics

春雨に しっぽり濡るる
Harusame ni Shippori nururu　
鶯の羽風に匂う梅が香や
Uguisu no Ha-kaze ni Niou Ume ga Ka ya
花に戯れ しおらしや　
Hana ni tawamure Shiorashiya
小鳥でさえも一筋に　
Kotori de saemo Hitosuji ni
ねぐら定めぬ 気はひとつ
Negura sada-menu Ki wa Hitotsu
私しゃ鶯 主は梅
Watasha Uguisu Nushi wa Ume 　
やがて 身まま気ままになるならば
Yagate Mi-ma-ma Ki-ma-ma ni Narunaraba
サアー 鶯宿梅じゃないかいなー　
Saa Oushuku Bai ja naikai naa
サアーサ 何でもよいわいなー
Saasa Nan demo yoi-wai naa

Becoming drenched in a gentle spring rain
A breeze from nightingale wings
And the fragrance of plum blossoms,
Sporting with gentle flowers
A songbird in earnest decides upon a nest
The feeling of just one
I am the nightingale, you the plum blossom
Before long, if possible,
The body and the heart will become one
Now, does the nightingale dwell in the plum tree?
Come now, will anything good do?

 

 

Re-posted from Tsurikomaiko.com from user Fyouhime. I did not translate this myself.

Link to original post: HERE.

Video On Geisha (French)

Le secret des Geishas by andre1980

Harusame

This is the dance Harusame performed by one of my favorite's Koyoshi.

Kimono Information

http://www.shimazakura.com/types-of-kimono-s/119.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimono

http://www.tinyshiny.com/Articles/KimonoJapaneseTraditionalClothing.php

http://www.alltrees.org/Personal/kimono/terminology.php

Geisha Pressure-Japan Video

Video from youtube, all rights to its respective owners. Dated 2009.

The Secret Life of Geisha (NBC. Features Mineko Iwasaki)

This is from youtube, all rights go to its respective owners.
It is dated from 2002.

Books To Read

Geisha, A Life- Mineko Iwasaki

Geisha- Liza Dalby

The Flower And Willow World: The Story Of The Geisha- A.C. Scott

On Sake and Ocha

Links:

http://www.sake-world.com/html/types-of-sake.html

http://www.esake.com/Knowledge/Types/types.html

http://everyonestea.blogspot.com/2011/04/get-to-know-japanese-tea-by-starting.html

Tea Ceremony And Making Tea:

http://everyonestea.blogspot.com/2011/02/what-you-need-for-making-japanese-tea.html

http://everyonestea.blogspot.com/2011/02/what-you-need-for-preparing-japanese.html

http://everyonestea.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-is-way-of-tea-or-japanese-tea.html

Videos are from youtube, rights belong to their respective owners.

Kanzashi Motifs

This website features images and information on the kanzashi for each month:

 http://www.vivcore.com/kanzashicore/maiko.html

Article on Edo Japan

http://factsanddetails.com/japan.php?itemid=502&catid=16&subcatid=107

Online Article On Geisha

This is an interesting article on Yoshiwara and other geisha I thought I would share for you to read.

http://www.japanecho.com/sum/2003/300616.html

Video from NHK World

I thought this was a nice little video when I saw it on Geiko-san & Maiko-san so I'm re-posting it here. Hope you enjoy!

Kitsune Ken Game

Saw this on tsurikomaiko and had to post it. I have never seen this game before but it looks neat.

Kyoto Promotion

A little video I saw that someone found on tsurikomaiko.com.

Commercials

Tokyo Dancing

Dance About Fireflys

Natsu wa Hotaru

Kyo No Shiki

Part 1 is danced by maiko, the second part by geiko.

Ozashiki Games Kompira Fune Fune +Tora Tora

About Maiko

Kyo No Shiki+Higasiyama

Akebono

Rokudan Kuzushi+Gion Kouta

French Documentary

Kamishichiken Setsubun

Kurokami

Harusame-Spring Rain

Gion Kouta

Unusual Obi

I found this in Blue Ruin1's photostream on Flickr and had to post it. The maiko is wearing a pineapple obi in the 1930's.

                                         

Disclaimer

Videos From:
1. Geiko-san & Maiko-san
http://okiya.tumblr.com/
2. Youtube.com
3. Flickr.com

I DO NOT own or claim to own any of the images,links, articles, or videos on this site. They belong to their respective owners. Thank you.

Maiko Applying Make-Up And Dressing

Second Life Okiya

This is a listing for those interested in seeing the virtual geiko world. I tried to place in order of date in existence (well it might not be completely accurate but at least its all there).

1. Karyukai

2. Little Yoshiwara

3. Amatsu

4. Arakawa

5. Pontocho

6. Blue Lotus

7. Arashiyama

8. Mitsuhana

9. Kaishi Chou

10. Nishimura

11. Hanafusa

12. Shiraito-No-Taki Hanamachi

Best Places For Information

1. Tsuriko Maiko-http://tsurukomaiko.freeforums.org/
2. Geiko-san & Maiko-san
http://okiya.tumblr.com/
3. Geisha-licious-http://geisha-licious.tumblr.com/
4. Flickr.com
5. Immortal Geisha- http://www.immortalgeisha.com/

Vintage Youtube Clips

Rankings

1. Girls around age 15 begin their life as a shikomi. They work inside the okiya, functioning much as a maid would. They wear their hair in a simple bun and are often seen in yukata or komon featuring a chou chou obi knot (which appears much like a bow).

Image from HERE.

2. As shikomi progress in training they move into the maiko stage. As minarai they don the wareshinobu hairstyle and wear a pinwheel kanzashi in their hair. They paint their face white for the first time, though they pre-dominately use red on their face. They wear kimono with a obi half the length of the maiko's and okobo.

3. Junior Maiko-After passing a difficult exam they go through misedashi. They then gain a Oneesan who mentors them in the ways of the world. Wearing a full length obi which reaches towards the ground, they are the most known out of the ranks often seen in images.

4. Senior Maiko- After 2 years the maiko wear the ofuku style, which places the bun which could be seen on the ware- style higher on the head. The red peice of cloth indicates how close they are to erikae. When they get close to erikae they wear the sakkou hairstyle. 

5. Geisha- After Erikae they become a fully trained geisha or geiko. They may become independent of the okiya and live on their own in some cases. They wear less make-up over time and the shimada hairstyle. Their obi appears to looks like a square and is much shorter than that of the maiko.

Image from HERE.

Welcome

This blog is dedicated in part to show my studies of the world of the geiko as well as for those who have never heard of them. As I do play a role in a virtual geisha community (Mitsuhana Okiya) in Second Life this may at times also delve into what goes on for a virtual trainee. Below you will find a video about geiko. Please enjoy.