The Integrated Curriculum Model Education Essay

The Integrated Curriculum Model Education Essay William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model, the Parallel Curriculum Model, and the Integrated Curriculum Model are advanced, progressive curriculum models, which contribute to a consistent improvement of the learning process, engaging students in learning and encouraging them to learn more and more successfully. In this regard, principles and components of these models are very important for the overall success of the learning process. At this point, it is important to place emphasis on the fact that William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model attempts to apply a combination of the Parallel Curriculum Model and the Integrated Curriculum Model. On analyzing, the three models, it is possible to distinguish some common principles and components. First of all, the three curriculum models focus on the self-development of students, which is extremely important today, when students are overwhelmed with a huge amount of information and they need to process information to obtain knowledge and generate new ones. What is meant here is the fact that modern students cannot rely on their educators solely. Instead, they should focus on self-development and this is exactly what the three curriculum models are concerned with. Students obtain a lot of information from the outside world and they have to be able to process the information to accumulate knowledge and to generate new knowledge on the ground of acquired one and their own experience. As a result, students, prove to come prepared to the life in the modern society, where information rules. Furthermore, all three models focus on the development of engaging curriculum. According to the three models, the main purpose of the curriculum is not only to help students to acquire new knowledge, develop new skills and abilities, but also to be engaged in the learning process. The latter means that students should be interested in the learning process and the three models focus on the engagement of students because a profound, sincere interest of students to the learning process increases the effectiveness of learning consistently. In this regard, the high motivation of students is another fundamental principle the three models follow strictly. The three models attempt to reach the high level of motivation through non-material encouragement of students. They focus on the revelation of good perspectives of personal and professional development for students. In addition, these models provide students with a positive feedback from their educators for any successes students reach in the course of their learning. At the same time, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model and the Integrated Curriculum Model focus on the use of the multidisciplinary approach, whereas the Parallel Curriculum Model tends to the intradisciplinary approach. The multidisciplinary approach leads to the close interaction between different disciplines. In practice, this means that students have to use their knowledge, skills, abilities and experience from different disciplines in the course of learning. For instance, while performing a task on history, they may need to use their knowledge of geography, language, mathematics, and other disciplines. The Parallel Curriculum Model tends to use the intradiscipline approach, which focuses on specific disciplines and helps students to expand their knowledge to focus on specific field, which are particularly interesting to them maintaining the correlation to other disciplines. Furthermore, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model and the Integrative Curriculum Model, in a way, focus on the use of art in the learning process. In this regard, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model is particularly concerned with the use of art. The use of art is closely intertwined with the aesthetic development of students, which is another concern of William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model and Integrated Curriculum Model. In this respect, it is worth mentioning the fact that art and aesthetic development of students are extremely important in the contemporary society because students live in the highly materialistic world. The emerging consumerism leaves little room for the aesthetic education and art in the life of students. In such a situation, education should offer students an opportunity to learn and to understand art, to develop the non-material, aesthetic side of their personality. The use of art is particul arly useful for potentially gifted students. Therefore, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model uses art to reveal gifts of students and to help them to realize their full potential. Finally, all the three models use humanistic principles, which are also very important in the modern, consumerist society. In such a way, the three models attempt to return students to fundamental, humanistic principles, which lay the foundation to the modern western civilization. These humanistic principles are closely intertwined with democratic norms and principles, which are fundamental for the modern society. NEEDS ADDRESSED The three models pay a lot of attention to the development of critical and creative thinking. As the matter of fact, critical and creative thinking is essential for the extensive students personal development. Students receive a lot of information from the surrounding world but they have to evaluate the information critically to accumulate knowledge and to avoid fallacies, which they can fall in without critical thinking. At the same time, creative thinking, which is particularly important for William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model contributes to the broad development of students values, beliefs, norms and standards. In addition, creative thinking helps students to develop skills of effective problem solving. In fact, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model encourages creative students to realize their full potential because it is through students creativity they can realize their individuality. At the same time, the three models maintain the differentiation of students. What is meant here is the fact that all students have a different level of academic development, different psychological traits and characteristics, different gifts and inclinations. Therefore, the three models tend to develop differentiated curriculum to meet needs and wants of each students. In this regard, the individual approach to students is particularly effective and the three models attempt to find the individual approach to each student. Furthermore, the enrichment of students is another concern of the three models, although the Integrative Curriculum Model and the Parallel Curriculum Model focus on the academic development of students and stress the importance of the practical application of knowledge and skills acquired by students in the course of learning, they still focus on the enrichment and broad development of students. Unlike the Integrative Curriculum Model and the Parallel Curriculum Model, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model focuses not only on enrichment of practical knowledge, skills and abilities of students, but also on the development of aesthetic values and creativity of students. In addition, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model focuses on the acceleration of students development to help them to realize their talents. In this regard, the Integrative Curriculum Model and the Parallel Curriculum Model avoid excessive acceleration of students development because such acceleration affects consistently the personal development of students. Often the accelerated development can become an unbearable burden for students, they become too concerned with their learning and they face problems with their socialization because of the lack of free time. In addition, the three models focus on social and emotional needs of gifted and talented learners. The three models view social and emotional development as an essential element of education. Students need to undergo the process of socialization and develop the balanced, harmonious personality. The three models focus on motivation of students. They encourage students to learning and increase their interest to learning. In this regard, questioning is an important part of educational process because the three models stand on the ground that students should always question (VanTassel-Baska Brown, 2000). Through questioning, they learn how to find and obtain knew knowledge independently of educators. Finally, the three models focus on the use of technology in the process of education. Today, technology affects all spheres of human life. Therefore, students should come prepared to learn using new technologies and to develop new skills and abilities. In this regard, education helps students to use technology in their everyday life. ADVATNAGES AND DISADVANTAGES Obviously, each of the three models has its own advantages and disadvantages. On analyzing advantages of each model, it is worth mentioning the fact that William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model focuses on the development of talents of students. This model pays a lot of attention to the development of creativity of students. In addition, the model contributes to the creative development of students and to the formation of their aesthetic tastes, values, norms and standards. The Integrative Curriculum Model focuses on the use of multidisciplinary approach and contributes to the close integration of all disciplines (Avery VanTassel-Baska, 2001). As for the Parallel Curriculum Model, this model allows students to focus on the specific field they are interested in. On the other hand, each model has its own disadvantages. William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model tends to overestimate the aesthetic development of students and individual approach to each student, whereas the Parallel Curriculum Model focuses on the practical aspects of the development, underestimating the significance of creative and aesthetic development of students. The Integrative Curriculum Model does not always allow students to focus on the narrow, specific field, which may be helpful for their future professional development. BEST MODEL On comparing the three models, it is possible to distinguish William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model as the best model. Obviously, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model provides students with ample opportunities to realize their full potential. At the same time, educators can develop an individual approach to each student and develop their creativity. In such a way, educators can identify gifted students and develop their talents. Today, the creative development of students is essential because the highly technological society and information age raise the demand on creative professionals. In addition, William and Mary Center for Gifted Education Research Model helps to the personal development of students. As a result, this model contributes to the broad development of students, shapes their values, views, norms and standards. In fact, this model prepares students to the adult life and allows them to find their own way in the professional de velopment and in their personal life. Each student should be capable to realize his or her unique inclinations and capabilities.

Creative And Critical Thinking Among Students

Creative And Critical Thinking Among Students 7,987 straight As in SPM screamed the headlines of major newspapers when the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia results were announced on the 10th of March 2010. The fixation with academic achievements among Malaysians knew no bounds. Every year, excitement and joy, anxiety and disappointment, pervade among students, parents and teachers when the Ministry of Education and Malaysian Examination Board releases the results of public examinations, be it UPSR, PMR, SPM and STPM. The obsession with academic achievement is overshadowing all other aspects of a holistic education system in Malaysia. The Malaysian Education Philosophy clearly states that the role of the school curriculum is to ensure the holistic development of the individual mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally by imparting general knowledge and skills; cultivating, instilling and fostering healthy attitudes and accepted moral values. The curriculum aims to bring forth the Malaysian citizen who is a balanced and well-rounded individual, trained, skilful, and cherishes the national aspiration for unity. Why all the hype with students academic achievements? According to Professor Dr. Ray Wilks, Head of the School of Psychology, International Medical University, there is no evidence to show a positive correlation between academic achievement in examination and learning. Learning should not be about passing examinations. We should instead create more curiosity in childrens learning to nurture creativity and innovativeness, says Professor Dr. Ray Wilks. Indeed, the education systems in Malaysia aims to mould individuals to become better Malaysians with the right attitudes, and to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary in the twenty-first century to make Malaysia a developed nation by the year 2020. To meet the challenges of the twenty first-century and Vision 2020, teaching and learning practices and school management are constantly reviewed to develop individuals who are technologically literate and can contribute to a creative and innovative workforce. This transformation will entail changing the school culture, from one that is predominantly memory-based to one that stimulates thinking, creativity, and innovativeness. Yet the importance placed on academic achievement has seriously impacted on the ability and efficiency of the Malaysian education system in developing holistic individuals that are able to handle the challenges of life after formal schooling. In fact many a times, newspapers highlighted employers complaints that school leavers and even universitys graduates have problems conversing and communicating effectively, let alone to think critically and creatively. In addition the lack of critical and creative thinking abilities among Malaysians school leavers and university graduates has been pinpointed by the Minister of Human Resource, Datuk Dr. S Subramaniam, as one of the main problems contributing to their low marketability in the job market. The lack of thinking skills among the present and future workforce of the nation will hamper the nations efforts toward achieving a developed nation status by 2020. What are critical and creative thinking? Critical thinking is a type of thinking that converges on a single thought or entity. One must organize, analyze or evaluate information, which might also be broken into parts and taught explicitly. A cognitive process complimentary to, but different than critical thinking, is creative thinking. This thinking diverges from a single thought or entity. One must generate, synthesize, find alternatives, adapt, substitute, or elaborate. Critical and creative thinking are the building blocks that will make certain our students will have the required thinking skills to succeed in life and at work and ensure the attainment of Vision 2020. Detractors of efforts to emphasize critical and creative thinking in the curriculum have point to the possibility of poorer academic achievements as a consequence. However, research has shown that when students develop their thinking skills by looking beyond the obvious, making creative connections, developing strategies, making decisions, planning ahead and reflecting, they also improved their academic performance. Thus, emphasizing critical and creative thinking will augment academic achievement. How to encourage critical and creative thinking? One way is to reduce the emphasis on the use summative assessments such as UPSR, PMR and SPM. Summative assessments are used for categorizing students and stress the use of written examinations. The UPSR and PMR summative assessment have deviated from its original purpose of diagnosing learning problems with the intention of preparing remedial actions to improve students learning. They are now used to stream children into classes. In psychological terms, it is bad to label children. It is positive reinforcement for smart children, as defined by our assessment system, but not for the children who do not do well. The tools used in our public examinations are picking up all the rote learners. Professor Dr Ray Wilks says, From a psychological point of view, to label a child of 12 is a kind of life sentence. He further states that experiments have shown that if we tell teachers that a child is of certain achievement level, they will teach t o that point. The teachers will not raise their teaching to the next level for that child. Instead we should encourage more formative assessment in the learning environments. Formative assessment also called continuous assessment is a more reliable way to look at the learning process. School-based continuous assessment looks at broader education skills, such as communication, critical and creative thinking, and teamwork, rather than just textbook skills. These skills are assessed by teachers through activities like debates, dramas, analysing issues and project work. Formative assessments also provide diagnostic information to enable teachers to assist students with learning difficulties. Furthermore, when there are less public examinations, children can have more time to explore other interests such as music and arts that would help instil creativity in them. Ive always wanted my children to learn to play the piano, but they are always tired after schools and tuition, says one parent. With less examination, teachers will also have more time to organize field trips and excursions, which will allow students to be in contact with nature and discover new learning opportunities for critical and creative thinking that may not be present in the classroom. Given appropriate opportunities, children can engage in sophisticated cognitive processes. Research suggests that either too much or too little structure can prevent development of critical and creative thinking and in the process children are not equipped with active and strategic approaches to learning tasks. Thus, appropriate instructional approaches could results in students enhancing their critical and creative thinking skills. Three approaches are commonly used in the teaching of thinking skills: stand-alone approach, immersion approach and embedded approach. Stand-alone approach consists of teaching thinking skills separate from subject matter content. In this case a general set of thinking skills are identified and taught as a separate course or subject. Students are taught how to transfer the skills to various subjects and situations. However, thinking skills taught in isolation tend to results in students having problems transferring thinking skills to academic or real world problems. The immersion approach does not involve teaching thinking skills. Rather it allows good thinking to develop naturally as a result of students being fully engaged or immersed in content-related activities which calls for higher levels of thinking. Students are provided with repeated practices in complex cognitive activities with the assumption that they will eventually develop the necessary cognitive skills to successfully engage in high-level thinking. However, research has shown that simply immersing students in thinking activities is not an effective instructional approach. The embedded approach involves teaching thinking skills within a subject-matter context. Thinking skills are taught in science, social studies, language, arts, and some other subjects. Students than apply these skills directly to the particular subject being studied. This allows students to use the skills in a meaningful context and helps them learn the subject matter more deeply. An embedded approach is an effective way to teach thinking skills. Rather than an additional subject, thinking skills are used to enhance whatever curriculum currently being taught. Training teachers in specific instructional approaches means that schools must invest in teachers professional development. Instructional approaches that help teachers integrate a learning to think component into their curriculum empower students to take responsibility for improving their thinking and learning. Although cognitive development is only one part of a childs overall development, it is essential that teachers respond to the community demand for and the childs right to cognitive competence. Teacher training providers need to become aware of the benefits of certain instructional approaches on pupil performance and incorporate training in such approaches in their courses. Thus, in conclusion, Malaysia needs to ensure that its future generation does not only perform well academically but should possess the ability to think critically and creatively. All Malaysians should support the integration of critical and creative thinking in its educational curriculum. It should not only merely be stated in printed documents. Affirmative actions should be put in place to ensure that the teaching and learning of critical and creative thinking is actualized in the classroom context. Lest, Vision 2020 remains a dream and Malaysia will stutter in its ability to achieve the New Economic Model towards achieving 1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now. (1497 words)

Exporting US Engineering Labor Overseas, an Ethical Perspective Essay e

Exporting US Engineering Labor Overseas, an Ethical Perspective Introduction The recent trend of outsourcing white collar jobs overseas to countries such as India has angered many American Technology professionals. This is occurring specifically in areas such as computer software, chip design and technical support. This trend has contributed to the increasing difficulty many Americans, who are looking for technical jobs, are experiencing. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether this anti-outsourcing attitude has any moral basis and to discuss the conflict of interests involved. This trend has a huge number of stakeholders, impacting engineers working for US companies as well as the entire economies of the US and the nations who benefit from the practice. The consequences of this trend are newly established markets and improved standard of living in other countries at the expense of technical professionals in the United States and other countries with established technology industries. History of Overseas Outsourcing Outsourcing is defined as services provided for a company by a secondary company that would otherwise be supplied internally. The purpose of this is process is to reduce costs by subcontracting the work to an external company which can provide the service at a lower cost. In addition to lower cost, the benefits also include more predictable costs. This allows companies to concentrate on their core business. This system is advantageous to the secondary external company because they can achieve the benefits of the economics of scales in performing the same specialized work for many companies. Additionally the company can provide lower costs for a service if they can find lower labor costs. Duri... ...; I.B.M. Explores Shift of Some Jobs Overseas.† New York Times Late Edition – Final, Section C, Page1, Column 2. July 22, 2003. Country Profile: India. TechRepublic, 11/18/03, < http://techrepublic.com.com/5100-6298-1029727-4.html> Rachels, James. The Elements of Moral Philosophy. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 2003 McLaughlin, Laurianne. "An Eye on India: Outsourcing Debate Continues." IEEE Software, IEEE Computer Society. May/June 2003. Bardhan, Ashok Deo, and Kroll, Cynthia A. "The New Wave of Outsourcing." Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics. University of California, Berkeley. Fall 2003. 11/18/03, <http://repositories.cdlib.org/iber/fcreue/reports/1103/> Breslin, David A. "On the Ethics of Outsourcing," PM, November - December 1999. 11/19/03, <http://www.dau.mil/pubs/pm/pmpdf99/breslind.pdf> Ulrich von Hutten (1488-1523)

Bacons Rebellion Essay -- American History Nathaniel Bacon Papers

Bacon's Rebellion Sometimes there comes an event in American History in which no one knows exactly why it happened. What the motives of the event were are left to the interpretation of the historian doing the research. Bacon’s Rebellion in 1676 was on such event. Wilcomb E. Washburn’s view is precise when he states, â€Å" Bacon’s Rebellion. . .was an event on which observers could agree on the facts, but divide on the interpretation.† Historians have been picking into peoples’ accounts and versions of the legend for over 3 centuries, but never coming to a common conclusion. One fact is for sure and that is that the rebellion, known as Bacon’s, was what was going to pave the way towards Revolution of British Authority. In this paper I will look at one aspect that I feel was the motivation behind one individual's defiance to authority and the need to take matters regarding Indian relations into his own hands. Bacon was the kind of person to take what he thought was right into his own hands, even if it meant that he was breaking the law. In his eyes he was doing right and if he did not have the official support, he was going to do it anyway. On the other side was the feeble and zealous Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkeley. The Rebellion was also called, â€Å" the first protest against royal authority in America.† Sir William Berkeley was the second cousin of Bacon. Not wanting for the relations with the Indians to deteriorate, Berkeley did not thirst for an all out war in order to control the growing Indian crisis. He believed that the Indians should be punished for killing the settlers and wreaking havoc on their lives, however, not in the magnitude that Bacon had ... ...ution-an HTML Project. Accessed on 7 October 2000. Available at http://odur.let.rug.n1/~usa/D/1651-1700/bacon_rebel/berke.htm Mooy, Age. â€Å"Bacon’s Declaration in the Name of the People (30 July 1676)†, The American Revolution-an HTML Project. Accessed on 7 October 2000. Available at http://odur.let.rug.n1/~us/D/1651-1700/bacon_rebel/bacon.htm Washburn, Wilcomb E. The Governor and The Rebel: A History of Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia. North Carolina: The University of North Carolina Press, 1957. Webb, Stephen Saunders. 1676: The End of American Independence. New York: Alfred A. Knopf Inc., 1984. Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson. Torchbearer of the Revolution: The Story of Bacon’s Rebellion and its Leader. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1940. William & Mary College Historical Magazine. Vol. 9, Issue I. (July, 1900) Bacon's Rebellion Essay -- American History Nathaniel Bacon Papers Bacon's Rebellion Sometimes there comes an event in American History in which no one knows exactly why it happened. What the motives of the event were are left to the interpretation of the historian doing the research. Bacon’s Rebellion in 1676 was on such event. Wilcomb E. Washburn’s view is precise when he states, â€Å" Bacon’s Rebellion. . .was an event on which observers could agree on the facts, but divide on the interpretation.† Historians have been picking into peoples’ accounts and versions of the legend for over 3 centuries, but never coming to a common conclusion. One fact is for sure and that is that the rebellion, known as Bacon’s, was what was going to pave the way towards Revolution of British Authority. In this paper I will look at one aspect that I feel was the motivation behind one individual's defiance to authority and the need to take matters regarding Indian relations into his own hands. Bacon was the kind of person to take what he thought was right into his own hands, even if it meant that he was breaking the law. In his eyes he was doing right and if he did not have the official support, he was going to do it anyway. On the other side was the feeble and zealous Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkeley. The Rebellion was also called, â€Å" the first protest against royal authority in America.† Sir William Berkeley was the second cousin of Bacon. Not wanting for the relations with the Indians to deteriorate, Berkeley did not thirst for an all out war in order to control the growing Indian crisis. He believed that the Indians should be punished for killing the settlers and wreaking havoc on their lives, however, not in the magnitude that Bacon had ... ...ution-an HTML Project. Accessed on 7 October 2000. Available at http://odur.let.rug.n1/~usa/D/1651-1700/bacon_rebel/berke.htm Mooy, Age. â€Å"Bacon’s Declaration in the Name of the People (30 July 1676)†, The American Revolution-an HTML Project. Accessed on 7 October 2000. Available at http://odur.let.rug.n1/~us/D/1651-1700/bacon_rebel/bacon.htm Washburn, Wilcomb E. The Governor and The Rebel: A History of Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia. North Carolina: The University of North Carolina Press, 1957. Webb, Stephen Saunders. 1676: The End of American Independence. New York: Alfred A. Knopf Inc., 1984. Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson. Torchbearer of the Revolution: The Story of Bacon’s Rebellion and its Leader. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1940. William & Mary College Historical Magazine. Vol. 9, Issue I. (July, 1900)

Dispositional Optimism Essay -- Psychology, Behaviorism

Behaviorism is an essential part of our daily lives since it reflects how we learn and deal with varying circumstances. Schacter, Gilbert and Wegner (2011) states that behaviorism restricts psychologists to focus purely on observable behavior; it rejects the emphasis of the conscious and unconscious mind (p. 16). Ivan Pavlov, who was a Russian physiologist, discovered this concept when he researched the role that saliva played on digestion. In his experiment, he gave the dogs’ meat powder to see how they would salivate to it. After a while, he noticed that the dogs’ salivated even before he gave them food; if the dogs’ saw the white lab coat, put in the harness, hear the sound of a buzzer, or the ringing of a bell. He then concluded that these dogs’ were learning from the environment, which at first, they thought was an annoyance, leading Pavlov to the classical conditioning process - which says that we learn through pairings and association ( Ryan, G. (2013) Lectures on Learning. Personal Collection of G. Ryan, Suffolk County Community College, Brentwood NY). Another advocate of behaviorism was John B. Watson, who wanted to demonstrate that even sophisticated behaviors such as emotion are subject to classical conditioning. Watson conducted a study known as â€Å"Little Albert,† where he taught the infant to fear the white rat, which was originally a neutral stimulus. Every time the rat appeared, he would bang two metal pipes together to scare the infant. Consequently, it resulted to â€Å"Little Albert† to fear similar objects to the rat- known as stimulus generalization, and in this case, it was a broad selection of animals. However, according to the authors Schacter, Gilbert, and Wegner (2011) classical conditioning stu... ...the end, you are the only one who can truly put you in the dark. Moreover, you, yourself, are the one who can take you out of your darkness. References Brodhagen, A., Wise, D. (2008). Optimism as a Mediator Between the Experience of Child Abuse, Other Traumatic Events, and Distress. Journal Of Family Violence, 23(6), 403-411 Brunk, L., Hirsch, J. K., LaLonde, S. M., Morris, A. P., and Wolford, K., 2007 (2007). Dispositional Optimism as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Negative Life Events and Suicide Ideation and Attempts. Cognitive Therapy & Research, 31(4), 533- 546. Ryan, G. (2013) Lectures on Learning. Personal Collection of G. Ryan, Suffolk County Community College, Brentwood NY Schacter, D. L., Gilbert, D.T., and Wegner, D.M., (2011). Learning (p. 16 and 177). Psychology (Second Edition). New York, N.Y: Worth Publishers.

Module 4 Website Review

The website enTarga.com is a website offering consultancy services for the strategic planning for the business of the future. This website is owned by ROSS A. WIRTH who is acclaimed professional and academician. This website offers consultancy services for the change management within any organization of any size. It works â€Å"to support the development of internal expertise to develop a culture that is conducive to organizational learning and change processes. (enTarga.com)† Website Review: This website is excellent in its content and very simple to use and maintain. The home page has clearly defined sections under name Organisational Change, Strategic Planning, HR Planning, Marketing Planning and organisational complexity. The mission of the website as appeared on the home page is as follows: â€Å"Helping organizations establish change processes that align with their unique culture and business needs – enabling the adaptive business of the future.   Harnessing the power of organizational learning and self-leadership for emergent organizational change with strategic visioning providing the collective purpose.   Turning theory into practice; working today to build the organization of the future.   This is our mission.† It offers white papers and other source materials for the users. These materials are well organized and written. The website offers interactivity through Yahoo Groups. There are different Yahoo Groups made for different topics and people can interact, discuss and solve there issues. These groups are active and involvement of Ross Writ makes it interesting and interactive. These groups have no national, academic or industrial boundaries. Anyone who is interested in the relevant topic can register himself and become member of the group. The process is simple and has better chances of attracting people of like minds. As defined on the website enTarga has its unique meaning. It is as follows: En- to make; cause to be made to resemble. Targa- A type of shield carried on the forearm for protection, related to target â€Å"Look and feel† and apparent target audience The look and feel of the website is very simple, rather below average, but the content of website makes it much better than any other website with excellent look and no content. However if more efforts are done towards improving the look of website, it will attract more audience. Search Engine optimization and similar strategies will also help in increasing popularity of the website. So far it seems to be attracting people on the word of mouth basis. This website provides me loads of information without any requirement of being member or paying anything. Apart from this the permission to use the material published on the website and acknowledging the author (Ross Writ) is another attractive feature. The site does not have any commercial feel in it; rather it looks as a pure academic website. On the Organisational Change page ChangeAgent yahoo group is available for the viewers to participate in the relevant discussions. This webpage introduces the viewer to the organisational change process. It provides information on the change agents, resistance to change, points of leverage and organisation culture with respect to change. It also offers another link to the resources of organisational change. The resources available are of free of cost. Strategic Planning webpage provides information on the Strategic planning process in any organisation. It gives information on benefits, pitfalls, implementation problems and key influencing factors as separate web links. It provides information on the Steps in the strategic planning process, business performance management and offers other planning resources on the website as different links. The yahoo group for this section is OrgComplexity. The third web link is HR Planning. Here viewer gets information on Human resource issues, employee engagement, and strategic readiness of the organisation, Balanced Scorecard (BSC) and resources for human resource planning. This also has a yahoo group named ChangeAgent as its discussion list. Marketing Planning provides information on customer analysis, marketing strategy questions, planning resources on the internet, associated marketing topics like Integrated marketing communications, relationship marketing, brand marketing topics on the internet, creating a brand strategy and development guidelines for internet marketing. The yahoo discussion group for the website is ChangeAgent. Organisational Complexity provides information on organisational complexity and related issues. The yahoo discussion group for the same is OrgComplexity. Apart from the above mentioned main categories of strategy information, it also has Knowledge Management & Organizational Learning as a separate webpage that provides information on knowledge management, barriers, Requirements for spreading a best practice across the organization, organisational learning and other resources. The yahoo groups are active and have different members fro across the world. The groups initiate different topics for discussions. Anytime any member joins a new group receives a welcome.doc which contains welcome message and the current topic of discussion and requests the new member to introduce himself to the group. Once the member posts his message the message is moderated in the prohibition period. This is done in order to control spamming and spammers. Once the new member proves his authenticity, he participates in the group discussion and information sharing without any restrictions. Conclusion It will not be appropriate to criticise this website with such comprehensive and well written content for the looks and feel. But it will be an excellent website if some efforts are done to improve its look. Being a management professional I find it really useful for my continuous education and improvement and helpful in getting support in the form of suggestions in the yahoo groups. For me the attractiveness of this website is the active yahoo groups. Any new article published on the website will be notified in the yahoo groups. This will keep the members informed. If interested, members can visit the website for reading the article free of cost. This makes the website interactive and keeps the users engage in the activities. There are various issues on the day to day problems of business world. Many a time individuals do not get any kind of platform or experienced people to guide them. The information available on the website deals with various issues that can help individuals to handle particular situations and take appropriate actions. This attractiveness is unique selling proposition for the website and this will attract me to go back to the website again and again. Reference: Lisa Hoecklin. (1995).Managing Cultural Differences: Strategies for Competitive Advantage. Wokingham:Addison-Wesley Publisher Ltd. Levitt, T. (1983), The Marketing imagination, New York, The Free Press Mà ¶ller, K. and Wilson, D. (1995), Business Marketing: An Interaction and Network Perspective. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell.   

Japanese Music Essay

There are two forms of music recognized to be the oldest forms of traditional Japanese music. They are shÃ… myÃ…  (Ã¥ £ °Ã¦ËœÅ½ or è  ²Ã¦ËœÅ½?), or Buddhist chanting, and gagaku (é›…æ ¥ ½?) or orchestral court music, both of which date to the Nara and Heian periods.[citation needed] Gagaku is a type of classical music that has been performed at the Imperial court since the Heian period[citation needed]. Kagura-uta (ç ¥Å¾Ã¦ ¥ ½Ã¦ ­Å'), Azuma-asobi(æ  ±Ã© Å ) and Yamato-uta (Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¥â€™Å'æ ­Å') are indigenous repertories. TÃ… gaku (å” Ã¦ ¥ ½) and komagaku originated from the Chinese Tang dynasty via the Korean peninsula[citation needed]. In addition, gagaku is divided into kangen (ç ® ¡Ã¥ ¼ ¦) (instrumental music) and bugaku (舞æ ¥ ½) (dance accompanied by gagaku). Originating as early as the 13th century are honkyoku (æÅ" ¬Ã¦â€º ² â€Å"original pieces†). These are single (solo) shakuhachi (Ã¥ ° ºÃ¥â€¦ «) pieces played by mendicant Fuke sect priests o f Zen buddhism[citation needed]. These priests, called komusÃ…  (â€Å"emptiness monk†), played honkyoku for alms and enlightenment. The Fuke sect ceased to exist in the 19th century, but a verbal and written lineage of many honkyoku continues today, though this music is now often practiced in a concert or performance setting.[citation needed] The samurai often listened to and performed in these music activities, in their practices of enriching their lives and understanding[citation needed]. Traditional music[edit source | editbeta] Biwa hÃ… shi, Heike biwa, mÃ… sÃ… , and goze[edit source | editbeta] The biwa (ç  µÃ§  ¶ – Chinese: pipa), a form of short-necked lute, was played by a group of itinerant performers (biwa hÃ… shi) (ç  µÃ§  ¶Ã¦ ³â€¢Ã¥ ¸ «) who used it to accompany stories.[citation needed] The most famous of these stories is The Tale of the Heike, a 12th-century history of the triumph of the Minamoto clan over the Taira[citation needed]. Biwa hÃ… shi began organizing themselves into a guild-like association (tÃ… dÃ… ) for visually impaired men as early as the thirteenth century. This guild eventually controlled a large portion of the musical culture of Japan.[citation needed] In addition, numerous smaller groups of itinerant blind musicians were formed especially in the Kyushu area[citation needed]. These musicians, known as mÃ… sÃ…  (ç› ²Ã¥Æ' § blind monk) toured their local areas and performed a variety of religious and semi-religious texts to purify households and bring about good health and good luck. They also maintained a repertory of secular genres. The biwa that they played was considerably smaller than the Heike biwa (Ã¥ ¹ ³Ã¥ ® ¶Ã§  µÃ§  ¶) played by the biwa hÃ… shi.[citation needed] Lafcadio Hearn related in his book Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things â€Å"Mimi-nashi Hoichi† (Hoichi the Earless), a Japanese ghost story about a blind biwa hÃ… shi who performs â€Å"The Tale of the Heike† Blind women, known as goze (çž ½Ã¥ ¥ ³), also toured the land since the medieval era, singing songs and playing accompanying music on a lap drum.[citation needed] From the seventee nth century they often played the koto or the shamisen. Goze organizations sprung up throughout the land, and existed until recently in what is today Niigata prefecture.[citation needed] Taiko[edit source | editbeta] Taiko performing The taiko is a Japanese drum that comes in various sizes and is used to play a variety of musical genres.[citation needed] It has become particularly popular in recent years as the central instrument of percussion ensembles whose repertory is based on a variety of folk and festival music of the past. Such taiko music is played by large drum ensembles called kumi-daiko. Its origins are uncertain, but can be stretched out as far back as the 7th centuries, when a clay figure of a drummer indicates its existence. China influences followed, but the instrument and its music remained uniquely Japanese.[5] Taiko drums during this period were used during battle to intimidate the enemy and to communicate commands. Taiko continue to be used in the religious music of Buddhism and ShintÃ… . In the past players were holy men, who played only at special occasions and in small groups, but in time secular men (rarely women) also played the taiko in semi-religious festivals such as the bon dance. Mod ern ensemble taiko is said to have been invented by Daihachi Oguchi in 1951[citation needed]. A jazz drummer, Oguchi incorporated his musical background into large ensembles, which he had also designed. His energetic style made his group popular throughout Japan, and made the Hokuriku region a center for taiko music. Musicians to arise from this wave of popularity included Sukeroku Daiko and his bandmate Seido Kobayashi. 1969 saw a group called Za Ondekoza founded by Tagayasu Den; Za Ondekoza gathered together young performers who innovated a new roots revival version of taiko, which was used as a way of life in communal lifestyles. During the 1970s, the Japanese government allocated funds to preserve Japanese culture, and many community taiko groups were formed. Later in the century, taiko groups spread across the world, especially to the United States. The video game Taiko Drum Master is based around taiko. One example of a modern Taiko band is Gocoo. Min’yÃ…  folk music[edit source | editbeta] A Japanese folkswoman with hershamisen, 1904 Main article: Min’yÃ…  Japanese folk songs (min’yÃ… ) can be grouped and classified in many ways but it is often convenient to think of four main categories: work songs, religious songs (such as sato kagura, a form of Shintoist music), songs used for gatherings such as weddings, funerals, and festivals (matsuri, especially Obon), and children’s songs (warabe uta). In min’yÃ… , singers are typically accompanied by the three-stringed lute known as the shamisen, taiko drums, and a bamboo flute called shakuhachi. Other instruments that could accompany are a transverse flute known as the shinobue, a bell known as kane, a hand drum called the tsuzumi, and/or a 13-stringed zither known as the koto. In Okinawa, the main instrument is the sanshin. These are traditional Japanese instruments, but modern instrumentation, such as electric guitars and synthesizers, is also used in this day and age, when enka singers cover traditional min’yÃ…  songs (Enkabeing a Japanese music genre all its own).[6] (For a detailed English-language study of all aspects of min’yÃ… , see the 395-page book by David Hughes.)[6] Terms often heard when speaking about min’yÃ…  are ondo, bushi, bon uta, and komori uta. An ondo generally describes any folk song with a distinctive swing that may be heard as 2/4 time rhythm (though performers usually do not group beats). The typical folk song heard at Obon festival dances will most likely be an ondo. A fushi is a song with a distinctive melody. Its very name, which is pronounced â€Å"bushi† in compounds, means â€Å"melody† or â€Å"rhythm.† The word is rarely used on its own, but is usually prefixed by a term referring to occupation, location, personal name or the like. Bon uta, as the name describes, are songs for Obon, the lantern festival of the dead. Komori uta are children’s lullabies. The names of min’yo songs often include descriptive term, usually at the end. For example: Tokyo Ondo, Kushimoto Bushi, Hokkai Bon Uta, and Itsuki no Komoriuta. Many of these songs include extra stress on certain syllables as well as pitched shouts (kakegoe). Kakegoe are generally shouts of cheer but inmin’yÃ… , they are often included as parts of choruses. There are many kakegoe, though they vary from region to region. In Okinawa Min’yÃ… , for example, one will hear the common â€Å"ha iya sasa!† In mainland Japan, however, one will be more likely to hear â€Å"a yoisho!,† â€Å"sate!,† or â€Å"a sore!† Others ar e â€Å"a donto koi!,† and â€Å"dokoisho!† Recently a guild-based system known as the iemoto system has been applied to some forms of min’yÃ… ; it is called. This system was originally developed for transmitting classical genres such as nagauta, shakuhachi, or koto music, but since it proved profitable to teachers and was supported by students who wished to obtain certificates of proficiency and artist’s names continues to spread to genres such as min’yÃ… , Tsugaru-jamisen and other forms of music that were traditionally transmitted more informally. Today some min’yÃ…  are passed on in such pseudo-family organizations and long apprenticeships are common. See also Ainu music of north Japan. Okinawan folk music[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Ryukyuan music Umui, religious songs, shima uta, dance songs, and, especially kachÄ shÄ «, lively celebratory music, were all popular. Okinawan folk music varies from mainland Japanese folk music in several ways. First, Okinawan folk music is often accompanied by the sanshin whereas in mainland Japan, the shamisen accompanies instead. Other Okinawan instruments include the sanba (which produce a clicking sound similar to that of castanets), taiko and a sharp finger whistling called yubi-bue (æÅ'‡ç ¬â€º?). Second, tonality. A pentatonic scale, which coincides with the major pentatonic scale of Western musical disciplines, is often heard in min’yÃ…  from the main islands of Japan, see minyÃ…  scale. In this pentatonic scale the subdominant and leading tone (scale degrees 4 and 7 of the Western major scale) are omitted, resulting in a musical scale with no half-steps between each note. (Do, Re, Mi, So, La in solfeggio, or scale degrees 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6) Okinawan min’yÃ… , however, is characterized by scales that include the half-steps omitted in the aforementioned pentatonic scale, when analyzed in the Western discipline of music. In fact, the most common scale used in Okinawan min’yÃ…  includes scale degrees 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, Traditional instruments[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Traditional Japanese musical instruments * Biwa (ç  µÃ§  ¶) * Fue (ç ¬â€º) * Hichiriki (ç ¯ ³Ã§ ¯ ¥) * Hocchiku (æ ³â€¢Ã§ « ¹) * HyÃ… shigi (æ‹ Ã¥ ­ Ã¦Å" ¨) * Kane (é Ëœ) * Kakko (éž ¨Ã© ¼â€œ) * KokyÃ… « (èÆ' ¡Ã¥ ¼â€œ) * Koto (ç  ´) * Niko (ä ºÅ'èÆ' ¡) * Okawa (AKA Ã…Å'tsuzumi) (Ã¥ ¤ §Ã© ¼â€œ) * RyÃ… «teki (ç «Å"ç ¬â€º) * Sanshin (ä ¸â€°Ã§ ·Å¡) * Shakuhachi (bamboo flute) (Ã¥ ° ºÃ¥â€¦ «) * Shamisen　 (ä ¸â€°Ã¥â€˜ ³Ã§ ·Å¡) * Shime-Daiko (ç ·  Ã¥ ¤ ªÃ© ¼â€œ) * Shinobue (ç ¯  Ã§ ¬â€º) * ShÃ…  (ç ¬â„¢) * Suikinkutsu (water zither) (æ ° ´Ã§  ´Ã§ ªÅ¸) * Taiko (i.e. Wadaiko)Ã¥ ¤ ªÃ© ¼â€œÃ¯ ½Å¾Ã¥â€™Å'Ã¥ ¤ ªÃ© ¼â€œ * Tsuzumi (é ¼â€œ) (AKA Kotsuzumi) ————————————————- Arrival of Western music[edit source | editbeta] Traditional pop music[edit source | editbeta] Main articles: RyÃ… «kÃ… ka, KayÃ… kyoku, and Enka After the Meiji Restoration introduced Western musical instruction, a bureaucrat named Izawa Shuji compiled songs like â€Å"Auld Lang Syne† and commissioned songs using a pentatonicmelody.[citation needed] Western music, especially military marches, soon became popular in Japan.[citation needed] Two major forms of music that developed during this period were shoka, which was composed to bring western music to schools, and gunka, which are military marches with some Japanese elements..[citation needed] As Japan moved towards representative democracy in the late 19th century, leaders hired singers to sell copies of songs that aired their messages, since the leaders themselves were usually prohibited from speaking in public. The street performers were called enka-shi.[citation needed] Also at the end of the 19th century, an Osakan form of streetcorner singing became popular; this was called rÃ… kyoku. This included the first two Japanese stars, Yoshida Naramaru and Tochuken Kum oemon..[citation needed] Ichiro Fujiyama, influentialryÃ… «kÃ… ka singer Westernized pop music is called kayÃ… kyoku, which is said to have and first appeared in a dramatization of Resurrection by Tolstoy. The song â€Å"KachÃ… «sha no Uta†, composed by Shinpei Nakayama, was sung by Sumako Matsui in 1914. The song became a hit among enka-shi, and was one of the first major best-selling records in Japan.[citation needed] . RyÃ… «kÃ… ka, which adopted Western classical music, made waves across the country in the prewar period..[citation needed] Ichiro Fujiyamabecame popular in the prewar period, but war songs later became popular when the World War II occurred..[citation needed] KayÃ… kyoku became a major industry, especially after the arrival of superstar Misora Hibari.[citation needed] In the 1950s, tango and other kinds of Latin music, especially Cuban music, became very popular in Japan.[citation needed] A distinctively Japanese form of tango called dodompa also developed. KayÃ… kyoku became associated entirely with traditional Japanese struc tures, while more Western-style music was called Japanese pop ( or simply ‘JPop’).[citation needed] Enka music, adopting Japanese traditional structures, became quite popular in the postwar period, though its popularity has waned since the 1970s and enjoys little favour with contemporary youth.[citation needed] Famous enka singers include Hibari Misora, Saburo Kitajima, Ikuzo Yoshi and Kiyoshi Hikawa. Art music[edit source | editbeta] Western classical music[edit source | editbeta] Western classical music has a strong presence in Japan and the country is one of the most important markets for this music tradition.[citation needed], with Toru Takemitsu (famous as well for his avant-garde works and movie scoring) being the best known.[citation needed] Also famous is the conductor Seiji Ozawa. Since 1999 the pianist Fujiko Hemming, who plays Liszt and Chopin, has been famous and her CDs have sold millions of copies.[citation needed] Japan is also home to the world’s leading wind band.[citation needed], the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra, and the largest music competition of any kind, the All-Japan Band Association national contest.[citation needed] Western classical music does not represent Japan’s original culture. The Japanese were first exposed to it in the second half of the 19th century, after more than 200 years of national isolation during the Edo Period.[citation needed] But after that, Japanese studied classical music earnestly to make it a part of their own artistic culture. Orchestras * Gunma Symphony Orchestra * Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra * Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra * Japan Philharmonic Orchestra * Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra * Kyoto Symphony Orchestra * Kyushu Symphony Orchestra * Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra * New Japan Philharmonic * NHK Symphony Orchestra * Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa * Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra * Sapporo Symphony Orchestra * Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra * Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra * Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra * Tokyo Symphony Orchestra * Yamagata Symphony Orchestra * Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra Composers * RentarÃ…  Taki (1879–1903) * Kosaku Yamada (1886–1965) * Kiyoshi Nobutokiï ¼Ë†1887-1965ï ¼â€° * Yasuji Kiyose (1900–1981) * Masao Ohki (1901–1971) * SaburÃ…  Moroi (1903–1977) * Kunihiko Hashimoto (1904–1949) * TomojirÃ…  Ikenouchi (1906–1991) * Yoritsune Matsudaira (1907–2001) * Hisato Ohzawa (1907–1953) * ShirÃ…  Fukai (1907–1959) * Hisatada Otaka (1911–1951) * Akira Ifukube (1914–2006) * Fumio Hayasaka (1914–1955) * Minao Shibata (1916-1996) * YoshirÃ…  Irino (1921-1980) * Sadao Bekku (1922–2012) * Ikuma Dan (1924–2001) * Yasushi Akutagawa (1925–1989) * Roh Ogura (1926–1990) * Joji Yuasa (born 1929) * Toshiro Mayuzumi (1929–1997) * Akio Yashiro (1929–1976) * Teizo Matsumura (1929–2007) * Toru Takemitsu (1930–1996) * Makoto Moroi (born 1930) * Hikaru Hayashi (1931–2012) * Yuzo Toyama (born 1931) * Akira Miyoshi (born 1933) * Toshi Ichiyanagi (born 1933) * Maki Ishii (1936–2003) * Shigeaki Saegusa (born 1942) * Shin-ichiro Ikebe (born 1943) * Takashi Yoshimatsu (born 1953) * Akira Nishimura (born 1953) * Toshio Hosokawa (born 1955) Jazz[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Japanese jazz From the 1930s on (except during World War II, when it was repressed as music of the enemy)[citation needed] jazz has had a strong presence in Japan.[citation needed] The country is an important market for the music, and it is common that recordings unavailable in the United States or Europe are available there. A number of Japanese jazz musicians have achieved popularity abroad as well as at home.[citation needed] Musicians such as June (born in Japan) and Dan (third generation American born, of Hiroshima fame), and Sadao Watanabe have a large fan base outside their native country. Lately, club jazz or nu-jazz has become popular with a growing number of young Japanese.[citation needed] Native DJs such as Ryota Nozaki (Jazztronik), the two brothers Okino Shuya andOkino Yoshihiro of Kyoto Jazz Massive, Toshio Matsuura (former member of the United Future Organization) and DJ Shundai Matsuo creator of the popular monthly DJ event, Creole inBeppu, Japan as well as nu-jazz artists, Sleepw alker, GrooveLine, and Soil & â€Å"Pimp† Sessions have brought great change to the traditional notions of jazz in Japan. Some of the newer bands include Ego-Wrappin’ and Sakerock along with more experimental musicians such as Otomo Yoshihide and Keiji Haino. ————————————————- Popular music[edit source | editbeta] J-Pop[edit source | editbeta] Main article: J-pop J-pop, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a loosely defined musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s pop and rock music, such as The Beatles, which led to bands such as Happy End fusing rock with Japanese music.[7] J-pop was further defined by Japanese New Wave bands such as Yellow Magic Orchestra andSouthern All Stars in the late 1970s.[8] Eventually, J-pop replaced kayÃ… kyoku (â€Å"Lyric Singing Music†, a term for Japanese pop music from the 1920s to the 1980s) in the Japanese music scene.[9]The term was coined by the Japanese media to distinguish Japanese music from foreign music. Dance and disco music[edit source | editbeta] Further information: Eurobeat and Para Para Momoiro Clover Z is known for its innovative dance performances.[10] In 1984, American musician Michael Jackson’s album Thriller became the first album by a Western artist to sell over one million copies in Japanese Oricon charts history.[11] His style is cited as one of the models for Japanese dance music, leading the popularity of Avex Group andJohnny & Associates.[12] In 1990, Avex Trax began to release the Super Eurobeat series in Japan. Eurobeat in Japan led the popularity of group dance form Para Para. While Avex’s artists such as Every Little Thing and Ayumi Hamasaki became popular in 1990s, new names in the late 90s included Hikaru Utadaand Morning Musume. Hikaru Utada’s debut album, First Love, went on to be the highest-selling album in Japan with over 7 million copies sold, whereas Ayumi Hamasaki became Japan’s top selling female and solo artist, and Morning Musume remains one of the most well-known girl groups in the Japanese pop music industry. Momoiro Clover Z is known for its energetic dance performances. They are heavily choreographed and feature acrobatic stunts.[13] The energetic performances also incorporate elements of ballet, gymnastics, and action movies.[14] Although the girls’ voices are not very stable when coupled with an intense dance, they never lipsynch.[15] A 2013 survey shows that Momoiro Clover Z attracts the highest level of interest of all the femaleidol groups in Japan.[16] Rock[edit source | editbeta] In the 1960s, Japanese rock music bands imitated Western rock musicians such as The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and the Rolling Stones, along with other Appalachian folk music, psychedelic rock,mod and similar genres; this was called Group Sounds (G.S.). John Lennon of The Beatles later became one of most popular Western musicians in Japan.[17] Group Sounds is a genre of Japanese rock music that was popular in the mid to late 1960s.[citation needed] After the boom of Group Sounds, there were several influential singer-songwriters. Nobuyasu Okabayashi was the first who became widely recognized.[citation needed] Wataru Takada, inspired by Woody Guthrie, also became popular.[citation needed]. They both were influenced by American folk music but wrote Japanese lyrics. Takada used modern Japanese poetry as lyrics, while Kazuki Tomokawa made an album using Chuya Nakahara’s poems. Tomobe Masato, inspired by Bob Dylan, wrote critically acclaimed lyrics.[citation needed] The Tigers was the most popular Group Sounds band in the era. Later, some of the members of The Tigers, The Tempters and The Spiders formed the first Japanese supergroup Pyg. Homegrown Japanese folk rock had developed by the late 1960s.[citation needed] Artists like Happy End are considered to have virtually developed the genre. During the 1970s, it grew more popular.[citation needed] The Okinawan band Champloose, along with Carol (led by Eikichi Yazawa), RC Succession and Shinji Harada were especially famous and helped defin e the genre’s sound. Sometimes also beginning in the late sixties, but mostly active in the seventies, are musicians mixing rock music with American-style folk and pop elements, usually labelled â€Å"folk† by the Japanese because of their regular use of the acoustic guitar. This includes bands like Off Course, Tulip, Alice (led by Shinji Tanimura), Kaguyahime, Banban, and Garo. Solo artists of the same movement include Yosui Inoue, Yuming, and Iruka. Later groups, like Kai Band (led by Yoshihiro Kai) and early Southern All Stars, are often attached to the same movement. Yellow Magic Orchestra in 2008 Several Japanese musicians began experimenting with electronic rock in the early 1970s. The most notable was the internationally renowned Isao Tomita, whose 1972 album Electric Samurai: Switched on Rock featured electronic synthesizer renditions of contemporary rock and pop songs.[18] Other early examples of electronic rock records include Inoue Yousui’s folk rock and pop rock album Ice World (1973) and Osamu Kitajima’s progressive psychedelic rockalbum Benzaiten (1974), both of which involved contributions from Haruomi Hosono,[19][20] who later started the electronic music group â€Å"Yellow Magic Band† (later known as Yellow Magic Orchestra) in 1977.[21] Most influentially, the 1970s spawned the electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra, led by Haruomi Hosono. In the 1980s, Boà ¸wy inspired alternative rock bands like Shonen Knife, Boredoms, The Pillows and Tama & Little Creatures as well as more mainstream bands as Glay. In 1980, Huruoma and Ry Cooder, an American musician, collaborated on a rock album with Shoukichi Kina, driving force behind the aforementioned Okinawan band Champloose. They were followed by Sandii & the Sunsetz, who further mixed Japanese and Okinawan influences. Also during the 80s, Japanese metal and rock bands gave birth to the movement known as visual kei, represented during its history by bands like X Japan, Buck-Tick, Luna Sea,Malice Mizer and many others, some of which experienced national, and international success in the latest years. In the 1990s, Japanese rock musicians such as B’z, Mr. Children, Glay, Southern All Stars, L’Arc-en-Ciel, Tube, Spitz, Wands, T-Bolan, Judy and Mary, Asian Kung–Fu Generation, Field of View, Deen, Ulfuls, Lindberg, Sharam Q, The Yellow Monkey, The Brilliant Green an d Dragon Ash achieved great commercial success.[citation needed] B’z is the #1 best selling act in Japanese music since Oricon started to count.[citation needed], followed by Mr. Children.[citation needed] In the ’90s, pop songs were often used in films, anime, television advertisement and dramatic programming, becoming some of the best-selling forms of music in Japan.[citation needed] The rise of disposable pop has been linked with the popularity of karaoke, leading to criticism that it is consumerist: Kazufumi Miyazawa of The Boom said â€Å"I hate that buy, listen, and throw away and sing at a karaoke bar mentality.† Of the visual kei bands Luna Sea, whose members toned down their on-stage attire with on-going success, was either very successful, while Malice Mizer, La’cryma Christi, Shazna, Janne Da Arc, and Fanatic Crisis also achieved commercial success in the late ’90s.[citation needed] Green Stage of the Fuji Rock Festival The first Fuji Rock Festival opened in 1997. Rising Sun Rock Festival opened in 1999. Summer Sonic Festival and Rock in Japan Festival opened in 2000. Though the rock scene in the 2000s is not as strong, newer bands such as Bump of Chicken, Sambomaster, Flow, Orange Range, Remioromen,Uverworld, Radwimps and Aqua Timez, which are considered rock bands, have achieved success. Orange Range also adopts[clarification needed] hip hop. Established bands as B’z, Mr. Children, Glay, and L’Arc-en-Ciel also continue to top charts, though B’z and Mr. Children are the only bands to maintain a high standards of their sales along the years. Japanese rock has a vibrant underground rock scene,[citation needed] best known internationally for noise rock bands such as Boredoms and Melt Banana, as well as stoner rock bands such as Boris and alternative acts such as Shonen Knife (who were championed in the West by Kurt Cobain),Pizzicato Five and The Pillows (who gained international attention in 1999 for the FLCL soundtrack). More conventional indie rock artists such asEastern Youth, The Band Apart and Number Girl have found some success in Japan[citation needed], but little recognition outside of their home country. Other notable international touring indie rock acts are Mono and Nisennenmondai. Punk rock / alternative[edit source | editbeta] Further information: Japanese hardcore Early examples of punk rock in Japan include SS, The Star Club, The Stalin, Inu, Gaseneta, Bomb Factory, Lizard (who were produced by the Stranglers) and Friction (whose guitarist Reck had previously played with Teenage Jesus and the Jerks before returning to Tokyo) and The Blue Hearts. The early punk scene was immortalized on film by Sogo Ishii, who directed the 1982 film Burst City featuring a cast of punk bands/musicians and also filmed videos for The Stalin. In the 80s, hardcore bands such as GISM, Gauze, Confuse, Lip Cream and Systematic Death began appearing, some incorporating crossover elements.[citation needed] The independent scene also included a diverse number of alternative/post-punk/new wave artists such as Aburadako, P-Model,Uchoten, Auto-Mod, Buck-Tick, Guernica and Yapoos (both of which featured Jun Togawa), G-Schmitt, Totsuzen Danball and Jagatara, along with noise/industrial bands such as Hijokaidan andHanatarashi. Ska-punk bands of the late nineties extending in t he years 2000 include Shakalabbits and 175R (pronounced â€Å"inago rider†). Heavy metal[edit source | editbeta] Japan is known for being a successful area for metal bands touring around the world and many live albums are recorded in Japan. Notable examples are Judas Priest’s Unleashed in the East, Iron Maiden’s Maiden Japan, Deep Purple’s Made in Japan and Dream Theater’s Live at Budokan. From the international bands, such as Angra, Sonata Arctica and Skylark especially with their singerKiara Laetitia have had major success in Japan.[citation needed] Japanese heavy metal bands started emerging in the late 1970s, pioneered by bands like Bow Wow, formed in 1975 by guitarist Kyoji Yamamoto, and Loudness, formed in 1981 by guitarist Akira Takasaki. Although there existed other contemporary bands, like Earthshaker, Anthem and 44 Magnum, their debut albums were released only around the mid eighties when metal bands started getting a major exposure. First oversease live performances were by Bow Wow in 1978 in Hong Kong and at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, as well played at the Reading Festival inEngland in 1982.[22] In 1983, Loudness toured United States and Europe, and started focusing more on an international career. In 1985, the first Japanese metal act was signed to a major label in th e United States. Their albums Thunder in the East and Lightning Strikes, released in 1985 and 1986, peaked at number 74 (while number 4 in homeland Oricon chart), and number 64 in theBillboard 200 charts respectively.[23][24] Till the end of the eightes only two other bands, Ezo and Dead End, got their albums released in the United States. In the eighties few bands had a female members, like all-female band Show-Ya fronted by Keiko Terada, and Terra Rosa with Kazue Akao on vocals. In September 1989, Show-Ya’s album Outerlimits was released, it reached number 3 in the Oricon album chart.[25] Heavy metal bands reached their peak in the late ’80s and many disbanded until the mid-1990s. Concert of pioneer of visual kei, X Japan atHong Kong in 2009 after their 2007 reunion. In 1982, some of the first Japanese glam metal bands were formed, like Seikima-II with Kabuki-inspired makeup, and X Japan who pioneered the Japanese movement known as visual kei, and became the best-selling metal band.[26] In 1985, Seikima-IIs album Seikima-II – Akuma ga Kitarite Heavy Metal was released and although reached number 48 on the Oricon album chart exceeded 100,000 in sales, first time for any Japanese metal band. Their albums charted regularly in the top ten until mid ’90s. In April 1989, X Japans second album Blue Blood was released and went to number 6, and after 108 weeks on charts sold 712,000 copies.[27] Their third and best-selling album Jelaousy was released in July 1991; it topped the charts and sold 1.11 million copies.[27] There were released more two number one studio albums, Art of Life and Dahlia, a singles compilation X Singles, all selling more than half a million,[28] and since the formation had thirteenth top five singles, disbanding in 1997.[29] Extreme metal[edit source | editbeta] Japanese extreme metal bands formed in the wake of American and European wave, but didn’t get any bigger exposure until the ‘90s, and like overseas the genre is usually treated as an underground form of music in Japan.[citation needed] First thrash metal bands formed in the early ’80s, like United, whose music also incorporates death metal elements, and Outrage. United’s first international performance took place in Los Angeles at the metal festival â€Å"Foundations Forum† in September 1995 and had few albums released in North America. Formed in the mid ‘80s, Doom played a gig in the United States in October 1988 at CBGB, and was active until 2000 when disbanded. The first bands to play black metal music were Sabbat, who is still active, and Bellzlleb, who was active until early ‘90s. Another notable act is Sigh. Doom metal has also gained an audience in Japan. The two best-known Japanese doom metal acts are Church of Misery and Boris, b oth of whom have gained considerable popularity outside the country. Hip-Hop[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Japanese hip-hop Hip-hop is a newer form of music on the Japanese music scene. Many felt it was a trend that would immediately pass. However, the genre has lasted for many years and is still thriving. In fact, rappers in Japan did not achieve the success of hip-hop artists in other countries until the late 1980s. This was mainly due to the music world’s belief that â€Å"Japanese sentences were not capable of forming the rhyming effect that was contained in American rappers’ songs.†[30] There is a certain, well-defined structure to the music industry called â€Å"The Pyramid Structure of a Music Scene†. As Ian Condry notes, â€Å"viewing a music scene in terms of a pyramid provides a more nuanced understanding of how to interpret the significance of different levels and kinds of success.†[31] The levels are as follows (from lowest to highest): fans and potential artists, performing artists, recording artists (indies), major label artists, and mega-hit stars. These different levels can be clearly seen at a genba, or nightclub. Different â€Å"families† of rappers perform on stage. A family is essentially a collection of rap groups that are usually headed by one of the more famous Tokyo acts, which also include a number of proteges.[32] They are important because they are â€Å"the key to understanding stylistic differences between groups.†[33] Hip-hop fans in the audience are the ones in control of the night club. They are the judges who determine the winners in rap battles on stage. An example of this can be seen with the battle between rap artists Dabo (a major label artist) andKan (an indie artist). Kan challenged Dabo to a battle on stage while Dabo was mid-performance. Another important part of night clubs was displayed at this time. It showed â€Å"the openness of the scene and the fluidity of boundaries in clubs.†[34] Electropop and club music[edit source | edi tbeta] See also: Electronic music, Synthpop, and Electro music Electronic pop music in Japan became a successful commodity with the â€Å"Technopop† craze of the late 70s and 80s.[citation needed], beginning with Yellow Magic Orchestra and solo albums ofRyuichi Sakamoto and Haruomi Hosono in 1978 before hitting popularity in 1979 and 1980. Influenced by disco, impressionistic and 20th century classical composition, jazz/fusion pop, new wave and technopop artists such as Kraftwerk and Telex, these artists were commercial yet uncompromising.[citation needed] Ryuichi Sakamoto claims that â€Å"to me, making pop music is not a compromise because I enjoy doing it†. The artists that fall under the banner of technopop in Japan are as loose as those that do so in the West, thus new wave bands such as P-Model and The Plastics fall under the category alongside the symphonic techno arrangements of Yellow Magic Orchestra. The popularity of this music meant that many popular artists of the 70s that previously were known for acoustic music turne d to techno production, such as Taeko Onuki and Akiko Yano, and idol producers began employing electronic arrangements for new singers in the 80s.[citation needed] Today, newer artists such as Polysics pay explicit homage to this era of Japanese popular (and in some cases underground or difficult to obtain) music.[citation needed] And the all trio girls band Perfume,who debuted with Tokuma Japan in 2005,are also a techno-pop band, taking on electronic, dance and pop music taking on Auto-Tune, vocoders, and electrohouse upon their signing to a major label. They are currently considered as one of the most popular bands in Japan. Roots music[edit source | editbeta] In the late 1980s, roots bands like Shang Shang Typhoon and The Boom became popular. Okinawan roots bands like Nenes and Kina were also commercially and critically successful. This led to the second wave of Okinawan music, led by the sudden success of Rinkenband. A new wave of bands followed, including the comebacks of Champluse and Kina, as led by Kikusuimaru Kawachiya; very similar to kawachi ondo is Tadamaru Sakuragawa’s goshu ondo. Latin, reggae and ska music[edit source | editbeta] Further information: Japanese reggae and Japanese ska Other forms of music from Indonesia, Jamaica and elsewhere were assimilated. African soukous and Latin music, like Orquesta de la Luz (ã‚ ªÃ£Æ' «Ã£â€š ±Ã£â€š ¹Ã£â€š ¿Ã£Æ' »Ã£Æ'‡ãÆ' »Ã£Æ' ©Ã£Æ' »Ã£Æ' «Ã£â€š ¹), was popular as was Jamaicanreggae and ska, exemplified by Mice Teeth, Mute Beat, La-ppisch, Home Grown and Ska Flames, Determinations, and Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra. Noise music[edit source | editbeta] Main article: Japanoise Another recognized music form from Japan is noise music. The noise from this country is called Japanoise. Its most prominent representative is Masami Akita with his project Merzbow. Theme music[edit source | editbeta] Theme music composed for films, anime, Tokusatsu, and Japanese television dramas are considered a separate music genre. Several prominent musical artists and groups have spent most of their musical careers performing theme songs and composing soundtracks for visual media. Such artists include Masato Shimon (current holder of the world record for most successful single in Japan for â€Å"Oyoge! Taiyaki-kun†),[35] Ichirou Mizuki, all of the members of JAM Project, Akira Kushida, Isao Sasaki, and Mitsuko Horie. Notable composers of Japanese theme music include Joe Hisaishi, Michiru Oshima, Yoko Kanno, Toshihiko Sahashi, Yuki Kajiura, KÃ… tarÃ…  Nakagawa and Yuuki Hayashi. Game music[edit source | editbeta] See also: Video game music, Chiptune, and Bitpop When the first electronic games were sold, they only had rudimentary sound chips with which to produce music. As the technology advanced, the quality of sound and music these game machines could produce increased dramatically. The first game to take credit for its music was Xevious, also noteworthy for its deeply (at that time) constructed stories. Though many games have had beautiful music to accompany their gameplay, one of the most important games in the history of the video game music is Dragon Quest. Koichi Sugiyama, a composer who was known for his music for various anime and TV shows, including Cyborg 009 and a feature film of Godzilla vs. Biollante, got involved in the project out of the pure curiosity and proved that games can have serious soundtracks. Until his involvement, music and sounds were often neglected in the development of video games and programmers with little musical knowledge were forced to write the soundtracks as well. Undaunted by technological limits, Sugi yama worked with only 8 part polyphony to create a soundtrack that would not tire the player despite hours and hours of gameplay. Another well-known author of video game music is Nobuo Uematsu. Even Uematsu’s earlier compositions for the game series, Final Fantasy, on Famicom (Nintendo Entertainment System in America) are being arranged for full orchestral score. In 2003, he even took his rock-based tunes from their original MIDI format and created The Black Mages. Yasunori Mitsuda is a highly known composer of such games as Xenogears, Xenosaga Episode I, Chrono Cross, and Chrono Trigger. Koji Kondo, the main composer for Nintendo, is also prominent on the Japanese game music scene. He is best known for the Zelda and Mario themes. Motoi Sakuraba is also another well-known video game composer. He is known for composing the Tales Series, Dark Souls, Eternal Sonata, Star Ocean, Valkyrie Profile, Golden Sun, and theBaten Kaitos games, as well as numerous Mario Sports games. Yuzo Koshiro is also noted for his work with games, having composed electronic music-influenced soundtracks for games like Revenge of Shinobi and the Streets of Rage series. The techno/trance music production group I’ve Sound has made a name for themselves first by making themes for eroge computer games, and then by breaking into the anime scene by composing themes for them. Unlike others, this group was able to find fans in other parts of the world through their eroge and anime themes. Today, game soundtracks are sold on CD. Famous singers like Hikaru Utada, Nana Mizuki and BoA sometimes sing songs for games as well, and this is also seen as a way for singers to make a names for themselves. ————————————————- See also[edit source | editbeta] * J-pop * Visual kei * All-Japan Band Association * Buddhist music * Chindonya * Enka * Group Sounds * Japanese hardcore * Japanese hip hop * Japanese ska * Japanoise * Oricon * RyÃ… «kÃ… ka * Shibuya-kei * ShintÃ…  music * Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra * List of Japanese rock bands * List of Japanese hip hop musicians * List of J-pop artists * In scale * Voice acting in Japan