音楽

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 寝る前にクラシック音楽を聴きます。▶ —
   I listen to classical music before sleeping.
2. 音楽は心を癒してくれます。▶ —
   Music heals the heart.

Collocations

Mnemonic

Ongaku (音楽) is the Sino-Japanese "music" — 音 (sound) + 楽 (joy) = "the joy of sound," capturing music's essence in two characters. Korean eum-ak (音樂) and Chinese 音乐 / yīnyuè share the kanji (China uses simplified 乐 instead of Japanese / Korean 楽). Cluster: J-POP (Japanese pop), J-Rock, anison (anime songs), enka (a Japanese trot, mother of Korean trot), hougaku (邦楽, Japanese music — J-POP, enka, folk songs collectively), yougaku (洋楽, Western music). Global influence: City Pop, the 1980s Japanese urban funk / R&B genre, was rediscovered globally in the 2010s–20s as the sample source for vaporwave and lo-fi hip-hop — Mariya Takeuchi's "Plastic Love" became the iconic viral case. Anison rivals K-pop in global fandom scale. Ongaku kanshou (music appreciation) is the formal term used in Japanese school art / music classes.

Quick check

1. 1980s Japanese genre rediscovered as sample source for global vaporwave / lo-fi hip-hop?

   • City Pop — Japanese urban funk / R&B
   • Enka — trot
   • Anison — anime song
   • J-POP (current mainstream)