Some days ago I found a CD of Beatles Songs played by a Koto-Ensemble. Unfortunately I did not find information about this recording. But this CD contains very interesting arrangements of some of the most popular songs by the Beatles for a koto ensemble.
The koto is the national instrument of Japan. The typical sound of the koto includes harplike arpeggios, vibrato, glissando and even tremolo like on the mandolin.
I have searched for youtube videos with Beatles songs played on koto and I have found the following three videos:
Enjoy the songs of the Beatles played on the koto!
The Beatles_I Feel Fine by Osamu Kitajima 喜多嶋修
Dr. Osamu Kitajima – performing “I Feel Fine” at Japan America Theatre, in Los Angeles 1991 along with Masakazu Yoshizawa, Freddie Ravel, Anjani Thomas, and Hiromitsu Nishikawa.
The Beatle’s Yesterday played on Koto.
(interesting recording, but unfortunately the sound is muted when the camera zooms in or out)
Come Together, Imagine – Sonidos del Japón (Japan Sounds) en Lima
Akira Inoue (Keyboards/Teclado), Masako Kawamura (Koto), Fumiko Waku (Koto), Michie Kobayashi (Koto), Ryozan Sakata (Shakuhachi), Houchi Fukuda (Shakuhachi) y Manuel Miranda (Flauta Traversa).
Grooveshark playlist Koto Ensemble
Previous post about the koto:
Koto – The National Instrument of Japan