"Artistic skill that cannot be appreciated by young people is bound to fade away."
-- Legendary Tsugaru shamisen player Chikuzan Takahashi, in his autobiography, published in 1975
It's one thing to popularize music, but it's another to ensure that it lasts. For the past decade, Shinichi Kinoshita, known as the king of Tsugaru shamisen, has been exploring the never-ending possibilities of this musical style while riding the crest of a veritable shamisen boom.