The Tokomizu Town Song is sung at town events and school ceremonies. Its three verses describe the water that wells up from Mount Mizufuji and flows through the town in 808 canals, daily life in the town, and the four seasons of the Ukisu.
Recording
Tokomizu Town Song (常水町民歌)（2 min 15 s）
The recording plays sound. Please check your volume.
Lyrics
The lyrics are shown in Japanese, followed by a romanised reading and an English translation. The last two lines of every verse are the same refrain.
- 1
あさひ匂える 水富士のAsahi nioeru / Mizufuji noMizufuji, glowing in the morning sun —
いただき湧ける 真清水はItadaki wakeru / mashimizu wathe pure water welling from its summit
八つの門を くぐりぬけYattsu no mon o / kugurinukepasses through the eight gates
八百八つの 水路なすHappyaku yattsu no / suiro nasuand becomes eight hundred and eight canals.
ああ常水 水の町Aa Tokomizu / mizu no machiO Tokomizu, town of water,
われらの常水 とこしえにWarera no Tokomizu / tokoshie niour Tokomizu, for evermore.
- 2
田筋の稲は 分けあいてTasuji no ine wa / wakeaiteThe rice of Tasuji is shared among us;
金魚は水に 日を集めKingyo wa mizu ni / hi o atsumethe goldfish gather the sun in the water;
暮れれば舟の 屋台にもKurereba fune no / yatai ni moand when dusk falls, even on the food-boats
ともる琥珀の 灯のぬくみTomoru kohaku no / hi no nukumiglows the warmth of amber lamps.
ああ常水 水の町Aa Tokomizu / mizu no machiO Tokomizu, town of water,
われらの常水 とこしえにWarera no Tokomizu / tokoshie niour Tokomizu, for evermore.
- 3
四季をめぐりて 空をゆくShiki o megurite / sora o yukuThrough the four seasons we travel the sky;
天鏡原は 雲うつすTenkyōgen wa / kumo utsusuTenkyōgen mirrors the clouds;
御内の里も 根の町もMiuchi no sato mo / Ne no machi mothe village of Miuchi, and Nenomachi too,
ひとつにつどう 天の水盆Hitotsu ni tsudou / Ama-no-Suibongather as one in the Ama-no-Suibon.
ああ常水 天の水盆Aa Tokomizu / Ama-no-SuibonO Tokomizu, Ama-no-Suibon,
われらの常水 とこしえにWarera no Tokomizu / tokoshie niour Tokomizu, for evermore.
About the Song
| Title | Tokomizu Town Song (常水町民歌, Tokomizu-chō Minka) |
|---|---|
| Lyrics | Sōshū Mizuo (水尾 草舟) |
| Music | Genzō Yaegashi (八重樫 弦三) |
| Vocals | Tokomizu Town Chorus |
| Performance | Ukisu Wind Band |
| Length | About 2 min 15 s |
Sōshū Mizuo, who wrote the lyrics, taught Japanese at an elementary school in Nakamachi and wrote tanka poems and children's songs. Genzō Yaegashi, who wrote the music, was the first bandmaster of the Ukisu Wind Band and also composed many of the town's marches and school songs.
The first verse follows the spring water of Mizufuji through the eight Great Sluices until it becomes the canals. The second sings of daily life in the town, with the rice fields of Tasuji, the goldfish and the canal food-boats. The third sings of the Ukisu travelling through the sky, and of Tenkyōgen, Miuchi and Nenomachi. The last two lines of every verse are sung to the same melody.
Words in the Lyrics
| Mizufuji | The mountain in the middle of the town, from which water wells up. |
|---|---|
| Mashimizu | Pure water that has only just welled up. |
| The eight gates | The eight Great Sluices that divide the water of the Ring Lake among the eight great canals. |
| Eight hundred and eight canals | The 808 canals that run through the town. |
| Tasuji | The district of fields and wooded hills. Farm work is shared out by turns, and the rice is shared (Field duty(Japanese)). |
| Gather the sun | The town's goldfish are power fish that make electricity from sunlight. |
| Tenkyōgen | The “plain” of shallow water, 15 km wide, around the land. |
| Miuchi, Nenomachi | Miuchi is the district inside Mount Mizufuji; Nenomachi is the district on the underside of the land (Districts). |
| Ama-no-Suibon | A poetic name that likens the whole Ukisu to a suibon, the shallow tray used to display stones and bonsai. It is not used in everyday speech, only in songs and travel writing. |
Singing the Town Song
You do not need to notify the town office to sing the town song at schools, local gatherings or town events.
This recording was made using music-generating AI.