Music is always a great way to start a conversation. If you feel a little shy a few words on music in Japanese can go a long way to fight shyness. It can open doors. Chances are if you ask a person ‘Donna ongaku o kikimasu ka.’ (What kind of music do you listen to?) his/her/they’s face(s) will light up because we all love to talk about music.
Our word for this month thus is Ongaku, which translates to music. Here are a few words and sentences to start you off with.
Ongaku 音楽 – Music The most popular word for music)
Myūjikku ミュージック Music (Romanji version of the word, less popular)
Fumen 管弦 – Music (Rare term but also a word for music)
Gakki 楽器 – Musical instrument
Donna ongaku o kikimasu ka. どんな音楽を聴きますか。– “What kind of music do you listen to?”
Fudan, ongaku o kikimasu ka. 普段、音楽を聴きますか。– “Do you usually listen to music?”
Anata wa gakki o ensō shimasu ka. – あなたは楽器を演奏しますか。– “Do you play a musical instrument?”
As ‘homework’ why not find out what the Japanese names are for different music instruments like Piano, Guitar and so forth. Challenge yourself and have fun. Ganbatta. Here is a video going more in-depth into Japanese words for music.