News On Japan

Soprano Singer joins JGSDF Band to Bring Solace to Wajima

Ishikawa, Mar 19, 2024 (News On Japan) - A concert by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) Central Band and soprano singer Mai Tsugane was held Sunday in Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, which suffered significant damage from the Noto Peninsula earthquake.

Mai Tsugane, whose father is from Wajima City, and other members of the JGSDF Central Band took the stage on Sunday, performing five songs including "Hana wa Saku" (Flowers Will Bloom).

The concert was held at a community center in Wajima City, where currently around 20 people are still taking refuge.

Meanwhile, a seafood processing plant in Wajima City that was damaged by the earthquake has resumed manufacturing in Kanazawa City. They are making "ikano shiokara" (salted squid), using squid caught in Wajima.

Miyu Minamitani, who is involved in seafood processing and sales, said, "The moment I entered the processing plant and smelled the fish, I felt a deep sense of nostalgia. I'm really enjoying filleting the fish right now."

The salted squid will be sold at the "Wajima Morning Market" event in Kanazawa City on March 23rd.

Source: FNN

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Typhoon No. 25 was moving away from Japan over waters to the east early on September 22, bringing an end to rainfall across the Kanto region while remaining a strong storm as it tracked northeast at 45 kilometers per hour at 3 a.m.

Severe transport disruption continued across Chiba Prefecture on the morning of September 22 even as Typhoon No. 25 moved away from Japan, with major JR lines still suspended, rail access to Narita Airport disrupted by river flooding, highways closed across the Boso Peninsula and thousands of travelers dealing with the aftermath of the previous day's cancellations.

Japan collected another 12 medals on Day 3 of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on September 21, with 17-year-old swimmer Shin Ohashi and karateka Kakeru Nishiyama winning gold, while the host nation also advanced strongly in women's volleyball, baseball, soccer, handball and hockey.

People aged 65 and older accounted for a record 29.6% of Japan's population in 2026, the highest proportion among major countries worldwide, while the number of elderly people in employment also reached an all-time high as Japan marked Respect for the Aged Day on September 21.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako watched Japan defeat Kazakhstan in a women’s basketball preliminary-round game at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Society NEWS

People aged 65 and older accounted for a record 29.6% of Japan's population in 2026, the highest proportion among major countries worldwide, while the number of elderly people in employment also reached an all-time high as Japan marked Respect for the Aged Day on September 21.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako visited Ghibli Park in Aichi Prefecture on September 20, touring exhibits that recreate famous scenes from Studio Ghibli films and posing for a photograph with the character No-Face.

Police in Kanagawa Prefecture have rearrested four teenagers on suspicion of murdering a 17-year-old high school student who died after being assaulted in Sagamihara in August.

Drinking parties remain a lively part of social life in Kansai even as younger generations increasingly turn away from alcohol and izakaya bankruptcies rise at a record pace, with customers describing the gatherings less as occasions to drink heavily and more as opportunities to maintain friendships, meet new people and build connections across generations.

Anonymous and fluid criminal groups known in Japan as "tokuryu" are adopting increasingly elaborate tactics, including a scheme in which elderly victims are persuaded to hide cash inside refrigerators before thieves enter their homes, as authorities struggle to combat networks whose members often have no direct contact with one another.

A luxury mansion in Bangkok described as resembling a palace was being used as a base for a specialized fraud operation targeting Japanese people, with Thai authorities detaining 14 people, including four Japanese men.

Copper roofing has been stripped from Shinano-no-miya Shrine in Oshika Village, Nagano Prefecture, leaving the wooden structure exposed in the latest of a series of similar thefts reported at shrines across the prefecture.

A popular Tokyo nightclub hostess and influencer known as Yamatorino, who says she generated more than 200 million yen in sales during a single month, has been arrested on suspicion of possessing cocaine with her boyfriend at their home in Roppongi.