Songs of Sake for Koto and Shamisen with Bobby Griffin

Frank visited the multi-instrumentalist Bobby Griffin at his home and studio to talk about how sake is treated in traditional Japanese music. In particular they talked about Sasa no Tsuyu , a piece for shamisen, koto, and voice. It was arranged in the 1800s and the lyrics are all about the power and pleasure of sake. We also filmed our visit, and you can check out the video here on youtube: If you are in Japan and want to learn how to play Sasa no Tsuyu , check out Bobby’s school ! As always, if you have questions or comments, please do share them with us at questions@sakeonair.com or send us a message on our Instagram , Facebook, or Substack ! We’ll be back very soon with plenty more Sake On Air. Until then, kampai ! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo . Sake on Air was created by Potts K Productions and is produced by Export Japan. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow,” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

You can listen to Songs of Sake for Koto and Shamisen with Bobby Griffin online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Songs of Sake for Koto and Shamisen with Bobby Griffin is an episode from Sake On Air by Sake On Air.

This episode is 47:05 long.

This episode was published on Feb 27, 2026.

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