EN
The aim of this article is to picture how Japanese music evolved across the centuries, and how it influenced cultural development in that region. It is a small compendium of knowledge about musical inspirations in Japanese culture from ancient to modern times. It explores fantastic nooks and crannies of the art, full of traditional forms and incredible symbolism. Starting with traditional music, which initiated gagaku court music, a most characteristic form for the region, and ending on modern music, this article shows individuals stages of Japanese musical development. The reader learns about how the philosophical and religious systems are connected to the incredibly diverse, exotic culture. We discover the strong impact of Confucianism in how the musical forms emerged. yet despite significant influences of Chinese music, the Land of the Rising Sun developed its own, individual music style, rich with originality, diversity, and despite such great advances and interest in European music, the cult of the past and traditional music lives on. That makes the Land of the Rising Sun one of a kind.