The differences are as follows:
Korean "Enge" (written in Korean; generally written as Trot in English) is the traditional popular music of the Korean Peninsula and is known as the earliest popular music of the Korean Peninsula.
Korean people claim that Korean enka appeared long before the Japanese colonial period and is not the same as Japanese enka, although the music of the two is very similar. Korean enka is said to originate from the music of Foxtrot, so its Korean name is also taken from the last few syllables of Foxtrot in English. This dance tune has a simple and lilting composition, while the trot's theme is almost light and breezy.
Korea was strongly influenced by Japanese enka, and is now called "Foxtrot". Translation: トロット, that is, fox trot. During the post-war Park Chung-hee regime, although "Foxtrot" refers to the Korean usage of the word "Enge", many people still use "Yonga" (yonga) to refer to it.
Later, based on the Oriental Color Removal Movement (Japanese Color Removal Movement), the pronunciation of "Enge" that was changed from Japanese - "ヨンガ" - became unusable, so it was designated as "Enge". The "fox trot" is called it.
Although Korean trot is related to Japanese enka, Korean trot is relatively less sad and has a stronger sense of rhythm, or it uses cheerful tunes to sing sad voices, such as the famous trot song "The Sun Rises" "Days" by Song Daruan. I really didn't expect that he was also a trot singer. I originally thought he was just a comedian.
The basic rhythm pattern of the foxtrot is the medium and slow X X
X As long as you listen carefully, there are also a large number of songs with this type of rhythm characteristics in enka. The basic rhythm is XX XX or X XX X X, and the beat is 2/4 or 4/4. This is the so-called "trot".
Trot-style songs generally have simple tunes and catchy lyrics. However, there will be a big jump in literal translation, and it still needs to be based on Korean grammar and context.
What’s interesting is that comparing enka and trot, the two are like the difference between water and fire, like the national characters of the two.
In terms of dressing up, trot pursues exaggerated expressions, shiny dresses, gorgeous stages, and rich movements. He seems to use his body to express his emotions. Every move and every move must match the lyrics. Emotions match. Because dressing up like this seems more people-friendly, can better arouse the audience's emotions, and enhance the stage atmosphere.
Enka: It is a type of song unique to Japan, which can be understood as a classic Japanese old song. It is a song that combines the singing style of Japanese folk artists in the Edo period and incorporates the national sentiments of various parts of Japan. It is a transition between Japanese classical arts and modern pop music, and is a song that praises folk customs and emotional trivia.
The melody is long and graceful, just like the knot in a person's heart, and they are mostly songs that express the inner sorrow of adults. In the early days, one person sang while playing and the other performed as a matchmaker. Later, it evolved into solo singing.
The history of tunes and enka.
Most of the songs use the ヨナ抜き scale. To put it simply, fa and si are removed in major keys, and re and sol are removed in minor keys. This kind of music has a neat form and a melody that is close to people's natural beauty. The disadvantage is: too single and not rich in variety.
This tune was established due to the popularity of Masao Koga's tunes in the 1930s. The enka songs before the tunes were finalized were all propaganda songs sung by performers on the streets with various folk tunes and politically inclined lyrics. With the promotion of record players and radio, Koga Masao's songs became popular, and the definition of enka began to change, gradually forming the prototype of enka.
So the first thing to correct here is that the statement "Japanese enka = Japanese old songs" is not rigorous. Likewise, it is imprudent to confuse pre-war pop songs with enka.
There is another problem in this. In the 1930s, Koga Masao’s works were called typical works of “pop songs”. However, with the change in the definition of enka, in the 1960s, Koga Masao and After the collaboration with Hibari Misora ??and the covers by many enka singers after the war, it was gradually regarded as the source of enka.
(This is how the concept was stolen. Of course, most of Masao Koga's pre-war works are still considered pop songs).
In the 1950s, after the changes in pop songs - wartime ballads - boogie-woogie, popular music forms once again tilted toward enka. This was mainly due to the emergence of big singers in the boogie-woogie trend. Misora ??Hibari's turn.
After that, Kasuga Hachiro, Mitomoya Mihashi, who played the Kagome Ballad, Koji Tsuruta who played the Renxia route, Haruo Miha, Hideo Murata, who was born in Nigaku, and Chiyoko Shimakura, the great singer of the Weeping Festival, made their debuts one after another. Movie stars Yujiro Ishihara and Asahi Kobayashi entered the music scene, starting a revival of enka.
It can basically be distinguished from most "pop songs" before the war. At the same time, enka's attempt to move closer to the style of traditional Japanese music was also successful.
In the 1960s, Kitajima Saburo, Hashi Yukio, Miyako Miyako, Aoe Sanna, Suizenji Kiyoko, Senmasao, Mori Shinichi, Fuji Keiko (Utada Hikari’s mother), Kobayashi Sachiko and others are basically active today. The emergence of enka giants on the stage ushered in the heyday of enka.
The rise of ムードga, a variant of enka, has somewhat shaken the status of orthodox enka. With the arrival of Youth Music, Rhythm Ballads and GS Boom in the later period, the more Westernized Pop began to emerge.
The 1970s was the golden age of Japanese music. The continuation of folk, new music, and GS boom, and the appearance of Ayana Ballads, which became popular due to the popularity of television, broke the situation of the Enka family, but among them, Enka Start shaping.
While the vitality of old singers is still building, the debut of great singers such as Itsuki Aki, Yatsushiro Aki, Mori Masako, Ishikawa Sayuri, Hosokawa Takashi and other great singers have enriched the connotation of enka singing. Beginning to merge, some enka singers are also trying to cross boundaries to seek breakthroughs.
Since the 1980s, enka has gradually been regarded as a historical music form with little innovation. However, due to the rise of karaoke, enka became popular again in the first half of the 1980s. Okawa Eisaku and Hosokawa Takashi are among the leaders. The emergence of the definition of J-pop caused enka and ballads to decline rapidly in the mid-to-late 1980s, gradually withdrawing from the core music market.
In the 1990s, as some of the great enka masters in the early and heydays passed away one after another, a period of depression began. However, with the diversification of accompaniment instruments and the emergence of some enka singers, there has been some development.
Sakamoto Fuyumi is also worth talking about in the 1990s. Enka's last million-dollar single, "Sun" by Ichiro Oizumi, was also released in 1999. After 2000, the popularity of Hikawa Kiyoshi gave enka some signs of recovery. As a form of music, enka still occupies a place in the music market.