cunning_stunts

There is a good explanation of how to type and use Japanese on an English keyboard in another thread called "Traduction prenomes". Go back to the Japanese board and you'll see it a few down from this one. Check out Yugknup's posts on pages 3 and 4 of that thread.

BucsTex

I found these kanji which I am told are a pretty direct translation of " Spring-Ford Percussion," and since they are single characters I'd prefer to use them... unless the meaning is totally wrong:

dan = spring
se = ford
gaku = percussion

The other nice thing about the site were I found them (Japanese Gifts / Traditional Arts and Crafts - Best Buy Shop) is that they have animated gif's showing the brush strokes, which is very helpful for me.

Now I realize that this information does not agree with what a few of the responses on here have told me, but since I'm not likely to have any fluent Japanese speakers reading the drum heads. I also realize that this not the definition of "spring" that really applies, but I like the kanji better.

So at this point, would I be totally remiss to use these individual characters? I don't have to be 100% accurate, but I don't want to butcher the Japanese language either.

Thanks again!

yugknup

Hi there,

You used the dictionary on that site, yes? Well, it looks like you misinterpreted the results... What that dictionary does is it searches both the meaning of the kanji, and the sample compound words that it provides. So, the single kanji it brings up on the left is just one of the kanji used in the sample compounds which are on the right (i.e. the words I gave you before). For 'se' and 'gaku' this has led you a bit astray...

春 (haru; and I think you misheard 'shun' as 'dan', btw) is, as you have obviously realised, spring the season. You can use this if you want, but imagine the difference between 'autumn' and 'wing nut'. That's the difference in meaning between 'haru' and 'bane'.
瀬 (se) is, I guess, like a water hazard for a boat. It can be both 'rapids' and 'shallows', you see. The word I gave before uses this and another to mean 'ford' and is like "shallow(or superficial) + shallows"
楽 (gaku/raku) is 'music' and also 'comfort/ease/pleasure'. 'Percussion' that I gave before is 'hit + music + instrument".


I've had a bit more of a think about it, and what about this:
Spring (as in 'fountainhead') + cross-over (lit. 'step across a stream') + drum-sounds
泉渉鼕
sen|shou|tou

or a with an alternative final kanji:
Spring + cross-over + drum-sound(/swelling-water-sound)
泉渉彭
sen|shou|hou

again I know this isn't the "coiled metal" meaning of 'spring', but it has a nice internal logic with the idea of crossing a stream near its source.
I have to say I can't guarantee my suggestions here. This is beyond my ability with kanji really...just my best guess :/


PS
Thanks for the message, I appreciate it! And no worries

PPS
At this site WWWJDIC: Kanji Selection you can get stroke-order gifs. Just copy and paste the kanji into the 'keyword' box, and then click the "SOD" link on the results page (not available for all kanji though; I should be able to show you how to write the ones that aren't there out of whatever you choose though, if you like)

PPPS
In your aesthetic considerations, remember that for terms with more than one kanji (i.e. the compound words from before), they can be written vertically with one kanji above the next as well as horizontally...

BucsTex

Oooo... yeah, I like that fountainhead concept! And those definitions are certainly close enough for my purposes. I'll see which option the kids like better (since this is for a high school marching band show). We actually just finished gluing together the oak staves of the barrels.... making taiko is a heck of a lot of work!!!!

Thanks again!