1.
As for even the image of my beloved one wouldn't appear (in my dreams),
I would nevertheless have time to forget him.

2.
Rarely do I recall the memory of playing with him, but
The image of my dear one comes (to my dreams) every morning and evening (, so I cannot forget him).
‘ashibishonganee’ expresses the feelings of a woman longing for her absent lover. She tries to forget him and has actually plenty of time to do so, but she simply cannot forget him. What's more, he appears to her in her dreams, which makes it even harder for her to forget him.

This song is a “nasake-uta” (song of compassion). Okinawan folk songs known as “nasake-uta” express human emotion (heartfelt feelings and sentiments), such as love for a beloved, the sorrow of parting, or the pangs of unrequited love. They're often sung by two singers taking turns, with the last line sometimes sung together. The gender usually doesn't matter, except for rare cases of an imagined dialogue between a couple of a woman and a man. ‘ashibishonganee’ is not such a case, and in fact it's sung usually by one person. That said: It happens to be Yūyu and me who were chosen by the organisers to sing this song together. We both had chosen to sing it at the exam last august, and we both got ranked then within the first 6 ranks, a condition for taking part as an artist in this Performance Art Festival.

I think this was a rather lucky coincidence. I consider the contrast between the higher pitch female and the lower pitch male voice to be pleasant to listen to. And watching both a woman and a man performing it might be supportive for both genders in the audience to associate with the content of the song.

What do you think, now that you got to know the background?

1.
As for even the image of my beloved one wouldn't appear (in my dreams),
I would nevertheless have time to forget him.

2.
Rarely do I recall the memory of playing with him, but
The image of my dear one comes (to my dreams) every morning and evening (, so I cannot forget him).
‘ashibishonganee’ expresses the feelings of a woman longing for her absent lover. She tries to forget him and has actually plenty of time to do so, but she simply cannot forget him. What's more, he appears to her in her dreams, which makes it even harder for her to forget him.

This song is a “nasake-uta” (song of compassion). Okinawan folk songs known as “nasake-uta” express human emotion (heartfelt feelings and sentiments), such as love for a beloved, the sorrow of parting, or the pangs of unrequited love. They're often sung by two singers taking turns, with the last line sometimes sung together. The gender usually doesn't matter, except for rare cases of an imagined dialogue between a couple of a woman and a man. ‘ashibishonganee’ is not such a case, and in fact it's sung usually by one person. That said: It happens to be Yūyu and me who were chosen by the organisers to sing this song together. We both had chosen to sing it at the exam last august, and we both got ranked then within the first 6 ranks, a condition for taking part as an artist in this Performance Art Festival.

I think this was a rather lucky coincidence. I consider the contrast between the higher pitch female and the lower pitch male voice to be pleasant to listen to. And watching both a woman and a man performing it might be supportive for both genders in the audience to associate with the content of the song.

What do you think, now that you got to know the background?