During World War II, a radio children's choir brought joy to its members and listeners alike. We uncovered the story of the teacher who led it, working to promote the cause of peace through music.
Stories about people, stories about life.
Hometown Stories.
This recently discovered photograph was taken nearly 80 years ago, during the Second World War.
Shot inside NHK Nagasaki, it depicts members of a children's radio choir.
After the war, the group was buried in the pages of history.
But now this photograph is helping to revive its memory.
These two children in the front row are sisters.
They kept the photograph carefully preserved for nearly 80 years.
This is the Wakaba Choir.
Our father started it.
I don't remember much from back then,
but I do remember singing
often at the NHK studio.
Their father, Okayama Tadashi, was a music teacher.
He led the Wakaba Choir.
During the war, government restrictions limited the ability of Japanese people to enjoy music.
Okayama wanted the Wakaba Choir to be a place where children could experience the joys of music.
Our music teacher didn't share
a single military or war song.
He helped us...
make memories of peace.
However, the war and the atomic bomb left a deep impact on the choir.
Okayama was a victim of the atomic bombing.
For years, the Wakaba Choir was lost to history.
We look at a teacher who shared music with unfaltering conviction in the midst of war.
Prior to World War II, live radio was the main form of broadcasting.
The cheery voices of children were an indispensable part of radio programs.
NHK Nagasaki opened in 1933.
The children's choir was formed soon afterward.
Their name, Wakaba, comes from the Japanese word for young leaves.
These sisters carefully preserved the photo of the choir.
They are Ogiwara Akiko and Horiguchi Sumiko.
Both were members of the Wakaba Choir.
We had our own unique song,
starting with the words, "Wakaba, Wakaba..."
Their father, Okayama Tadashi, led the group.
We rehearsed at our home.
We didn't have much entertainment back then.
He wanted to create an opportunity
for kids to enjoy themselves.
Okayama was born here, in Miharu, Fukushima Prefecture.
The town is known for its ancient weeping cherry, a natural monument.
He trained as a teacher here and then went on to teach music at a school in Nagasaki.
Okayama also created a song for Nagasaki prefecture and school anthems.
He even taught at a girls' school and led several choirs as he expanded his musical career.
Among all these endeavors, Okayama paid particular attention to the Wakaba Choir.
But no photos or documents about the choir were available in the NHK archives.
We tried to find more information about it but came up empty-handed.
Four months into our search, we learned about a former member of the Wakaba Choir.
Her name is Sakamoto Takako.
Born in Nagasaki City, Takako joined the choir in 1938 when she was in second grade.
This was taken around 1944,
near the end of the war.
I'm not in this photo.
This brings back memories.
That was our teacher, Mr. Okayama.
He would visit the elementary schools
and pick two or three kids from each one.
Was it a great honor to be selected?
It certainly was.
My parents were delighted to hear that
I had been chosen to sing for NHK.
The song went like, "Wakaba, Wakaba,
the kids of Wakaba are so cute."
Adorable song, right?
I really enjoyed it.
Mr. Okayama was a great music teacher.
That's what made it so enjoyable.
We tracked down more former members of the Wakaba Choir.
Masako.
Long time no see.
These two haven't seen each other for decades.
Takagi Masako and Ikeda Mitsuko.
Masako and Mitsuko both joined the choir in 1941 and were members for two years.
One aspect of Okayama's approach to music left a deep impression.
That's him.
I recognized him immediately.
He never said anything about singing
military songs even as the war dragged on.
Not a single word
about war or military songs.
He never made us
sing those songs.
He helped us make memories of peace.
But the war was impossible to ignore.
When World War Two broke out in 1941,
Okayama was asked to compose a piece of music for a weapons manufacturer.
"The Imperial Navy sank its enemies
in many seas."
The song celebrates the success of torpedoes manufactured in Nagasaki in the early stages of the war.
Around this time, Okayama was gaining fame as a composer.
Although it is unclear how he felt about composing that song, he never again wrote music with military themes.
The effects of the war extended to music.
In 1943, recordings of American and British music were declared examples of enemy culture and banned.
Okayama had to teach music at a time when access was highly restricted.
One man still remembers Okayama's attitude toward the war.
Tsuiki Shohei lives in Nagasaki City.
Okayama was his music teacher.
-Your younger sister was in the choir?
-Yes.
I already knew about Mr. Okayama.
Since he was teaching at that school,
I really wanted to learn music from him.
As the war went on, Shohei's attitude toward Okayama began to change.
Half of the teachers were pacifists
while the others were more hawkish.
Our education led us to admire
the hawkish teachers more.
We considered Mr. Okayama
one of the weaker teachers.
There was no trace of war talk in his classes.
He was a pacifist.
Because of that, he couldn't
hold his head high around us.
I believe he valued peace above all.
Akiko and Sumiko believe that their father's conviction about music never changed.
It was a time when people held back,
unable to do things their own way.
But our father always did things
the way he wanted to.
He followed his own path,
not swayed by others.
He remained strong in his convictions
and devoted himself to music.
Okayama's approach to music never changed.
He wanted the Wakaba Choir to be a place where children could find refuge in music.
On August 9, 1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.
NHK's Nagasaki Station suspended broadcasting.
The Wakaba Choir's activities also came to a halt.
At that moment, Okayama was at school, close to the hypocenter.
Miraculously, he survived the bombing.
But five days later he collapsed from injuries related to radiation exposure.
He thought he was about to die.
So he made his way to his hometown in Fukushima where his family had sought safety before the bombing.
Akiko and Sumiko still remember the moment their father returned.
We heard about the bombing of Hiroshima,
and then Nagasaki was next.
We thought our father had died
in the bombing.
We hadn't received accurate information,
so we were astounded
when he came back.
The students in the school were
terribly injured in the bombing.
Yet they came to check on my father,
asking if he was alright.
The students were all badly injured,
but still they were worried about him.
That's what we heard.
Because he'd experienced such a tragedy,
I think he felt the joy and
value of music even more.
He didn't say it out loud,
but I think his life and approach to music
embodied his convictions about peace.
Okayama recovered and returned to teaching music in Fukushima.
Filled with various emotions about the war and the atomic bomb,
he decided to devote his life to sharing the gift of music with children.
He composed 40 school songs and formed choir groups all around Fukushima,
building the foundation of choral music in the prefecture.
"The flowers of culture have been perfumed
for generations to open up a new century."
This is Okayama's beloved piano.
It was donated to the town of Miharu and nicknamed the peace piano.
It has deep sentimental value for Ito Chika, who teaches music at Miharu Junior High School.
This was the instrument on which Okayama taught her to play.
He was exposed to the atomic bomb
in Nagasaki before moving to Miharu.
- Then he taught you?
- That's right.
If you were playing well,
he'd listen intently with eyes closed.
Then he'd open his eyes
and give you a mark of approval.
It made me feel so glad I practiced.
He used to say, "Maybe you'll have
a chance to play music abroad someday."
"Music can be a bridge to help
you make friends overseas."
"Use music to make our world
more peaceful."
I also want to nurture students who
spread peace through music.
Despite the war and the atomic bombing, Okayama continued to spread the joy of music.
"Education is not a skill, but a conviction."
He passed away in 1986, at the age of 84, leaving those words as his legacy.
After the war, memories of the Wakaba Choir began to fade.
But his teachings still live on in the hearts of former members.
Ikeda Mitsuko continues to enjoy music at the age of 90.
Music is an integral part of my life.
That's how much I love it.
Discovering music with Mr. Okayama
helped me find peace.
The Wakaba Choir exposed Takako to the joy of music.
She hoped to pursue a career in the field, but later had to abandon that dream.
Now, her daughter Masako is following that path.
She lives in the US, and sings with a jazz orchestra.
I got my gift of singing from you.
Your father did play the piano.
But I got my voice from you.
This is the first time I've heard
about the Wakaba Choir.
I'm not surprised she was a part of it.
I know how passionate she is about music.
My career in music and the songs I make
have helped me forge
a connection with my mother.
Takako says that the things Okayama taught her left a deep impression.
Being a part of the Wakaba Choir
was such a joyful experience.
I'm glad I could walk that path.
I want people today to know
how lucky they are to be living in times of peace.
We asked Akiko to recreate the Wakaba Choir's theme song.
She wrote it down from memory.
It's hard to remember the exact lyrics.
It's a phantom song.
Akiko followed in her father's footsteps and became a music teacher.
She brought the song back to life.
It's a song from over 80 years ago.
I wonder how kids today will feel about it.
The Wakaba Choir theme song will be performed by the NHK Nagasaki Children's Chorus.
We recently found this photo.
Taken during the war.
They look like they're enjoying themselves.
- It was taken here?
- Yes.
I wonder what they sang.
Choral music?
Akiko is in the photo.
-How old was she here?
-In fifth grade.
Looks like the teacher.
He's her father.
The kids in the photo sang with joy,
so we'd like to do the same.
Seeing the photo and hearing about those times
makes us so grateful for peace.
I hope those sentiments
come across as were singing.
OK everyone, smile and have fun.
"Wakaba, Wakaba,
listen to the kids of Wakaba."
"Hear how cute their voices are."
"Wakaba, Wakaba, the kids of
Wakaba are so cute."
From wartime to the present day.
About 80 years after its inception, the song rings out once again with a wish for peace.