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I'm proud of how close everyone in our club is!
"Waseda Harmonica Society"

Deputy Secretary-General Kaho Yanagida, 2nd year School of Law

Waseda Harmonica Society (hereafter Hamoso) is a bigband-style music student club composed mainly of harmonica players. Most students join without any harmonica experience, but the appeal of the harmonica is that it's easy to make sounds, you can quickly improve, and above all, it's a star instrument that allows you to play melodies.

Many people may think, "Then there's only a harmonica in Hamoso?", but in reality, only about 20% of the members are in the harmonica part. We have wind instruments such as the flute and clarinet, as well as band instruments such as drums, guitars, and bass, so compared to other music student clubs, it is easier to find the instrument you want to play, and you can try out various instruments.

People are often surprised to find such a variety of musical instruments available, but Hamoso was founded in 1926, so It's a historical student club! Our activities mainly consist of practicing three times a week in preparation for the concerts held a few times a year. Members don't have to participate in every practice, so they can practice according to their schedule. In addition, there are many different types of instruments used in Hamoso, and all the music scores are handmade. This allows us to arrange songs so that the harmonica can play most melodies, while avoiding melodies that are too fast or too complex for the harmonica.

Regular concert held at Ono Auditorium on December 24, 2022. We play songs from various genres such as J-POP, jazz, and classical music.

The best charm about Hamoso is that the members get along well with each other. It's a small student club composed of around 20 people, so we can form deep relationships. The relationship between seniors and juniors is also good, and we are able to exchange opinions on ensembles and arrangements regardless of grade level. We also go out to eat after practice or go out together on our days off. During long holidays, we go to training camps, where we eat and sleep together and deepen our friendships.

During this summer vacation, I had a lot of fun, including having a BBQ and going to Atami for a summer camp.

I chose Hamoso because it had the appropriate balance of looseness and seriousness, and the seniors were kind. I tried playing bass without knowing anything, but thanks to my seniors who praised me, I was able to improve my skills to the point where I could enjoy playing songs at concerts.

If you want to start something new or want to increase student club you belong to, all of our members are looking forward to hearing from you!

A photo from the joint concert of the four universities (Chuo, Meiji, Rikkyo, and Waseda) which is held every June.

[Official student club information]

◆ student clubs name: Waseda University Harmonica Society
◆ Group classification: student association
◆ student clubs founding year: 1926
◆ Genre: music
◆ Activity date and time: Every Tuesday and Wednesday (from 16:30 each), Saturday (from 13:00)
◆ Number of members: 21 people
◆ Activity location: Waseda University Student Center B125
◆ Website:https://wasehamo.com
◆ X:@wasehamo
◆Instagram:@waseda_hamoso
◆YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEOv_Vq5jTdA7WKnEvA-08A