1927

Born on Mar. 29 in Tokyo, Japan. Youngest of four children of KOIZUMI Naozumi (father) and TOSHIMA Waka (mother). Had two brothers and a sister. Birthday was registered as April 4th.

1934 (7 years old)

April: Entered elementary school.
Absorbed in playing violin and swimming.

1940 (13 years old)

April: Entered secondary school.
Encountered ABE Kōmei (composer).
Absorbed in horse riding and swimming. Made new record as backstroke swimmer.

1944 (17 years old)

April: Entered high school. Joined high school musical group.
Learned violin from OKAMI Haruhiko, piano from TAKU Kōji, and participated in choir directed by TAKADA Saburo.

1945(18 years old)

August: Did mobilized labor at the Army Medical School in Yamagata Prefecture when World War II came to end.

1946(19 years old)

Enjoyed singing hymns at a Christian church in Tokyo.

1947(20 years old)

Was baptized.
Joined group for the research of religious music.
Met KAKO Mieko, a soprano singer.

1948(21 years old)

April: Entered Tokyo University, Faculty of Literature.
Worked as a part-time interpreter at Ueno and Tsukiji Police Station, Tokyo.

1949(22 years old)

April: Majored in aesthetics and art history.
September: Married KAKO Mieko.

1950(23 years old)

Deeply impressed with a live performance of Japanese traditional music style called jiuta.

1951(24 years old)

March: Graduated from Tokyo University. Wrote graduation thesis about modern European programme music.
April: Entered Tokyo University Graduate School.
Assisted MACHIDA Kashō in transcripting Japanese folksongs for Nihon min'yo taikan (Anthology of Japanese Folksongs).

1952(25 years old)

Became member of editorial committee of Philharmonie (bulletin of NHK Philharmonic) until 1970.
Began doing commentary on NHK radio programs regarding world music.
Daughter Shoko was born.

1953(26 years old)

Assisted in editing music dictionary as part-time employee for Publisher Heibon-sha. Learned about past research in comparative musicology through his work.

1954(27 years old)

Full-time employee of Publisher Heibon-sha (editorial staff).
Started broadcasting on radio (Bunka Hōsō) at show entitled Sekai no min'yō (World Folksongs) once a week, and continued until 1956.
Started publications of Nihon dentō ongaku kenkyū ni kansuru hōhōron to kisoteki shomondai (Methodology and fundamental issues for research on traditional Japanese music) serially in Philharmonie.
Had a chance to hear Indian folksongs (Bengalese etc.) at a regular meeting of Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).

1956(29 years old)

February: Produced and presided at the musical performance Sekai no min'yō (World Folksongs).
March: Graduated from graduate school, Tokyo University. Master's thesis was Nihon dentō ongaku kenkyū ni kansuru hohoron to kisoteki shomondai (Methodology and fundamental issues for research on Japanese traditional music). Later published as Nihon dentō ongaku no kenkyū 1 (Research on Japanese traditional music 1)(1958).
May: Passed Indian Government scholarship student examination.

1957(30 years old)

June: Left for India via Hong Kong and Burma.
July: Entered Central College of Karnataka Music, Madras. Investigated folk and classical music in South India.

1958(31 years old)

February: Entered College of Hindustani Music, Lucknow, North India.
Published Nihon dentō ongaku no kenkyū 1 (Research on Japanese traditional music 1), Ongaku-no-tomo-sha, Tokyo.
Returned Tokyo at end of the year.

1959(32 years old)

Worked at Heibon-sha as editorial staff for a dictionary on the history of Asia.
Lectured on Indian music at the regular meeting of Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).
Planned the NET-TV program World Music (until 1961) and started to make TV appearances.
September: Became part-time lecturer at Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music) and lectured on history of Asian music.

1960(33 years old)

March: Retired from Heibon-sha.
April: Became full-time lecturer at Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music).
Became part-time lecturer of Toho Gakuen University.

1961(34 years old)

April: Attended the meeting of International Folk Music Council at Tehran, Iran, and had a chance to hear Persian Music.
Did field work research of children songs from Tokyo in a seminar of Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music).

1962(35 years old)

May: Started to publish Nihon no rizumu (Japanese rhythm) serially in Ongaku geijutsu(Musical Art). These treatises became the bulk of Nihon dentō ongaku no kenkyū 2 (Research on Japanese traditional music 2) which were published after his death.
Started broadcasting Sekai no minzoku ongaku (Folk music of the world) over experimental radio NHK-FM.
Sponsored Nihon Ongaku Buyō Kaigi (Japanese Music and Dance Conference).

1963(36 years old)

April & May: Organized Folk music Research Group of Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music). Did field work research on the music of Okinawa Main Island, Miyako Islands, and Yaeyama Islands.
July: Participated in the comprehensive research of Shimokita Peninsula as a member of Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music) in collaboration with nine different societies.

1964(37 years old)

January: Attended 1st International Festival of Folk Performance in Cairo, Egypt.
January through April: Did folk music field work in the upper stream area of Nile River with Egyptian researcher. Discovered ancient liturgical music of a Coptic Church. The recordings were released 2 years later as a LP-Album Nairu no Uta (Songs from the Nile area) (JVC) and won an artistic award.
Continued field work research in West Asia (Turkey, Iraq, Iran), Southern Europe (Spain) and Eastern Europe (Bulgaria, Hungary).
October: Returned to Tokyo.

1965(38 years old)

April 11: Started to broadcast Sekai no minzoku ongaku (Folk Music of the World ) over NHK-FM radio once a week. Program was renamed in 1972 as Sekai no minzoku ongaku (World Music) and continued until May 1983.
Made LP-Album Sekai no minzoku ongaku dai-1-shū: Minzoku ongaku no kaimei (World Music vol.1: Elucidate World Music) (Prince Records).
Presented the results of musical research in Shimokita Peninsula at Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).

1966(39 years old)

April: Became Assistant Professor of Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music).
August: Participated in the field work to investigate folk music in Oshima Peninsula, Hokkaido by Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).

1967(40 years old)

March: Conducted field work to investigate children songs intensively in Nakano Ward and Shinjuku Ward of Tokyo as the leader of Folk Music Research Group of Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music).
April: Collaborated with Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Research on language and culture of Asia and Africa (until 1975). Participated in the comprehensive research of Tone basin in collaboration with nine other societies.
July: Did field work research of Hawaiian and Latin American music.
August: Attended international conference at Michigan University.
August & September: Did field work research of Canadian Eskimo music.
September through January of 1968: Became Visiting Associate Professor at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, USA, to lecture on Japanese music.
December: Did field work research of Mohawk Indian music.

1968(41 years old)

January: Did field work research for Alaska Eskimo music.
February: Returned to Tokyo.
Started to analyze the music of kayōkyoku (Japanese popular songs).
Conducted field work research of Bon festival dance in Gifu Prefecture as the leader of Folk Music Research Group of Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku (Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music).
August: Participated in the field work research of folk music in Tosa by Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).

1969(42 years old)

March: Published Shingi Shingon Shōmyō Shūsei, Gakufu-hen Dai-1-kan (Collection of Buddhist liturgical chant: Shingi school of Shingon Shōmyō, music book vol.1), edited with KURIYAMA Akinori, Shingi Shingon Shōmyō Shūsei Kankō-kai.
August: Participated in the field work research of folk music in Satsuma Peninsula, Kagoshima by Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).
September: Edited and Published Warabeuta no Kenkyū, Gakufu-hen/Kenkyū-hen (Game Songs of Japanese Children, Comparative Scores/Studies of Game Songs).

1970(43 years old)

June: Produced African Festival at the world exposition in Japan.
August: Asian Festival at the world exposition in Japan.
August: Participated in the field work research of folk music in Hida Takayama, Gifu by Tōyō Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music).
Autumn: Produced