Shinpei Nakayama

Shimpei Nakayama (中山 晋平, Nakayama Shimpei, March 22, 1887 – December 30, 1952) was a Japanese songwriter famous for his many children's songs (warabe uta) and popular songs (ryūkōka) that have become deeply embedded in Japanese popular culture.

His father died when he was very young, so he and his siblings were raised by his mother Zō, who often took in washing and sewing to make ends meet.

At one point, a small brass band sponsored by the Salvation Army came to his town to play, and Nakayama remembers being smitten by the sound.

His classmates remember him as an accomplished player of the Japanese transverse flute who would often play during Obon and other festivals at the local Shinto shrines and Buddhist temple.

[citation needed] In 1915, Nakayama's released the romantic ballad "Gondola no Uta (ゴンドラの唄)", which was featured prominently in Akira Kurosawa's 1952 film Ikiru.