This April, a Ministry of Science and Education directive took effect requiring that Japanese musical instruments be taught in all public junior high schools. This is revolutionary in Japan, as the education system has basically ignored Japanese music for more than a hundred years. Suddenly schoolteachers who have not necessarily been trained in hogaku must teach it to their students.
It will take several years, if not decades, for the results of this educational policy shift to take root and create among the Japanese a true bimusicality, or an ability to enjoy both Japanese and Western music on an equal footing.
Western music is still generally regarded as more "cultured" and worthwhile, especially among older generations, who identify with it not out of an inherent appreciation or understanding but because it was all they were ever exposed to.
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