Relax by Lake Biwa | 1 Hour Japanese Relaxing Music for Sleep & Study · Hand-Played Satsuma Biwa

Calm traditional Japanese music for relaxing, studying and sleep — one hour of hand-played Satsuma biwa with birdsong and quiet footsteps. No AI. Every note is played by me, Kumiko (Bitan), on my own Satsuma biwa. No talking. Just the biwa and a slow walk through Sakamoto, a small town at the foot of Mount Hiei on the shore of Lake Biwa — along lanes lined with old stone walls, up the cable car, to the view of Lake Biwa from the mountain, and on into sunset and a quiet night. The picture slowly grows darker in the last part of the hour, so you can drift off with it. Put it on when you want to rest, read, study, meditate or fall asleep. ▼ Chapters 0:00 Sakamoto, Shiga 1:25 Stone-walled lanes 12:42 Approach to Mount Hiei 14:52 Cable car through the forest 16:39 Lake Biwa from Mount Hiei 29:59 Stone walls on the mountain path 32:59 Afternoon light in the old town 37:18 Sunset over the lake 50:15 Night 59:00 Afterglow ▼ Scenes ・Stone-walled lanes — Sakamoto's quiet lanes are lined with dry stone walls built by the Anoshu masons. You will also pass Kunin Yashiki, an old residence of temple officials, and the foundation stone of a 7th-century temple pagoda. ・Approach to Mount Hiei — the great torii toward Hiyoshi Taisha, and mossy stone lanterns along the way. ・Cable car — Sakamoto Cable, Japan's longest cable car, climbs through the forest to Cable Enryakuji Station, a Taisho-romance style station building in use since 1927. ・Lake Biwa from Mount Hiei — the view from the mountain deck, with birdsong and a distant temple bell. ・Stone walls on the mountain path — old walls and cedar trees near the station. ・Afternoon, sunset and night — the same town and lake again, as the light slowly changes. ▼ About the music The Satsuma biwa is a Japanese lute once played by samurai in southern Japan. It traditionally has four strings — the one I play was built with four and later modified to five. All music in this video is my own improvisation, played and recorded by me at home. I am still learning the Satsuma biwa, and my playing grows a little with every recording. I would be happy if you could follow along and cheer me on. Nothing is generated by AI. Some pieces are layered softly over one another. At 0:20 you can see my hands playing the very piece you hear. ▼ About this place Sakamoto is a quiet town in Otsu, Shiga, between Mount Hiei and Lake Biwa. Its lanes are lined with dry stone walls built by the Anoshu, a group of master stonemasons from this area. The birdsong, the footsteps and the distant temple bell in this video were all recorded on site. ▼ About the footage Filmed in May 2026 in Sakamoto and on Mount Hiei, Shiga, Japan. Some scenes are played slowly, and the colors are gently shifted toward evening and night. ▼ Also on this channel Relax in Kyoto | Japanese Relaxing Music · Hand-Played Satsuma Biwa & Golden Rice Fields (30 Min)    • Relax in Kyoto | Japanese Relaxing Music ·...   ▼ Main channel: Biwa-Bitan | Satsuma Biwa & Historic Japan The story of Sakamoto's stone walls and the Anoshu masons (in Japanese, with subtitles in 10 languages)    • 坂本の石垣を積んだのは誰か？ ― 穴太衆と比叡山｜薩摩琵琶 #歴史   🎵 100% original, hand-played Satsuma biwa — a centuries-old Japanese instrument. No AI-generated music. 📷 Footage: filmed by Kumiko (Bitan) in Japan Biwa Bitan - Japanese Relaxing Music #RelaxingMusic #JapaneseMusic #SatsumaBiwa This video captures scenic mountain views overlooking a quiet lake and city, accented by historical stone structures and red fences. Watch as the landscape unfolds, from the intricate shrines to the striking wooden spire sculpture rising against the horizon. Let the ambient meditation music provide a calm backdrop for your daily routine. Every note is hand-played on the Satsuma biwa, with no AI generation, creating a natural soundscape that invites you to disconnect from the bustle of the day and find a moment of peace. Subscribe for weekly nature exploration videos, and let me know in the comments which landscape you would like to see featured next. ▼ Main channel: Biwa-Bitan | Satsuma Biwa & Historic Japan Journeys to Japan's shrines, temples and castles, with the Satsuma biwa    / @薩摩琵琶ビタンsatsumabiwa