Common Japanese Song Composition Terminologies サビ 落ちサビ Aメロ 1番 フレーズ and others
Published: 2019-12-16
Welcome to Translator Notes, a place where I write down random thoughts and ideas about translation. It’s going to be a lot of rambling but if you’re a translator or are interested in translating, I hope it gives you something to relate to. And if you aren’t, I hope this gives you some inspiration or insight into how these things work from my perspective.
[Some of these terms have been added to my J-E Media Glossary www.yakuaru.com]
If you’re familiar with Japanese entertainment, chances are you’ve heard Japanese pop music. It’s everywhere—especially in anime where it has its own genre called anisong (anime songs)—and as is the nature of pop music, they’re formulaic: They typically run a certain duration, follow an established verse-chorus pattern, and they normally have a catchy hook, a bridge, sometimes an interlude, refrain, intro and outro.
Described that way, it is relatable to English pop songs. What you might not know, however, is that when Japanese artists and composers talk about music, they use an established vernacular on top of the usual terms (you can look those up) that can potentially throw off anyone new to them.
I’ve translated a lot of song-related pieces and as far as I know, not all of them have an equivalent English term. But they're not impossible to understand and unpack, so I’ll present the most common ones here. If I’m wrong or slightly misinterpreting these terms, feel free to reach out and I will correct them. Breakdown examples are illustrated at the end.
Verse
This is not used in Japanese per se but it needs to be established for the sake of clarity. A verse is the part of a song that is often followed by the chorus (コーラス). Lyrically, it’s roughly defined as a poetic stanza. Musically, it generally runs for 8 measures (or bars as they are used interchangeably) or 32 beats. It is often used as a storytelling device where the verses are written differently with the same (or similar) melody.
One good way to describe a verse is it's the part of the song that has lyrics everyone seldom memorizes, especially the second verse since it’s not usually heard in short or TV versions.
Sabi (サビ)
It’s a catchy “hook” of a song. Used without context, it usually refers to the chorus. But it's not always the case. More often than not you’ll also see it referred to any distinct part of a song, and its meaning is narrowed down when used in derivative forms such as atamasabi (頭サビ), oosabi (大サビ), and ochisabi (落ちサビ).
It should be noted that sabi has had different meanings across musical genres and generations so this generally applies to modern Japanese pop music. But the key thing to understand about sabi is its subjective aspect—it leaves a significant emotional impression, whether it's catchy or moving. If some part of a song is memorable, you can probably call it sabi.
Atamasabi (頭サビ)
A particularly catchy intro (イントロ) can be called an atamasabi. Songs that start out strong in that manner can be described as sabihajimari (サビ始まり)
Oosabi (大サビ)
It comes after the second chorus (usually preceded by an interlude) and it is generally referred to as the bridge (ブリッジ) or D Melody (Dメロ). It’s the turning point of the song where it becomes more emotional (or simply distinct from the rest to avoid repetitiveness) as it enters the final sabi (ラストサビ) which tends to be the final chorus onward.
It is also worth noting that, though I haven’t encountered it personally, the final sabi can also be called oosabi if the D Melody has been used for a different section.
Ochisabi (落ちサビ)
It functions as the build-up—usually a crescendo with drums, bass, and vocals—directly leading to the final sabi. It can be considered as part of the oosabi or as its own section, and there may be cases where there is no oosabi at all and the ochisabi can instead be referred to as the D Melody.
Ban (番, 1番, 2番)
Ban is best described as the broadest unit of a song. It covers entire section and you’ll often see it used as ichi-ban (1番) and ni-ban (2番) where each ban leads to the next:
1番: Intro - A Melody - B Melody - Sabi (first chorus)
2番: A Melody - B Melody - Sabi (Second chorus)
3番: Not generally used but it refers to the rest of the song following 2番 which includes the bridge, final chorus, and outro.
Additional notes: The above mainly applies to pop songs that usually run for two verse-chorus loops, which is how 番 is counted. If it runs for another loop, that's 3番, 4番 for 4 loops, etc.
Ban has a broad range, so it can be (and has been) translated into "verse" in certain contexts. Just know that it can mean much more than that as well.
Refrain (リフレイン)
A refrain is often used interchangeably with chorus due its etymology but in this context, it’s the lyrical part of the song that plays between the chorus and bridge, often before the interlude. It differs from interlude (間奏), which is described by its use of instrumentals instead of vocals.
Melody (メロディー、メロ、Aメロ、Bメロ、Cメロ、Dメロ)
A melody is a sequence of notes that form a recognizable tune. You’ll often see it as A Melody (Aメロ), B Melody (Bメロ), C Melody (Cメロ), D Melody (Dメロ), and each of them has an established meaning.
The A Melody starts off a verse. It usually runs for 16 measures (or 64 beats), it is normally flat and subdued in mood compared to the rest of the song, and it can vary slightly once it reaches its second half as the tension picks up, leading to the B Melody.
The B Melody is considered the latter part of the verse. It is denoted by a slight yet distinct shift in key, mood, and tempo. In contrast to the A Melody, it is generally more dynamic and frantic as it builds up for the sabi (which in this case is normally the chorus). It can be called the pre-chorus in English.
To contextualize, the A and B Melody form a complete verse.
The C Melody is vaguely defined as the melody that plays after the second ban but before the oosabi. Its function is to set the mood for the oosabi so any melody that is distinctly different from the A and B Melody that leads to it—such as an interlude or refrain, or both—can be called the C Melody.
However, some songs don’t follow that definition as they only feature a slightly modified B Melody leading to the oosabi. While these are not considered C Melody, they serve the same purpose.
D Melody, as previously explained, is the bridge or oosabi. It is worth noting that some literature use C Melody instead while referring to the previous section simply as an interlude.
Phrase (フレーズ) (楽句)
Normally written in katakana, it is used to refer to any section of a song. It tends to have a narrower place meaning where sabi and ban are broader; you’ll often see this used with sabi such as sabi no saigo no phrase (サビの最後のフレーズ). However, whether it is about a line of lyrics (sometimes referred to as ライン; rai'n) or the actual melody is up to the speaker.
To illustrate, the extended quote is “サビの最後のフレーズに「だって君も僕を照らすPolaris」という歌詞があるんですけど.” The speaker is talking about the lyrics (歌詞) of the last bit (phrase) of the chorus (sabi), “Because you are also our shining Polaris.”
The reference to a line of lyrics is clear here but sometimes it won’t be as explicit, such as a guitarist talking about their solo, and you’ll have to rely on context.
Examples
Here are a few Japanese pop songs that follow basic patterns. I’ll timestamp each section to illustrate.
[Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Ochisabi-Chorus-Outro]
TRUE / DREAM SOLISTER
Intro 0:07 - 0:23
[First verse]
A Melody 0:24 - 0:44
B Melody 0:45 - 1:02
Sabi (First chorus) 1:03 - 1:32
Interlude 1:33 - 1:37
[Second verse]
A Melody 1:38 - 1:59
B Melody 2:00 - 2:23
Sabi (Second chorus) 2:24 - 2:53
C Melody 2:54 - 3:29
-- Refrain 2:54 - 3:14
-- Interlude 3:15 - 3:29
D Melody (Ochisabi) 3:30 - 3:43
Final sabi (Extended final chorus) 3:44 - 4:30
Outro 4:31 - End
[Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Chorus-Outro]
Horizon / Yuma Uchida
Intro 0:00 - 0:43
[First verse]
A Melody 0:44 - 1:26
B Melody 1:27 - 1:40
Sabi (First chorus) 1:41 - 2:03
Interlude 2:04 - 2:13
[Second verse]
A Melody 2:14 - 2:34
B Melody 2:35 - 2:48
Sabi (Second chorus) 2:49 - 3:10
Interlude 3:11 - 3:31
Final sabi (Last chorus) 3:32 - 4:05
Outro 4:06 - End
[Atamasabi-Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-Chorus-Outro]
Edelweiss / Asaka
Intro (Atamasabi) 0:06 - 0:23
[First verse]
A Melody 0:24 - 0:46
B Melody 0:47 - 0:59
Sabi (First chorus) 1:00 - 1:34
Interlude 1:35 - 1:43
[Second verse]
A Melody 1:44 - 2:05
B Melody 2:06 - 2:18
Sabi (Second chorus) 2:19 - 2:51
C Melody (Interlude) 2:52 - 3:02
D Melody (Bridge) 3:03 - 3:24
Ochisabi 3:14 - 3:24
Final sabi (Final chorus) 3:25 - 3:58
Outro 3:59 - End
Conclusion regarding ambiguity and exceptions
As you may have noticed, I qualified these definitions with “generally,” “usually,” and “often.” That is because while these terms have identifiable meanings, there is overlap and ambiguity when used in the wild and their meaning changes depending on who uses it and in what context.
Some literature define B Melody as the bridge such as in the AABA (32-bar-form) structure. It becomes C Melody in ABABCB (verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus), which is also quite similar to what’s being used nowadays in Japanese pop music, just with a different set of terminologies.
Song composition involves a lot of creativity, and over the generations and across cultures, people have adopted different ways to present and communicate them. There are different ways to present the same concepts, and exceptions and variations exist—songs that don’t have an interlude, songs with no chorus or where the chorus isn’t the main hook (sabi), songs with a definitive D Melody but no oosabi, songs with an outstanding outro or refrain—so it’s worth double-checking what is actually being talked about as it relates to your target language and adapt in situations where it doesn’t fit completely.
References:
Japanese Wikipedia entry for Sabi
Japanese Wikipedia entry for Melody
Japanese Wikipedia entry for Phrase
Japanese Wikipedia entry for Refrain
Japanese Wikipedia Entry for Aメロ
Polaris Example (JP, EN) (And other song interviews)
サビから始まる曲の作り方のコツは楽曲の構成を知ること
Dメロ（大サビ）の作り方を教えてください!!【作曲&編曲講座】
Cメロとは？曲の中の役割や特徴・作り方を解説します。
Common song structures
Solo Guitar Phrase example
Comment Archive
zenahr
JANUARY 11, 2022 AT 7:31 PM
Thank you so much for this! I’m working on JPOP/KPOP song cover tutorials and had no idea how to name song sections and this is a great starting point! Much thanks especially for the references. Not being native Japanese makes it hard to figure out the right search terms to look up stuff.
masharpe
FEBRUARY 22, 2022 AT 11:08 PM
Thanks, it’s interesting to learn how Japanese musicians think about song structure.
Something I’m curious about: are there rules for how Japanese lyrics are set to melody? To explain what I mean by “rules”: in English, the stress in the lyrics should correspond to the stress in the melody, or else it sounds odd. But since Japanese doesn’t have stress accent, can the melodic stress be put anywhere without sounding odd? Relatedly, does pitch accent introduce any constraints of its own on the melody?
Jerico Tenmatay
FEBRUARY 23, 2022 AT 12:05 AM
Thanks for the comment. I’m glad you found it interesting.
As for your question, not that I know of. To give you an idea: in Japanese songwriting (at least in anisong), the melody almost always comes first. Then the lyrics, which you can imagine, is its own constraint as the right word doesn’t always fit with the melody. It’s obvious with some songs where you can tell they put filler words to make it fit, or used shorter synonyms (ie. watashi vs boku). And yes, sometimes it sounds very awkward.
That tells me that the lyrics are pretty much at the mercy of the melody and the stresses in the actual words don’t matter all that much. They just follow how the melody sounds. Even in interviews, I don’t really hear about the lyricist of the song (which could be a voice actor, or the composer, not always a professional lyricist) talk about how hard it was to fit the sound of the word; it’s always just finding the right words to express what they mean, usually the right nuance of the word. And given how often JP songs also use English words but rendered in katakana, I don’t think they care about how the word innately sounds either.
That said, I have encountered one interview where they were looking for a specific sound (a word that starts in “a”) so it would make a more emotive impact. Not necessarily related to your question but sometimes they do care about the sound of the word.
I do have a theory though. Since most syllables in Japanese end in vowels (and Japanese has very few phonemes compared to English), it’s very easy for them to organically adopt the stresses that come with the melody. No matter if the pitch is going up or down (and in this case, yes, pitch accent exists in JP but it’s very rudimentary and gets overwritten by the melody), it won’t sound as off. It kinda just sounds like part of the melody itself.