“The genre is played on a large shamisen with thicker strings than those used for most other styles. Unlike other forms of shamisen that use cat skin as a covering for the do, or soundbox, the Tsugaru-jamisen uses dog skin as its traditional material. The bachi (plectrum) is proportionately small. Tsugaru-jamisen is easy to recognize by its percussive quality (the plectrum striking the body of the instrument on each stroke) and the lilt of the rhythms performed. Unlike most other Japanese music, some Tsugaru-jamisen pieces are in triple time, though the three beats are not accentuated in the manner of Western music…” Here.
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