Introduction
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Musicians' Union of Japan

Musicians' Union of Japan, MUJ is the labour union represents 6000 Musicians performing in Japan.

We are working on behalf of our members for betterment of their working conditions, to promote live music, to protect musicians' rights and to make political suggestions and proposals to the Japanese Government and other concerned organizations.

Besides the above, we also help people find appropriate musicians for their events as go-between under approval from the Government.

MUJ activities

Musicians' Union of Japan (MUJ) was established in 1983 but we have been working on behalf of Japanese musicians for 25 years since the 2 predecessor musicians' unions of present MUJ were organised in 1970's.

We are involved in so many activities. For example;

  1. Established Japan Arts Fund in cooperation with the League of Representatives and Senators for Issue of Music formed by members of the Diet from various political parties. As the result, 60 billion Yen was collected and 2~3billion are spent for artistic activities every year.
  2. Promoted to construct the New National Theatre. Now we are working to make it a full-scale opera house with it's own orchestra and chorus.
  3. Dealing with the problem that so many foreign musicians visit Japan to give their performances freely. We ask musicians' unions all over the world to enter into agreements to charge such musicians "temporary membership fee".
  4. Prompting local authorities to increase subsidies for orchestras and to construct music halls and facilities for their practice.
  5. Negotiating with TV and record companies to raise performance fees, which grew 5~8 times during these 25 years as the results.
  6. Also negotiating with the boards of orchestra directors to raise fees for extra performers and it's successful.
  7. Making efforts to make the agreement of minimum performance fee.
  8. Organised "Orchestra Committee" to cope with various activities for orchestra members.
  9. Took an important part in establishing the statutory Neighbouring Rights.
  10. Made a mutual aid system and a financial assist system for our members. (The budget of 50 million Yen is granted a year.)
  11. Fixed the Music Day (3/19) to popularize live performance.
  12. Helping musicians contract friendship with each other and publishing a monthly bulletin "Musicians Union Journal".

Nations of the musicians' unions entered into Agreement of Friendship with MUJ:

The United Kingdom, Australia, South Korea, Hungary, the United States etc.

The number of MUJ members: about 6,000 in total

The number of the members specialised in Classical Music: about 2,500
members of almost all Japanese orchestras; conductors; soloists; members or free-lance players for chamber music groups, etc.; orchestra extras
The number of the members specialised in Jazz and Popular Music: about 2,500recording
musicians; members of main big bands and groups; solo musicians; free-lance instrumentalists
The number of the members in Other Genres: about 800
composers; arrangers; solo vocalists; musicians working for hotels and clubs; educators for music colleges and teachers' colleges; instructors for private music lessons at home or in classroom, etc.
Miscellaneous: about 200
professionals who prepare individual parts from a full score; clerks for orchestras; others in music-related businesses

Advisers:

  • Ｊｕｒｏ　Ａｏｋｉ（cellinst)
  • Toshiko Akiyoshi(jazz pianist)
  • Takao Okamura (opera singer)
  • Shigeaki Saegusa (composer)
  • Michihiko Hagiwara (ex-Director of Sogakudo Concert Hall)
  • Ｔｏｒｕ　Ｆｕｎａｍｕｒａ（ｃｏｍｐｏｓｅｒ）
  • Norio Maeda (composer, arranger)

 

    (in order to Japanese syllabary)
Legal Advisors:
Tokyo Law Firm (30 specialist lawyers)
Taniguchi General Law Firm
Accounting Counselor:
Mikio Shimizu (certified public accountant and licensed tax accountant)
Domestic Organizations with which MUJ participates:
FIM(International Federation of Musicians)
GEIDANKYO (Japan Council of Performers' Organizations)
This council consists of 60,000 members of 59 organizations for performing artists (musicians, actors, dancers, variety artists, etc.)
MIC-Unions (Japan Congress of Mass Media, Information and Cultural Workers' Unions)
This congress consists of 100,000 members of 9 unions for workers in newspaper, broadcasting and advertising industries and music-related companies.

MUJ Head Office:

Geinokadensha. 2nd Floor, 6-12-30 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0023 Tel: +81-3-5909-3062 Fax: +81-3-5909-3063

MUJ Local Branches:

Hokkaido Branch:
2-4-1-107,nakanoshimaichizyou,Toyohira-ku, Sapporo-shi, 062-0921
Tel: 011-842-0936 Fax: 011-842-0936
Tohoku Branch:
1-14-30 Ichiban-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai-shi, 980-0811
Tel: 022-262-5295 Fax: 022-262-5295
Kanto Branch:
Geinokadensha. 2nd Floor, 6-12-30 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0023
Tel: 03-5983-0075 Fax: 03-5983-1170
Chubu Branch:
3-18-12-4A, Marunouchi, Naka-ku, Nagoya-shi, 460-0002
Tel: 052-961-1651 Fax: 052-961-1652
Kansai Branch:
1-2-1-2409, Benten, Minato-ku, Osaka-si, 552-0007
Tel: 06-577-1588 Fax: 06-577-1590
Chugoku-Shikoku Branch:
2-6-10-207, Honkawa-cho, Naka-ku, Hiroshima-shi, 730-0802
Tel: 082-292-3762 Fax: 082-292-3762
Kyusyu Branch:
1-31-33, Maizuru, Chuoh-ku, Fukuoka-shi, 810-0073
Tel: 092-721-4221 Fax: 092-721-4221