 One of the most the interesting characteristics of the Tsugaru-shamisen repertoire is what might be termed its cumulative nature.As can be seen from the listing of songs in Group B, newer variants of songs tend to coexist alongside older versions, rather than replacing them.Although the older songs and their shamisen accompaniments or shamisen solo versions have no doubt themselves been somewhat transformed from what they were many decades ago (and they of course were never an entirely uniform to begin with), it remains certain that the “old,” “middle,” and “new” versions are differentiated not merely stylistically but also historically.