Seiko Instruments Inc. (Abbreviation: SII; President, COO & CFO: Yukihiko Chayama; Head Office: 1-8 Nakase, Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture; Tel: 043-211-1111) will hold “The First International Electronic Dictionary Pop Song Translation Competition for High School Students – 2004,” calling all high school students to creatively translate pop hit songs from the 1970s and 80s and submit their translations between April 1 and September 10, 2004.
SII has been involved in the sale of electronic dictionaries since the latter half of the 1980s, and has continued to enjoy much popularity with their product as an instrument for work and study. “The First International Electronic Dictionary Pop Song Translation Competition for High School Students” is designed to provide high school students – the frequent user of the electronic dictionary for study – with an opportunity to further enjoy the product. The competition is open to any person who is a high school student as of April 1, 2004, and is 20 years of age or younger.
This competition allows entrants to choose from a selection of great hits of the 1970s and 80s that are still popular today, including Blondie’s “Call Me,” calling for translations from the unique perspective of the high school student of the 21st Century. Without the “right answer” prepared in advance, SII hopes to encourage creative thought, creation and expression based on freethinking, thereby providing entrants with the opportunity to realize the new language and communication skills that will be required in the society of the future.
There are two sections of the competition: the “Phrase Section” where entrants can translate the first verse of the song, “Sukiyaki”, and a “Freestyle Section” where they can translate a whole song, including the title. The translations will be evaluated by special judges including the music reviewer Reiko Yukawa, and the winners will be announced in November 2004. The top prize winners will go on a one-week study tour in London, England. A total of 214 awards will be presented for both sections of the competition combined. There will also be awards for schools as well, including prizes for the schools with the most entrants.
For details regarding song selections and the application method, visit the special SII Web page (http://sii-dictionary.jp) established on March 1.
Overview: The First International Song Translation Competition for High School Students – 2004
[Entry Qualifications]
Any person who is a high school student as of April 1, 2004 and is 20 years of age or younger
[Sections of the Competition]
(1) Phrase Section: Entrants translate the first verse of the song “Sukiyaki”.
(2) Freestyle Section: Entrants translate the whole song, including the title from their choice from 5 songs.
For the Freestyle Section only, each entrant is permitted to submit a maximum of five entries. Entry submission to both sections of the competition is not permitted. The copyrights of submitted entries shall be attributed to the original author of the song under promoter management. In addition, submitted entries will not be returned.
[Entry Acceptance Period]
April 1 to September 10, 2004 (entries must be postmarked on or before September 10)
[Songs] (Song Title: Artist)
(1) Call Me: Blondie
(2) 19 (Nineteen): Paul Hardcastle
(3) Sukiyaki: Taste of Honey
(4) Shake Your Booty: KC and the Sunshine Band
(5) Kharma Chameleon: Culture Club
[Application Method]
Complete and send the application form or specified paper to the SII administration office by post.
[Evaluation Criteria]
The entries will be evaluated based on English vocabulary proficiency and grammar competence as well as qualities such as sensitivity to the artist’s intention and sentiment, quality of expression, creativity and originality.
[Special Judge]
Reiko Yukawa, Music Reviewer
[Announcement of Winner]
November 2004 (preliminary). An award ceremony will be held at Shinagawa Intercity in November as well.
[Awards]
Phrase Section (VerseTranslation)
·Highest award: A one-week study tour in London, England sponsored by Virgin Atlantic and Ryugaku Journal, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Seiko Instruments Prize, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Mainichi Newspaper Prize, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Toshiba EMI Prize, 1 person
·Special award from judge, 3 persons
·Honorable mention, 100 persons
[Freestyle Section] (Translation of Whole Song)
·Highest award: A one-week study tour in London, England sponsored by Virgin Atlantic and Ryugaku Journal, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Seiko Instruments Prize, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Mainichi Newspaper Prize, 1 person
·Award for excellence: Toshiba EMI Prize, 1 person
·Special award from judge: 3 persons
·Honorable mention, 100 persons
[School Awards]
·School with the most entrants award, 1 school; Top 10 school award, 10 schools (sponsored by Sony Corporation, Fellowes Japan K.K. and King Jim Co., Ltd.)
Host: Seiko Instruments Inc.
Sponsor: Mainichi Newspaper Co., Ltd.
Cooperation: Toshiba EMI Ltd.
Special cooperation: Shinken Advertising Inc.
Co-sponsors: Virgin Atlantic, Ryugaku Journal
Prize co-sponsors: Sony Corporation, Fellowes Japan K.K., King Jim Co., Ltd.
Contact Information
Contest office
TEL: 03-5628-5777
E-mail: info@sii-dictionary.jp