When “音” fills a head
Why it is in the set
Because a tune stuck in a head takes up measurable room and there was no other way to say it. It also gave the set a character that is pleasant without being sentimental, which 愛 and 笑 both are in their different ways.
What a head full of it looks like
Walking in time to something nobody else can hear. A song arriving with no prompting and staying for six hours. Finding that you have listened to one album eleven times this week. A head led by 音 is running a soundtrack it did not choose.
Words that use it
音楽 (ongaku, music), 音 (oto, a sound), 足音 (ashioto, footsteps), 本音 (honne, what a person actually thinks — literally their true sound), 音痴 (onchi, being tone deaf).
Kanji it turns up with
推 behind 音 is a band rather than a song. 音 with 走 (running) behind it is somebody with a playlist and a route.
Where “音” comes from
言, to speak, with a line added inside the mouth. Speech with something marked in it: a sound rather than a word.
音 is the sound a thing makes; 声 (koe) is the sound a living throat makes. Japanese keeps them apart where English uses “sound” for both.
音楽 (ongaku) is literally “sound” plus “enjoyment”.
A line you might get for “音”
“The same four bars, all day, uninvited.”
Count the “音” in your own headOthers in “Doing”
“音” is filed under “Doing”. These are the rest of that group.
The 36 kanji
This is entirely a joke and has nothing to do with any real person.