http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2014/08/28/338622840/how-the-kung-fu-fighting-melody-came-to-represent-asia
There's a tune that you've probably heard throughout your life. It's nine notes long, and it's almost always used to signal that something vaguely Asian is happening or is about to happen.Also:
http://chinoiserie.atspace.com/
I don't know, it doesn't seem a mystery to me. Here's an old traditional Japanese folk song: "Shin Kiso Bushi".