MUSIC
Quarter 4 – Module 4a
Traditional Asian Theater Music
JAPANESE THEATER (KABUKI)
The traditional form of
popular theater began at the end
of the 16th century and soon
became the most successful
theater entertainment in the red-
light districts of the great cities.
Kabuki is a Japanese
traditional theatre art that is
performed in a stylized manner
which combines acting, singing,
and dancing. This rich blend of
music, mime, dance, costume,
and props has been in existence
for almost four centuries. The term Kabuki in modern Japanese means: ka, “song”;
bu, “dance”; and ki, “skill.” It is a highly play that actors show their wide range of
skills in visual and vocal performance. Kabuki was founded in 1603 by Okuni, a
Shinto priestess. She and her troupe of mostly women performed dances and comic
sketches on a temporary stage set up in the dry riverbed of the Komagawa River in
Kyoto. Her troupe gained national recognition and their plays evolved into kabuki
that would later become one of the three major classical theater of Japan.
There are Japanese musical instruments that accompany the Kabuki. These
instruments were already discussed in the 2 nd quarter. Some of the instruments are:
shamisen, tsuzumi, and odaiko.
Shamisen- The most common of kabuki instruments. It is a
plucked stringed instrument.
Source: (DEPED: Music and Arts Learner’s Material 8)
Tsuzumi- An hourglass-shaped drum.
Source: (DEPED: Music and Arts Learner’s Material 8)
Odaiko- A big drum.
Source: (DEPED: Music and Arts Learner’s Material 8)
Vocal Pattern and Techniques:
1) Ipponchōshi or the continuous pattern – used in speeches building up to an
explosive climax in the aragoto (oversize, supernatural, rough hero) style; it
requires an extraordinary breath control that only few experts succeed in
achieving.
2) Nori technique – adapted from the chanting of jōruri, implies a very
sensitive capacity of riding the rhythms of the shamisen (string instrument),
declaiming each accompaniment.
3) Yakuharai technique - the subtle delivery of poetical text written in the
Japanese metrical form of alternating seven and five syllables.
Vocal and Instrumental Features
Dances and movements are accompanied by shamisen music which
collected and popularized a number of aspects from all previous forms of Japanese
music, from gagaku (classic court music imported from China during the 18th
century), kagura (performed in Shinto shrines), nō (chant derives from shōmyō, the
sophisticated and rich tradition of Buddhist chanting), down to the folk songs and
fashionable songs of the day. The most popular shamisen music was called nagauta
(long song) which reached a golden age in the first half of the 19th century as dance
music for the henge mono or quick change pieces. Nagauta music is very flexible,
can be performed by one shamisen or by an entire orchestra of twenty musicians, of
which ten are shamisen players, while other play flutes (fue taken from the nō) and
drums (small drum-kotsuzumi; waist drum-ōtsuzumi; stick drum-taiko).
If you have a smartphone, check out the link below to hear an example of a
Kabuki Performance from Japan.
Track 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9QHX0LTL0w
CHINESE THEATER (PEKING OPERA)
Peking opera is a form of
traditional Chinese theater which
combines music, vocal performance,
mime, dance, and acrobatics. It arose
in the late 18th century and became
fully developed and recognized by the
mid- 19th century. The form was
extremely popular in the Qing Dynasty
court and has come to be regarded as
one of the cultural treasures of China.
Peking opera, also known as the
Beijing opera, still follows traditional Chinese arts in stressing meaning, rather than
precise actions. The opera artists’ goal is to make every performance exceptionally
beautiful in every movement they will make.
Performances are accompanied by music - usually played on three types of
instruments: wind instruments (aerophone), string instruments (chordophone), and
percussion instruments (membranophone or idiophone).
The main instruments are Chinese in origin:
1) Jinghu - a two-stringed instrument played with a bow
2) Yueqin - a four-stringed instrument that is plucked
3) Sanxian - a three-stringed instrument that is also plucked
4) Variety of gongs and cymbals – creates rhythmic and graceful melodies
1. Jinghu 2. Yueqin
3. Sanxian
Vocal and Instrumental Features
The main instruments are Chinese in origin: the jinghu, a two-stringed
instrument played with a bow, the yueqin, a four-stringed instrument that is plucked,
a sanxian, a three-stringed instrument which is also plucked, the suona horn,
Chinese flutes, and a variety of gongs and cymbals. The melodies are rhythmic and
graceful.
The melodies played by the accompaniment mainly fall into three broad
categories. The first is the aria. The arias of Beijing opera can be further divided into
those of the Erhuang and Xipi varieties. An example of an aria is wawadiao, an aria
in the Xipi style that is sung by a young Sheng to indicate heightened emotion. The
second type of melody heard in Beijing opera is the fixed-tune melody, or qupai.
These are instrumental tunes that serve a wider range of purposes than arias.
Examples include the "Water Dragon Tune" (shui long yin), which generally denotes
the arrival of an important person, and "Triple Thrust" (ji san qiang), which may
signal a feast or banquet. The final type of musical accompaniment is the percussion
pattern. Such patterns provide context to the music in ways similar to the fixed-tune
melodies.
For example, there are as many as 48 different percussion patterns that
accompany stage entrances. Each one identifies the entering character by his or her
individual rank and personality.
If you have a smartphone, check out the link below to hear an example of
Peking Opera Performance of China.
Track 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73_9UvNX920
