JAPANESE MUSIC: The General Overview
INTRODUCTION
Japanese Music, traditional music of Japan, performed by small ensembles of instruments and
voices. Compositions often follow a three-part form called jo-ha-ky, which consists of an
introduction, a scattering effect in the central section, and a rushing effect near the end of the
piece. This form has permeated much of Japanese music and applies to individual musical
phrases as well as to entire compositions. Western-style harmony is not usually present in
Japanese music, which emphasizes melody and rhythm.
MUSIC FOR WORSHIP
The music of Shinto, the ancient Japanese religion, is called kagura (god music). It is used
on formal occasions at shrines or imperial functions and at Shinto folk festivals. Shinto
prayers (norito), recited by a priest, seek purification and blessings. Festival songs and dances
add entertainment for the gods. Shinto ritual music characteristically includes an instrument
called the suzu, a cluster of shaken pellet bells. Drums, flutes, and handheld kane gongs are
typical in festival music. Dancers at these festivals perform inside and outside the shrines,
and their performances are interspersed with chants to the gods.
Buddhist chants (shmy) are written in one of three languages: Sanskrit, Chinese, or
Japanese. Unison or solo lines are sung from notation that indicates conventional
ornamentations, often set in free rhythm with phrases or ritual sections marked off by bells or
percussion instruments. Congregational hymns and prayers in Japanese are simpler than
chants, and more rhythmic. The circular dances (bon-odori) of the Buddhist folk festival (o-
bon) are accompanied by singers and sometimes flute, drum, and shamisen, a three-stringed
lute. Their dance movements are the same for all ages and sexes.
COURT MUSIC
The origins of ancient Japanese court music (gagaku) were noted by the 6th century or earlier
and were categorized in the 9th century as komagaku (Korean and Manchurian music) and
tgaku (Chinese and Indian music). Performances vary from small ritual ensembles to
orchestras of musicians playing woodwind, plucked-string, and percussion instruments. The
winds include flutesthe ryteki, komabue, or kagurabue; short double-reed hichiriki pipes;
and the sh, a mouth organ consisting of 17 bamboo pipes inserted into a wooden bowl with a
mouth hole. The flute and the double-reed pipe play the melody while the mouth organ
provides a cluster of background tones. The stringed instruments are not played in dance
music (bugaku).
Classical Gagaku Music of Japan
Music phrases are marked off by the sounds of a small, horizontal, two-headed drum (kakko
in tgaku, san no tsuzumi in komagaku), a large hanging drum (taiko or tsuridaiko), and a
small gong (shok), as well as by short melodies and arpeggios played on a 4-stringed lute
(biwa) and a 13-stringed zither (koto). Gagaku music utilizes six modes, or scales, of Chinese
origin, all derived from two basic pentatonic (five-note) scales: ryo, D E-flat G A B-flat, plus
F and C as auxiliary pitches; and ritsu, D F G A C, plus auxiliary pitches E-flat and B-flat.
The meters in gagaku music are basically duple (in twos).
DRAMATIC MUSIC
Japanese theatrical music during the early middle Ages was influenced by earlier Buddhist
music and consisted of lute accompaniments to narrations called heikebiwa and of music for
n dramas (see Japanese Drama). The lute accompaniments consist of set melodic and
rhythmic patterns often representing specific emotions or situations. The n music contains
parts for voices as well as for instruments. The actors or a chorus sing while instrumentalists
accompany them on the shoulder drum (ko tsuzumi) and hip drum ( tsuzumi). The entire
instrumental ensemble (called hayashi) also includes a flute (nkan), which signals formal
divisions within the drama, adds color to lyric moments, and accompanies dances, for which
the taiko stick drum may also be used. N music uses named, conventional melodic and
rhythmic patterns within prescribed forms. The drummers vocal calls (kakegoe) are part of
each pattern and may influence the timing of the music.
The most popular form of traditional Japanese theater is kabuki, which began in the early
17th century and was well established by the mid-17th century. Kabuki music makes use of
instrumentalists and singers, most of whom sit at the back of the stage; others remain offstage
to provide sound effects and special incidental music. The main form of dance music in
kabuki is nagauta, performed by the n instrumental group and the shamisen. Among other
kabuki narrative shamisen genres is giday, derived from the famous bunraku puppet-play
tradition (also called jruri). See also Asian Theater.
Ancient instrumental solo and chamber music have disappeared, but after AD 1500 music for
the shamisen, koto, and shakuhachi (end-blown flute) became popular, as did two indigenous
pentatonic scales: the inn, D E-flat G B-flat (D), auxiliary pitches, F and C; and the yo, D F G
A C (D), auxiliary E and B-flat. Originally koto and shamisen music consisted of suites (sets
of instrumental pieces) of short, unrelated songs (kumiuta). Koto music (skyoku) developed
forms that are wholly instrumental (danmono) and others that alternate vocal and
instrumental interludes (jiuta). Shamisen music is of two types: utamano (lyric pieces) and
katarimono (narrative music for kabuki drama or puppet plays). Solo shakuhachi music is
famous for its flexible rhythm and subtle variations of pitch and tone color. Ensembles of
three instruments (sankyoku) contained koto, shamisen (here called sangen), and the
shakuhachi or koky bowed lute. The koto player often sings as well, and other koto parts can
be added.
THE MODERN PERIOD
Western music became a strong influence in Japan after the Meiji emperor took power in
1867, and new forms based on Western models were developed by both traditional and
Western-trained composers. Western music dominated Japanese music education. Many
excellent orchestras, opera companies, and music schools appeared while traditional music
(hgaku) survived independently. In 1946 Suzuki Shinichi combined Japanese and Western
teaching methods and business acumen to create an internationally famous music lesson
industry. At the same time, modernized traditional drum ensembles and shamisen performers
entered the world market.
Among modern Japanese composers, Tru Takemitsu is best known for using Japanese
instruments in a Western manner. His November Steps (1967) is a double concerto for biwa,
shakuhachi, and orchestra. The electronic piece Vocalism AI (1956) evokes the textures of n
drama, while the film music for Kwaidan (1964) abstracts the sounds of a biwa-playing
narrator.
FOLK MUSIC
Japanese folk music shares with the world the need for religious festivals, work, dance, love,
and regional songs. Japan is especially rich in folk theatricals that reflect the history of
ancient rituals and dramas. The Ainu, an indigenous tribe based in northern Japan, maintain
traditions like throat games (rekkukara) that relate to cultures of Siberia and Alaska, while
Okinawan music to the south contains elements of Chinese and Southeast Asian music. By
the 1920s radio had increased the knowledge of regional folk music in Japan and generated
not only stars but also folk song preservation societies (hozonkai) whose goals are to sing
the perfect version of a given song, even competing with other clubs from around the
country. The rise of karaoke in Japan created new competitions for singing all kinds of music.
The constant interplay of new and old Japanese music never stops.
