Ensemble Nipponia - Japan Traditional Vocal and Instrumental Music

Miyata Kōhachirō
Elektra Nonesuch Records - 9 72072-2
1976

Track	Title	Kanji	Length	Artist
1	Kumoi Jishi	雲井獅子	05'43	Shakuhachi: Miyata Kōhachirō
	This shakuhachi solo is played on a 2.1-foot [ed. actually 1.8] instrument, and is characteristic of meditational music. The title is somewhat unclear; while "jishi" refers to a lion dance, so many diverse pieces include that word in their title that the connection is probably even more tenuous than that of an 18th-century Western dance suite to actual dancing. "Kumoi" means sky, although in literary usage the term implies a reference to the palace, or to court circles. In this piece it seems likely that the term refers to one of the koto tunings, a not infrequent case of influence between genres.
2	Ozatsuma	大薩摩	02'47
	This is one of two solo shamisen excerpts from Nagauta - the most important musical portion of Kabuki theater. Both excerpts typify the occasional interludes without voice, in which the shamisen is played in a most virtuosic manner. These interludes tend to come at the peak of dramatic tension; often several players perform in perfect unison ensemble. Ozatsuma is the name of the shamisen technique exemplified here.
3	Ogi no Mato	扇の的	10'44
	The Folding Fan as a Target This famous piece for voice and biwa is based on a complex legend similar to that of William Tell, in which a folding fan, instead of the famous Swiss apple, serves as the target. Most biwa music is quite ancient. Voice and instrument in the narrative chants tend to complement each other as in Western recitative; the large ornamental leaps for the voice are characteristic of the genre.
4	Edo Komoriuta	江戸子守唄	03'47	Shakuhachi: Miyata Kōhachirō
	The original melody of this piece is a lullaby from the Edo period (Edo was the name for Tokyo before it became the capital of Japan). Although similar to the melodic construction of other types of music from the same period, its simple phrases reveal a folk origin. This arrangement for six players is by the Ensemble's artistic director, Minoru Miki.
5	Godan Ginuta	五段砧	12'00
	A frequently performed koto duet from the mid-19th century, this formally constructed work features angular rhythms that derive from the sound of the kinuta (a set of wooden blocks for beating silk). "Godan" means "five variations." The Japanese variation technique was developed in the 17th century, originating With the famous piece Rokudan no Shirabe; it includes not only modifications and decorations of the basic theme, but also compression and expansion of thematic materials. The last variation of Godan ginuta betrays its debt to the earlier Rokudan by including the entire first section of Rokudan in the second koto part, not unlike a cantus firmus in a Renaissance choral work.
6	Esashi Oiwake	江差追分	02'42	Shakuhachi: Miyata Kōhachirō
	This is one of several solo shakuhachi works that differ widely from one performer to the next because of the absence of a tradition of written notation. It is also one of the small number of shakuhachi pieces that are not religious in orientation; here, the melodic line shows a close connection to folk material.
7	Mushi no Aikata		02'31
	Insect Interlude In this second of the Nagauta excerpts for shamisen solo, the wide range of musical devices poses an interpretative challenge to the performer. Although some of the techniques heard here (such as repetition of motives, extreme range, and glissandi) are typical of the solo interludes, the dramatic pauses and frequent shifts of tempo are more often associated with the vocal sections.
8	Azuma Jishi	吾妻獅子	05'15	Shakuhachi: Miyata Kōhachirō
	Azuma Lion Dance This is an excerpt from a late- 18th-century composition that lasts 25 minutes in its entirety Composed originally for voice and koto, it is heard here in a version that also includes shamisen and shakuhachi; the three instruments represent one of the most popular instrumental combinations in Japanese music. This work also makes use of a somewhat modified form of the first variation of Rokudan - heard at the first entrance of the shakuhachi, which plays from the shakuhachi transcription of Rokudan, rather than the original koto version.