English language version (expanded translation) of the essay I wrote called "The Appeal of Traditional Japanese Music"

Below is the long delayed translation (with requisite expansion) of the piece I wrote in Japanese originally call 邦楽の魅力（https://kyoto-inside-out.blogspot.com/search?q=%E9%82%A6%E6%A5%BD%E3%81%AE%E9%AD%85%E5%8A%9B) to commemorate the opening of the Facebook page for this blog, which had until recently been hijacked by one of the defendants (Jamie Roughan) in the lawsuit I had to file against the CIA. The Facebook page should be at: https://www.facebook.com/Kyoto-Inside-Out-838873549542701/ 

There's more to be revealed about the background of this essay and the degeneration of the group in Nara (after Matsumura Sensei's death), in due course. Hell, there probably a lawsuit in there, but one can only do so much without an army of lawyers. 

In any case, I hope that some of you find this informative. 

(Note: I've noticed that the macros ("ō") don't get properly rendered by Google's character processor for the font I used in the main body of the text, so I will have to figure that out and eventually replace those, etc.)

The Appeal of the Traditional 
Japanese Music of the 
Koto (Sō-kyoku), 
Shamisen (Ji-uta), and

Kinko-ryu (Kinko-school) Shakuhachi

The title of this essay might evoke expectations of words dancing across the page like the lion in a Shishi dance after the curtain opens to a scattered flurry of notes of a koto “chirashi” (a scattering stroke across the strings of the koto). In actuality, it is more of an academic essay than a dalliance in poetics.

To a Japanese, it would be known that the meaning of the character “邦” (hō) in the term “hō-gaku” means “country”. Hō-gaku (“邦楽” is a sort of an umbrella term for traditional Japanese music, and could be literally translated as “music of the country” (or “nation”, perhaps). To anyone unfamiliar with the tradition, however, such a term is vague (abstruse, if you like) and calls for some unpacking.

As an island nation some distance from the continent, even after Chinese writing—along with Confucianism, Buddhism, etc.—was introduced to the archipelago from the continent, Japan enjoyed a long period during which it followed its own course, developing with relatively little interaction with other countries.

A variety of types of Japanese music forms from ancient times, starting with “gagaku” (court music) are known through descriptions recorded in varies writings. Gagaku court music originated in ancient China, and was transmitted to Korea and Japan, both of which further developed the form and built independent branches onto the genre, so there are three types. A number of types of other (some related) Japanese music forms 今謡 (kon-yō), 催馬楽(“Saibara”, and this one has an English language Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saibara)) are known from the Nara and Heian periods.

From a historical perspective (and for the sake of brevity), assuming the premise that Japan was governed by the court through the Heian period, the demise of which saw the establishment of first shogunate in Kamakura, and a number of new cultural forms developed—including music—and assumed currency, including what some refer to as “Kamakura Buddhism” (e.g., Pure Land Buddhism, Nichiren Buddhism, Soto Zen Buddhism), during the ensuing transition wrought by historic upheaval. While the court music tradition continued to be practiced and transmitted in Kyoto—where the court remained intact relegated to a largely a ceremonial role—in broader society new forms of music also arose, marking the transition seeing the rise of so-called warrior (samurai) rule (the term ‘bakufu’ literally means “tent government”, as in a military encampment), including the Biwa (a type of lute) tradition of recitation of the Tale of the Heike (referred to as “Heike Biwa”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biwa), for example, one of the great samurai kinship groups of the Heian period.

The Heike Biwa tradition represents a form of music in which the content being transmitted is derived from and recants actual historical events, and in Japanese terms, represented a new form of orally transmitted (“kataribe”: story teller) culture. Early forms of oral transmission are known (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieda_no_Are) through the historical record. Here, as is true for the koto and shakuhachi as well, the Japanese biwa tradition was developed over the course of time accompanied by modifications made to the original form of the instrument introduced with the gagaku orchestra from China.

Buddhism was transmitted to the masses during the Kamakura period by monks mostly from the Tendai sect based on Mt. Hei to the north east of Kyoto who formed new sects with a more narrow focus based on one or another teaching primarily from the Lotus sutra, or a singular form of practice. The founder of the Kamakura Bakufu, Shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_Yoritomo), was responsible for the eventual establishment of the first Zen temple in Kyoto, the Rinzai Zen temple Kennin-ji (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennin-ji), through his support (and that of his wife and son’s) for the Buddhist monk Eisai (also known as Yosai: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eisai). Eisai had met resistance from other sectarians in Kyoto after he’d established the first Zen temple in the country in Kyushu upon returning from China. Yoritomo offered support, inviting him to Kamakura, where he established another Rinzai Zen temple there, before returning to Kyoto to establish Kennin-ji 2 years after Yoritomo’s death. The most frequently seen painting that is said to be of Yoritomo is disputed by some art historians. The oldest known wooden sculptures of Yoritomo and his son: http://welcome-kanto.jp/kanto100/?p=594 better capture the spirit of the times and personages: http://www.kai-zenkoji.or.jp/3/3_2.html. They are housed at a temple called Kai Zenko-ji in Yamanashi Prefecture: https://4travel.jp/travelogue/10918775, https://en.japantravel.com/yamanashi/kai-zenkoji/14765#browser (English). There is only one piece (a Yamada-ryu composition based on a Noh play) that mentions Minamoto no Yoritomo in relation to a battle led by his younger half-brother, Minamoto no Yoshitsune (not mentioned in the composition), a heroic and tragic figure who is one of the most revered samurai in Japan.

In the Muromachi period, other Rinzai Zen temples were likewise established by the leaders of the shogunate, including Tenryu-ji (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenry%C5%AB-ji) by Ashikaga no Takauji (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashikaga_Takauji), and Shoukoku-ji (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sh%C5%8Dkoku-ji) by Ashikaga no Yoshimitsu. Like Minamoto no Yoritomo, the Ashikaga shoguns were also members of the Seiwa Genji kinship group.”Genji” (源氏) is another reading for the characters that mean “Minamoto kinship group", in this case, descendants of the emperor Seiwa. The Muromachi saw the return of the government to Kyoto, and was a period of cultural flourishment in Kyoto. It was during the Muromachi period that, with the support of Ashikaga no Yoshimitsu (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashikaga_Yoshimitsu) and contributions of a coterie of scholarly monks from the Tendai sect, learned recluses, etc., he’d gathered, that the sarugaku tradition was developed into the Noh theater.

The Noh is a multifaceted theater form that incorporates influences from ancient Bugaku and Kagura dance through to the renga poetic tradition (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renga), and is itself and artistic tradition that embodies the syncretic current (Shinbutsu-shūgō: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinbutsu-sh%C5%ABg%C5%8D) running through Japanese religion practically since the introduction of Buddhism, and formally articulated during the time of Saicho (Tendai Buddhism) and Kukai (Shingon Buddhism) in the doctrinal formulation known as “honji-suijaku” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honji_suijaku). In the Noh, thematic content from earlier periods is taken up as the subject matter of many of the works, including myths, plays about historical figures, stories taken from the Tale of Genji, the Tale of the Heike, etc. In other words, the art form of the Noh that flourished in Kyoto during the Muromachi period wove together cultural threads from earlier periods into new textiles that continue to adorn the country into the present.

Taking a little liberty in interpreting Japanese cultural history, I am inclined to further characterize the above-mentioned weaving of various threads from the past into a new cloth that flourished during the Muromachi period as representing a form of cultural recycling. That sounds crude (and less poetic than weaving brocade, etc.), but it also means that the culture themes and subject matter from that past that has been taken up in a new form is given new life and made the culture of the generation that has preserved the heritage in the new form. It represents both continuity and dynamic adaptation to changing circumstances, and keeps the cultural tradition viable. But I digress.

To return to the theme of this essay, the music I’ve been studying for the past 18 years represents another instantiation of the type found in the Noh. In fact, there are numerous ensemble piece compositions that are based on Noh plays. But the tradition is not static. Since music is primarily sound, and does not embody the visual representation found in the Noh, there is a wider girth for picking up material from the past to weave into new compositions. There are pieces that take their inspiration from The Tale of Ise, for example, and other poetic works. The lyrics of one of the most renowned pieces, “Ya-e-goromo” (Eight-layer Kimono) comprise 5 seasonal verses on the theme of kimono (garments) taken from one of the poetry anthology in the form consisting of one poem each by a hundred poets (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogura_Hyakunin_Isshu). The composition takes the verses related to a common theme and integrates them into a coherent current flowing into the present through the past on the vehicle of the music.

In both the Noh and the ensemble piece compositions for koto and shamisen, there is a Buddhist undercurrent, and the music is a expedient/skillful means (“方便” (hō-ben) Upaya: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upaya) that embodies Buddhist thought. In fact, like the Biwa-hoshi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biwa_h%C5%8Dshi), the composers of the pieces were blind Buddhist monks referred to as “kengyo”; e.g.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yatsuhashi_Kengyo, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akashi_Kakuichi, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiuta, https://www.britannica.com/art/Japanese-music/Samisen-music.

The original pieces played on the shakuhachi were developed by Zen priests as a meditative practice claimed to be developed in tribute to the teachings of Fuke Zenji (a Chinese monk (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puhua) known to us solely through the description of him in the Record of Linji (Japanese, “Rinzai”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linji_Yixuan). As can be seen from the above, Zen was a religious persuasion that had been fostered in Japan by consecutive ruling members of the ruling samurai kinship group that founded the Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates. The Tokugawa continued this tradition by supporting the development of shakuhachi as a cultural coherent cultural form. After it had secured the peace, ending the period during which the entire country had been at war for a protracted period, the Tokugawa Bakufu decided to decommission many samurai and promote more civilian occupations and cultural activities. One aspect of those efforts saw decommissioned samurai who had practiced the shakuhachi as a Zen practice derived from the life and teachings of Chinese monk Fuke Zenji (a contemporary of Rinzai Zenji) being given exclusive the exclusive right to practice the instrument as Buddhist monks called komuso who were licensed to roam the country from temple to temple practicing the shakuhachi and transmitting Buddhist teachings through the music as an expedient means, collecting alms for sustenance. One individual from the fiefdom of Kuroda in Kyushu who was actually the son of the Daimyo (chief) of the feudal domain was granted permission to travel as such a komuso and visit the various associated temples throughout the country and assemble the pieces into a coherent repertoire, thus giving rise to the 36 pieces in the repertoire of the Kinko-ryu honkyoku (本曲).

As seen in the Wikipedia article for Puhua (Fuke Zenji), it has been suggested that Ikkyu Zenji (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikky%C5%AB), a Zen monk in Kyoto during the Muromachi period who was also involved with the scholarly monks connected to the Noh was associated with the development of a following in Japan for Fuke Zenji. It has also been suggested that Ikkyu was the composer of one or more of the 3 “ancient pieces” in the 36-piece Kinko-ryu honkyoku repertoire. There is also a reference in a note by Noh playwright Zeami that there had been a Noh play including the shakuhachi (by Zoami).

The original pieces for the shakuhachi were not developed as music, however, but as a form of Zen practice, with pieces embodying various aspects of Buddhist thought, teachings, and practice. So they were a form of practice, but one attaining a certain level of mastery could then transmit the culture embodied in the pieces by performing them in the presence of others, including members of the general populace. Accordingly, the shakuhachi honkyoku represent a form of religious music, like the music accompanying Shinto kagura (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kagura), for example, and is studied as such by scholars. In this regard, the umbrella term hō-gaku encompasses a multiplicity of diverse genres including both religious and secular music.

The constraints placed on playing the shakuhachi during the early Edo period were eventually relaxed, with more people being permitted to teach and take up studying the honkyoku repertoire, and eventually performing in a three-instrument ensemble (三曲: “san-kyoku”) with the koto and shamisen in place of a third string instrument that had originally been a part of the ensemble (the kokyu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koky%C5%AB), which was replaced by the shakuhachi. The shakuhachi thus came to be used in two genres, both of which has developed as cultural forms associated with Buddhism, which had spread throughout Japanese society in diverse forms stemming from the social upheaval that ensued with the end of the Heian period, and particularly Rinzai Zen, which embraces a diverse range of skillful/expedient means (Upaya). Regarding the connection of Kyoto, even though the ensemble music was a cultural form that flourished during the Edo period, it bears noting that as a cultural form it was referred to as “kamigata” (上方) culture,; that is, culture of the capital—Kyoto—which continued to occupy a central position as cultural referent. Edo was the administrative center of the country, but the capital was still considered to be Kyoto, the seat of the court, the city of residence of many of the composers, and a setting drawn upon by a significant number of compositions. Though only tangentially taken up here, it is a historical distinction with respect to the cultural continuity of Japan.

While the ensembles pieces were imbued with Buddhist thought and values, unlike the shakuhachi honkyoku, they were musical compositions from the start, and also embodied elements of Shinto thought in a syncretic manner. That is, the composer’s emotions are embedded in the lyrical and melodical aspects of the composition, and the performers interpret the composition aiming to move the emotions of the listener in a manner that resonates. The lyrics often encompass historical material, and the music is based on the composer’s impression and emotional reception of the material he wishes to convey by re-presenting the material through the artwork that is the composition. With respect to religious syncretism, it bears connecting the dots explicitly here (for the first time in discussing this central aspect of my research) that multiple forms of Japanese culture manifesting syncretism were fostered by personages associated with supporting Rinzai Zen. In my view, that can be attributed to the liberal disposition of Rinzai Zen with respect to adapting various cultural forms as skillful/expedient means.

Some ensemble compositions recant the lives of historical figures and or the course of historical events, but as described above, the lyrics themselves almost invariably encompass history not only in the narrow sense of the word, but in the broad sense of embodying and conveying the development and unfolding of language and culture over time through the ages. The music offers the listener an encounter with various aspects of culture in a multifaceted manner. In addition to the example of Ya-e-goromo described above, there are several pieces focusing on the life and poetry of Ono no Komachi (e.g., Seven poems by Komachi: “七小町” (Nana Komachi): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ono_no_Komachi) of the Heian period, and pieces conveying the atmosphere of a renowned place, such as the piece Kyoto in the Spring (“都の春” (Miyako-no-haru)).

One illustrative example of a historic personage that has reappeared during the course of my study of both music and history is Minamoto no Toru (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_T%C5%8Dru). There is a Noh play about him as well as an ensemble piece based on the Noh play. He was the son of Emperor Saga who had been removed from the line of imperial succession and given the name Minamoto. But when there was no one of age to assume the throne and he was in his prime, it is said that he put himself forward as a candidate, but was rejected by the regent, Fujiwara no Mototsune, who proceeded to place his 7 year old nephew on the throne Emperor Yozei (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Y%C5%8Dzei). That proved to be something of a disaster, whereupon Emperor Koko succeeded to the throne, and Fujiwara no Mototsune was compelled to grant his wish that his son--whom had also been removed from the line of imperial succession and given the name Minamoto no Sadami--be named his successor, which Mototsune accomplished by having his half sister adopt adopt him, and he eventually became the emperor Uda (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Uda). Emperor Uda recruited as ministers to his court the luminary Sugawara no Michizane (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugawara_no_Michizane) as well as Minamoto no Toru, who served in the high office of Minister of the Left. Minamoto no Toru is said to have been one of the models for the fictional character Hikaru Genji in The Tale of Genji. This is an example where studying history and religion as well as culture eventually resulted in synergy when the two converged. 

In short, one finds coexisting in the ensemble pieces the thought as well as aesthetics of the historical period and content incorporated in the composition. Like the Noh, most conspicuously, the Ji-uta and So-kyoku ensemble pieces represent a genre that incorporates ‘period pieces’, so to speak, into evolved period pieces by taking up thematic content from a past era and again makes it present in a form more accessible to people in the current era. The rhythms and melodies of the pieces put people in touch with sensibilities of people of a different era by means of a mode of transmission that is both evolved in a continuum and innovative.

This is a stark contrast to the products marketed as culture in the mass media that represent consumption in the present as the singular, one-dimensional common theme. The mass media thereby promotes a contrary values system which discards all forms of historical context. Japanese traditional music of the type described above works to the opposite effect, expanding people’s historical and cultural horizons, cultivating resonance with the past in the present. Similar expressions can be found in the traditional music of other cultures. The example of Japan is of particular note owing to its long development relatively undisturbed by external cultural influence, so the dynamic of the form of change and repetition makes for an interesting study.