Japanese Musical Inst. And Terms

Front 1

Koto

Back 1

Long, thirteen-stringed plucked zither with moveable bridges.

Front 2

Shamisen

Back 2

Three-stringed, long-necked, fret-less lute, with skin covered sound box. Plucked with a large plectrum

Front 3

Wagon

Back 3

Six-stringed zither.

Front 4

Gaku-so

Back 4

Thirteen-stringed zither(predecessor of koto).

Front 5

Biwa

Back 5

Pear-shaped lute with four strings and four frets played with a samll plectrum.

Front 6

Fue

Back 6

Horizontal flute.

Front 7

Shakuhachi

Back 7

End-blown flute with four fingerholes, one thumbhole, and a notch cut in the lip.

Front 8

Nohkan

Back 8

Horizontal flute associated with noh drama. Seven fingerholes and a mouth hole.

Front 9

Ryuteki

Back 9

Large, seven-holed, horizontal flute of Chinese origin associated with gagaku.

Front 10

Kagura-bue

Back 10

Transverse bamboo flute with six fingerholes.

Front 11

Koma-bue

Back 11

Small, six-holed bamboo flute of Korean origin.

Front 12

Hichiriki

Back 12

Short double-reed bamboo oboe with piercing sound.

Front 13

Sho

Back 13

Mouth organ with seventeen reed pipes similar to the Chinese Sheng.

Front 14

O-daiko

Back 14

Large drum

Front 15

Ko-tsuzumi

Back 15

Small hourglass-shaped, double-headed drum, held on the right shoulder. The ropes that hold the heads to the body may be squeezed to raise the pitch.

Front 16

O-tsuzumi

Back 16

Slightly larger hourglass-shaped, double-headed drum held on the left hip. The head is kept at maximum tension and the player wears hard thimbles.

Front 17

Taiko

Back 17

Shallow barrel-shaped, double-headed drum, placed on a special stand for better resonance and played with two thick sticks.

Front 18

Da-daiko

Back 18

Hige drum struck with two thick sticks, used only in bugaku.

Front 19

Tsuri-daiko

Back 19

Suspended double-headed drum, one of which is struck with two sticks.

Front 20

Kakko

Back 20

Small double-headed drum played with thin sticks.

Front 21

San-no-tsuzumi

Back 21

Double-headed, hourglass-shaped drum of Korean origin; one head is struck.

Front 22

Shakubyoshi

Back 22

Pair of wooden clappers.

Front 23

Shoku

Back 23

Small suspended gong played with two sticks.

Front 24

Court and Ritual genres:

Back 24

1)Shomyo-Buddist
2)Kagura-Shinto
3)Gagaku-Classical
-komagaku
-togaku
4)Bugaku-gagaku acc. dance

Front 25

Shomyo

Back 25

Buddist chant of Japanese Court and ritual genres.

Front 26

Kagura

Back 26

Shinto music of Japanese Court and Ritual genres.

Front 27

Gagaku

Back 27

"elegant music"; instrumental music of the Imerial court. Its repertoire is didvided into two large categories: komagaku, and togaku.

Front 28

Bugaku

Back 28

Gagaku music used to acc. dance of the court and ritual genres.

Front 29

Theatrical genres:

Back 29

1)Noh
2)Kabuki
3)Bunraku

Front 30

Noh

Back 30

Japanese classical drama associated w/ the samuri class; highly stylized and refined; austerity reflects strong influence of Buddism, not flashy, but with discipline.

Front 31

Kabuki

Back 31

main form of musical theater that has flashy costumes and associated with the townspeople.

Front 32

Bunraku

Back 32

Puppet theater of wooden dolls that are 2/3 life-size, associated with the townspeople.

Front 33

Traditional lyric and instrumental music: HOGAKU

Back 33

chamber koto music
1)Sokyaku
2)Jiuta
3)Shamisen

Front 34

Sokyoku and types

Back 34

Koto music, (use of Chinese like Sheng zither)
1)Kumiuta-song set(Uta)-text not related.
-song cycle-text and theme related
2)Danmoto- koto w/o voice
-sectional peices-(Dan)uses no form structure

Front 35

Jiuta

Back 35

of traditional Japanese Hogaku, features koto too, played by a trio(Sankyoku: koto, shamisen, shakuhachi)