Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Bas Nijenhuis wrote:

But now a little more serious about the longer shakuhachi's
2.4 and 2.7 are the more historical lengths (or 2.6)?

Hi Bas
I wouldn't say 2.4 and 2.7 are particularly historical - as we mentioned over 2.3 are quite modern. But nowadays certain lengths are more common than others. Minyou players often have a whole set in semitone steps, as they need that to accompany different minyou songs and singers. But other players are often limited by money and so may choose just 3 or 4 different lengths. In that case it helps if there are certain ones which are more popular, so your friends also have the same 3 or 4 lengths. So in modern schools 1.6 is often the next popular after 1.8, as it is suitable for some modern pieces such as Haru no Umi. Kinko-ryu players for a longer flute may choose 1.9 or 2.0.

Then other schools such as Yokoyama's may choose 2.4 or 2.7. My understanding of this is that 2.4 is a good deal deeper than 1.8 and so represents a significant step down in pitch and thus significantly different character. It also should be manageable for most Japanese technically. 2.7 is another 2 semitones down from 2.4. That's not as big a step as from 1.8 to 2.4 obviously (5 semitones) but many Japanese find 2.7 their limit and indeed many feel they cannot play as long as 2.7. In fact I'm sure they could if they tried for long enough, and I know a guy who is short even for Japanese standards who plays a straight holed 3.0. But generally 2.7 is a good length to aim for here is one likes long shakuhachi.

The above 2.4 and 2.7 lengths have bottom notes of A and G. That is, for the shakuhachi commonly used by these schools, A and G most closely correspond to lengths 2.4 and 2.7. So another reason for choosing these lengths as standard may be a preference for A and G. Perhaps they are more commonly used for modern compositions than other near lengths? and may be good choices for duets and trios using different lengths.

You mentioned 2.6. That is the standard length for Tani-ha. Tani-ha was created by Nishimura Koku (who passed away in 2002), and so again represents a new style. Their instruments are very fat, and so the pitch of their 2.6 instruments is often near G. So in fact they are somewhat equivalent to other schools' 2.7 instruments. As Tani-ha don't play with other instruments, they need not worry so much about being set to any particular note, so their instruments may vary in tuning.

Bas Nijenhuis wrote:

I also think as was stated in this thread, length alters a song. Are longer flutes not better suited for more slow songs due to their physics?

Yes I think so. I mentioned Ajikan, as it is a very energetic piece with very fast and elaborate techniques. This becomes very difficult on a longer shakuhachi and may not suit it. I have posted these links elsewhere on the forum but I'll post them here again to illustrate:
Miyagawa Nyozan:
http://www.sepia.dti.ne.jp/shakuhachi/m … ajikan.mp3

Nishimura Koku:
http://www.komuso2.com/audio/636%20---%20Track%202.mp3

The first is Miyagawa playing, who composed the piece. Tani Kyochiku learned it from Miyagawa but played it on a longer shakuhachi, and then taught it to Nishimura. I don't know of any recording of Tani Kyochiku playing it but from the above you can hear how different the style is between Miyagawa and Nishimura. It is also interesting to note that the longer fatter shakuhachi induce a different embouchure. These are easier to play with a more relaxed embouchure.

What I find interesting is that some people now claim that this very relaxed embouchure and slow calm way of playing is "suizen", and that a less relaxed embouchure or playing style is "not suizen". Thus there becomes a division between "music" and "meditation" or "zen". When I encountered this view I found it rather intriguing that whether something is "meditation" or not could be seen to depend on external factors such as embouchure or musical style. This also seemed rather curious if taken in its historical context remembering the playing style from some of the oldest recordings of honkyoku such as Miyagawa Nyozan - fast and vigorous, and highly musical - and to remember that Miyagawa Nyozan himself emphasized the spiritual aspect in his saying "teki zen ken", that "shakuhachi" has the 3 elements of training in shakuhachi flute (teki), meditation (zen) and martial arts (ken). One can also see from examining old notation that the honkyoku have been slowing down gradually so that the way we often play them now may well be much slower than during the Edo period. This applies to Kinko and Myoan alike.

Last edited by Justin (2010-01-17 23:22:57)