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Photo caption: A scene from Act 1 of
Imoseyama Onna Teikin (An Example of Noble Womanhood).
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Let us first consider the history of what might
be termed the two pillars of Bunraku: joruri
and the joruri gidayu-bushi, or joruri
narrative singing. Gidayu-bushi, as can
be glimpsed from its name, was established by Takemoto
Gidayu (1651-1724), and is a special form of vocal
music. From ancient times in Japan, vocal music
was divided into two categories: utai,
or singing, and katari, or reciting and
chanting. In brief, the difference between them
is that utai had definite melodies, rhythms,
and tempo, whereas the main emphasis of katari
was on explaining the plot. Katari took
the tale-chanting style of heikyoku\the
chanting of the Tales of the Heike to biwa
(a lute-like instrument) accompaniment, seen as
the ancestor of narrative arts-to tell its tale.
At the time when heikyoku was very popular,
performers turned to sources other that the Tales
of the Heike, and among them, those who became
known as joruri performers gained much
attention. It is uncertain exactly when joruri
was first born, but it is thought to have been in
about the middle of the Muromachi period (ca. late
fifteenth century). The name joruri derives
from a medieval story called the Tale of Princess
Joruri and the Twelve Guardian Deities; because
the art became so popular, it began to be used to
chant other tales as well, but because of its association
with the tale of Princess Joruri, the form also
became known as joruri. In around the mid-sixteenth
century, the sanshin was brought to Japan
from the Ryukyuan kingdom of Okinawa, and it was
later developed into the shamisen (like
a three-stringed banjo) that came to be used in
the performances\and this caused joruri
to make rapid progress musically. It was at the
end of the sixteenth century that this shamisen
music was first used in the puppet theatre, with
strung marionettes.
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Copyright 2004, by the Japan Arts Council. All
rights reserved.
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