Appreciate
Outline
Kaiseiraku
Although Kaiseiraku (‘The Blue of the Sea’) belongs to the tōgaku (‘Tang music’) repertoire, it was created in Japan.
On the occasion of a banquet during the reign of Emperor Ninmyō (810–50, r. 833–50), the emperor ordered the musicians on a boat to compose a piece, which they were then to perform on the island in the middle of the lake after they had gone around it three times. It was evidently put together in an improvisatory way, with the flute part by Ōto no Kiyokami (?–839) and the reedpipe hichiriki part by one Harimaro.
There is no dance, so its performance is limited to kangen (‘pipes and strings’) style.
Structure of the piece
Kaiseiraku takes the metrical form haya-yahyōshi hyōshi-jū (10 repetitions of a cycle of 8 measures of 4/4).
Although in most pieces with this metrical form the first strong beat of the large drum taiko falls on the first beat of the fifth measure, in this piece it falls on the first beat of the sixth measure. This is the case with only two pieces in the modern repertoire: this piece and Ringa.
Points for appreciation
The interweaving relationship between the melodic instruments in this piece is complex and stylish, to such an extent as to make one wonder whether it was really created as a result of improvisation.
As well this beautiful interaction between the melodies, another highlight of the piece is the melancholy melody performed by the transverse flute ryūteki, at the beginning.
