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Chant and music
Hayashi-kata (noh musicians). Left to right: taiko, ōtsuzumi (hip drum),
kotsuzumi (shoulder drum), flute.
Hayashi-kata (noh musicians). Left to right: taiko, ōtsuzumi (hip drum),
kotsuzumi (shoulder drum), flute.
Noh is a chanted drama, and a few commentators have dubbed it "Japanese opera."
However, the singing in Noh involves a limited tonal range, with lengthy,
repetitive passages in a narrow dynamic range. Clearly, melody is not at the
center of Noh singing. Still, texts are poetic, relying heavily on the Japanese
seven-five rhythm common to nearly all forms of Japanese poetry, with an economy
of expression, and an abundance of allusion.
It is important to note that the chant is not always performed "in character";
that is, sometimes the actor will speak lines or describe events from the
perspective of another character or even a disinterested narrator. Far from
breaking the rhythm of the performance, this is actually in keeping with the
other-worldy feel of many Noh plays, especially those characterized as mugen.
The chorus is accompanied by four musicians (hayashi-kata): three drummers and a
flautist.
Jo, Ha, Kyū
One of the most subtle performance elements of Noh is that of Jo-ha-kyū, which
originated as the three movements of courtly gagaku. However, rather than simply
dividing a whole into three parts, within Noh the concept incorporates not only
the play itself, but the songs and dances within the play, and even the
individual steps, motions, and sounds that actors and musicians make.
Furthermore, from a higher perspective, the entire traditional Noh program of
five plays also manifests this concept, with the first type play being the jo,
the second, third, and fourth plays the ha (with the second play being referred
to as the jo of the ha, the third as the ha of the ha, and the fourth as the kyū
of the ha), and finally the fifth play the kyū. In general, the jo component is
slow and evocative, and ha component or components detail transgression or the
disordering of the natural way and the natural world, and the kyū resolves the
element with haste or suddenness (note, however, that this only means kyū is
fast in comparison with what came before it, and those unfamiliar with the
concepts of Noh may not even realize the acceleration occurred).
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