Articles
Translations and misc writing
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Commentary on Tsuru no Sugomori
by Watazumi Dōso
Translated by Lindsay Dugan
Tsuru no Sugomori is one of the most famous pieces in the honkyoku repertoire. The crane is a sacred icon in Japanese culture, and is frequently discussed in Buddhist texts.
Lindsay Dugan
May 2020
The Great Tōhoku Earthquake, 2011. I was just leaving my dormitory to go to a lesson when it started. As I locked the door, I glanced out the window. Power lines were whipping around, making an audible sound. I knew then that it was no ordinary earthquake.
Lindsay Dugan
May 2020
Fudaiji was a komusō temple in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture. Among the honkyoku transmitted there were Hon Shirabe (or Chōshi), and Kyorei. After the Fuke sect was abolished in 1871, the temple was used as an elementary school. In the school was an organ, related to the origins of two companies of which you may have heard...
Variations of Tsuru no Sugomori
by Kanda Kayu
Translated and edited by Lindsay Dugan
Pieces related to Tsuru no Sugomori are recognisable as a group from the mid 17th century onwards. The 1664 publication Itotake Shoshinshū by Nakamura Sosan provides the earliest description of the koro koro technique, which is one of the defining characteristics of the so-called ‘crane pieces’.
by Kanda Kayu
Translated and edited by Lindsay Dugan
Sagariha was originally a musical accompaniment in Nō for a dance that represented nymphs descending from heaven. It was performed on fue, and was accompanied by taiko percussion in a calm chōshi called wataribyōshi.
Lindsay Dugan
Shakuhachi
