When listening to Japanese Gagaku, it’s best to sit back and enjoy a hypnotic ride into history.
This centuries-old music was born from the fusion of cultures.
“Well, it started as a combination of various factors,” explains Jiro Okuyama, head of the travel company. “First was the import of music from the Chinese mainland and the Korean peninsula. And it blended well with what was already in Japan as traditional Japanese music. First, it had various elements in a good combination. That’s how he provided group, orchestral music. A rich soil on which Gagaku will grow for centuries.”
Gagaku is the oldest form of classical music in Japan.
It was brought to the islands along with Buddhism — and flourished in imperial courts from the 700s.
The musicians wear magnificently detailed costumes and sit within an intricate stage, adding to Gagaku’s brilliance.
Music has a very specific purpose in the imperial household.
“The main role of the Gagaku is to accompany the rituals and actions of the emperor and the imperial family,” says Shogo Anzai, the ensemble’s chief court musician. “Obviously it’s taking a very long time. This music has always accompanied the rituals and actions of the imperial household. A large part of the value is in the fact that we have always served the imperial family. I think these are the main reasons why it took so long. Because our primary purpose is and always has been to serve the imperial family.”
Each orchestra, if you will, consists of 16 musicians.
The instruments are of old design. The shÅ, a bamboo organ, provides the harmony, and the hichiriki, a vertical double-reed flute, provides the melody.
There are dramatic punctuations in the music introduced by two large taiko drums. The effect is complex and haunting. This music was never intended for the general public.
“It has been with the imperial family throughout its history,” says Jiro Okuyama. “Also, Gagaku also served the needs of successive rulers of Japan. Basically, it was music for aristocrats and the highest echelons of Japanese society. It wasn’t really music for the general public.”
The entire set was flown in from Tokyo for this UK performance.
The group also performed traditional Japanese dragon and phoenix dances known as Bugaku.
All the performers – dancers and musicians – were always men.
Shogo Anzai, the chief court musician who has been with the group for 52 years, says there are no plans to change the tradition and add women.
But there are some changes: new men are now allowed to join the group.
“So traditionally there were certain families from which musicians came. The descendants of those families would always be performers,” explains Mr. Anzai.
“But after the Meiji Revolution in 1868, a lot of things changed and they introduced some innovations and got rid of some old traditions. They began allowing people who were not from these traditional musical families to audition to become part of the orchestra. And so today they also have people from the family, who have always provided musicians and they also have people who have joined them because they have passed the audition and are good enough to be part of the ensemble.”
In 2009, UNESCO put Gagaka on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which protects traditions, not places, from disappearing.