Koto Music – Western or Not?

Koto Music – Western or Not? Traditional Japanese music called Koto has survived some rough history and the country continues to make variations of the tradition as it attempts to use Western music concepts and different versions of the koto with more strings. This paper will briefly discuss the history of Japanese music in relation to the koto instrument as well as the similarities and differences between koto music and Western art music.
The koto is Japanese traditional musical stringed instrument very similar to the Chinese instrument called a Zheng which is made from wood and originally had five strings made from silk or plastic. There were twelve strings by the time the koto was first imported to Japan from China and today they can range from thirteen to twenty-five strings. It can be used as a solo instrument or it can be played together with other kotos in a chamber music format (http://jtrad.columbia.jp/eng/inst.html).
The Japanese history that surrounds the music of the koto encompasses about 1200 years. Around the 8th century, the koto was used mostly in what is the Western equivalent of an orchestra called Gagaku. This type of traditional court music as it was known in those days consisted of mostly wind and string instruments accompanied by percussion and dancers (http://jtrad.columbia.jp/eng/g_gagaku.html). During the next period in Japanese history, known as the Heian period (794-1185), the koto was still being played in the Gagaku but was being modified and further developed. The Chinese government was becoming less influential and this gave way for new Japanese musicians to evolve during the rest of the period.
The next two periods known as the Kamakura period (1185-1333) and the Ashikaga period (1333-1568) did not really have any music in which the koto was highlighted. This was mostly due to wars and the increase of the Buddhism religion into the country (Malm, W., p. 37). There was other music that developed in this time period that began to leave traditional koto music behind but other forms of music and instruments became popular. The koto was still used for some special religious ceremonies but not much else during this time.
During the 17th century, a composer by the name of Yatsuhashi Kengyo (1614-1685) brought the music of the koto back into the spotlight. He is considered to be the father of modern koto music. He invented new ways to tune the instrument and modified it for musical expansion to the general public outside of the courts which included Jiuta, the addition of poetry signing. This new form of koto began to be taught to the Japanese people, especially the young daughters of the merchants. He also developed different scales such as the Hirajoshi and the Insen (http://www.howmusicworks.org/hmw408.asp).
This led the way for future musicians and composers to further enhance the instrument and its sound. A pupil of Yatsuhashi, Ikuta Kengyo (1656-1715) developed a new style of koto by mixing it with another instrument called the shamisen. The three-string banjo was played with the koto in duet form which at one time was banned by previous players due to fear of degradation of the koto sound (Malm, W., p. 200). Again, new tunings were developed which helped Kengyo start the Ikuta School for koto music to further spread the new sound.
Over the next century, the koto music style changed multiple times from going solo to being used with vocals to being played along with other instruments again. The era known as Edo, or currently known as Tokyo, saw the addition of the Yamada School by Yamada Kengyo (1757-1817) take hold of the country. Again, style changed to where the voice was more important than the instrumental sound. Then there was Yaezaki Kengyo (d. 1848) who enhanced the Jiuta style poems with adding a second line of koto background (Malm, W., P. 200).
The beginning the 20th century brought the introduction of Western music into Japan and the koto music style and other traditional Japanese music began to get pushed back until some new composers began incorporating Western music ideas into the traditional koto music.
Japanese koto music is usually done in duple time and is usually monophonic. The song I listened to was “Rokudan No Shirabe (Music of Six Steps)”, by Yatsuhashi Kengyo.

References
Malm, W. (2001). Traditional Japanese Music and Musical Instruments (Yamaguchi Kan Series). Location: New York, NY
Japanese Traditional Music. http://jtrad.columbia.jp/eng/index.html
How Music Works. Scales and Melody. http://www.howmusicworks.org/hmw408.asp
Gagaku. http://jtrad.columbia.jp/eng/g_gagaku.html