Percussion Performance in the Dashi-Bayashi

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  • 山車囃子における打楽器奏法について
  • ダシ ハヤシ ニ オケル ダガッキ ソウホウ ニ ツイテ グンマケン オオママ

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This report presents the results of a study conducted in the lJmama town, in the Yamada-gun, in Gunma Prefecture. The study, which centered on the Gion Festival held in )mama, placed particular emphasis on the special characteristics of the folk music found there, as manifested in the percussion ensembles. Omama has long been prosperous as an important trade center, and the Gion Festival held there is in honor of the local market dieties, who are enshrined in the Yasaka Shrine. The festival is held each year during the first three days of August, with manyv isitors from neighboringa reas comingt o watch and enjoy the lively atmosphere. As part of the celebration, six stage wagons ( dashi), one from each district of the town, are wheeled through the s treets, each bearing an ensemble of festival musicians. This report deals with the performance practices of the percussionists in these ensembles. The main points are outlined below.<BR>1 Concerning music for the taiko drums, several patterned sequences were identifiedi, n cluding Santeko, Kiri, Tama, Hirabayashi, N imba and Amadare.T hese patterns are executed by four children playing small taiko drums and one adult playing a large taiko drum. Each of these patterns may also be played in combination with a flute (fue) and small hand gong (kane).<BR>2 Variations in performance practice can be seen from district to district for most of the patterns, although the Santeko pattern is an exception, and is performed in exactly the same way in all six districts.<BR>3 Comparison of these variations reveals that the patterns in the fifth district are relatively complex, and seem to have a closer link to older traditional styles, while patterns in the fourth district are somewhat simplified and abbreviated.<BR>4 When considering the reasons why such variations evolved, importance must be attributed to the social structure of the Gin Festival itself, with each district virtually autonomous and each performance ensemble carrying on its tradition from generation to generation in an independent manner. The handing down of the performance tradition, and the training and cultivation of new musicians, are the responsibility of each individual district, and it is therefore not surprising that variations in performance practice arise.

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