Kokaji
小鍛冶
| [ジャンル] | Nagauta |
| [別名] | The Swordsmith |
| [対象楽器] | 三弦 - 1832 |
発祥 (William P Malm):
| Composer: Kineya Katsugoro (I or II) Based on a Noh drama Kokaji, this story is about a swordsmith from Sanjo named Kokaji. In making a sword for the Emperor Ichijo, he succeeds through the spirit of the Shinto god Inari. |
詩 :
| On Mount Inari the three torches burn brightly; the ways of the blacksmith refine the heart. The name of the sword called Kogitsune-maru will remain esteemed throughout the ages to come. In China, as it is told... Lung-cuan and Tai-a knew nothing of the blacksmiths of our land of the rising sun, striking with the power of the fox deity. With the clashing of swords, the foe was cut to bits. The word of such inspiring feats, when forging a sword or beating out linen garments on a cold night, the sound of striking the block, carries into the distance. The thought of "striking" reminds one of the mountain of Utsu. In the countryside, as well as in the capital, in the late autumn, the early red maple leaves falling in the rain, leave a blaze of color on the anvil. The temperatures of the water and the fire are guarded secrets; to forge a tempered blade is to unite opposing forces; even when the dew dampens the pale red maples, it turns them into the color of red iron, and the moon on a frosty night becomes clear; such rare feats are beyond compare. A delicate, awe-inspiring elegance of the sharp-edged young blade. Its name has been heard in all directions. |
小鍛冶 は下記のアルバムに収録されています
| アルバム | アーティスト | |
 | Music of Japan, The - Vol II | |
| Venerated Patterns | ||
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The Edo period saw the rise of another musical instrument and its respective repertoire-the Shamisen and Nagauta. Nagauta pieces generally alternate between vocal passages accompanied by the Shamisen (and sometimes flute and drums) and instrumental interludes. Two interludes from Kokaji (1821) are performed here. The first creates the eerie atmosphere of the master swordsmith's dwelling in the mountains remote from the rest of the world. The second is not unlike the Anvil Chorus in Verdi's II Trovatore (1853); the rhythm of the hammering of the hot metal which will be made into a sword by the master and his helper is incorporated into the Shamisen accompaniment. The Sham is en tuning for this piece is called honchoshi (the basic tuning from which two others are derived) and although there is no harmony in Japanese music, this interlude (as the majority of the other interludes in the repertoire) is arranged as a duet. | ||