Yūgao
夕顔
| [Genre] | Jiuta |
| [Style] | Tegotomono |
| [School] | Ikuta Ryû - 生田 |
| [Composed] | Yaezaki Kengyō - Koto |
| Kikuoka Kengyō - Shamisen |
History (Tsuge Gen'ichi):
| This is a lovely jiuta piece of the Kyoto style composed in the early nineteenth century. The song text is based on the story of Yugao ('Evening Faces') from 'The Tale of Genji.' Genji, a lad of seventeen, is on the way to visit his old foster mother. He stops to admire a fence clustered with evening glories. A young girl appears, and on behalf of her mistress (Yugao) presents some of the flowers to Genji on a perfumed fan. Entranced by the simple beauty of the girl, he resolves to see her again. He takes her with him one night to a secluded mansion, but after a brief interlude of love, Genji's previous lady, Rokujo, sends her jealous spirit to kill Yugao, and Yugao dies in his arms. |
Poem (translated by Tsuge Gen'ichi)
| Who lives here? He has a servant inquire In the twilight, Genji's cart comes to a halt. Let's peek Through a crevice In the high hedge-fence By this tasteful house To which persons rarely come. Holding a fan Permeated with faint scent Of fragrant incense, The owner of the house Offers Genji a blossom Of the 'Evening Faces' Glittering with pale dew. In a brief dream, he is Bound together with Yugao, A flower ever more beautiful. When he awakes, He feels keenly The chilly winds of midnight. | Sumaya tare toiteya minto tasogare ni yosuru kuruma no otozure mo taete yukashiki nakagaki no sukima motomete kaimami ya (ai) Kazusu oogi ni takishimeshi soradaki-mono no honobobo to nushi wa shiratsuyu hikari wo soete (tegoto) Itodo hae aru yuugao no hana ni musubishi karine no yume no samete mi ni shimu yowa no kaze |
Yūgao appears on the following albums
| Album | Artist | |
 | Abe Keiko - 02 |
Voice : Abe Keiko Shamisen : Abe Keiko Shakuhachi : Ikeda Seizan II Voice : Fujii Kunie Koto : Fujii Kunie |
| Abe Keiko Record Set - 06 |
Voice : Abe Keiko Shamisen : Abe Keiko Shakuhachi : Ikeda Seizan II Voice : Fujii Kunie Koto : Fujii Kunie | |
| Challenging Eternity Disk 20 |
Shakuhachi : John Kaizan Neptune Voice : Yonekawa Toshiko II Shamisen : Yonekawa Toshiko II Voice : Fukami Satomi Koto : Fukami Satomi |
| Fascination of the Koto 2 |
Voice : Yonekawa Toshiko Shamisen : Yonekawa Toshiko Koto : Yonekawa Toshiko II |
|
Yugao (Lady Yugao) Composed by Kikuoka Kengyo (d.1847). A typical jiuta piece (i.e. consisting of the sangen part and vocal part) in the Kyoto style. Later Yaezaki kengyo (d. 1848) composed a part for the koto to be performed in the ensemble form. A small size piece, but concise and well-balanced between the singing and instrumental parts. The title derives from the lady Yugao in the Tale of Genji who was loved by Genji but killed by the evil spirit of his former lover. | ||
| Fujii Kunie, The World of Shamisen and Jiuta Singing 5 |
Koto : Abe Keiko Voice : Fujii Kunie Shamisen : Fujii Kunie | |
| Ikuta Ryu Sokyoku Senshu Volume 01 （上） |
Koto : Miyagi Kiyoko Voice : Miyagi Kazue Shamisen : Miyagi Kazue | |
| Japan - Courtly Songs |
Shakuhachi : Chida Etsuko | |
| Koto Music of Japan, The |
Shakuhachi : Kikusui Kofū | |
|
Evening Glory (Yugao) was originally written by Kengyo Kikuoka, but later Yaezaki Kengyo turned it into a masterpiece of koto music. It is based upon the Tale of Genji, a famous story of the eleventh century. The chapter of Yugao tells that when the Lord Genji visited his sick mother in the Gojo House in Kyoto, he found another small house covered with lovely blossoms in which there lived a pretty girl. Genji fell in love with her immediately and invited her to a detached hut. The girl, who was called Evening Glory (Yugao), dies of a curse cast by the spirit which haunted the hut. The lord grieves: "The bud of Evening Glory which opened in the transient dream faded like the cold autumn breeze." Yugao, a koto-shamisen-shakuhachi piece, is inspired by the tragedy of Yugao. | ||
| Kurokami |
Shakuhachi : Clive Bell | |
|
This was made into a song about Yugao from the Tale of Genji. The story is about the daughter of the third lieutenant general (Sane-chujo) who was hiding in a villain's house to get away from the head lieutenant-general's wife's jealousy. Prince Genji was visiting this lady's house where a lot of moon-flowers were in bloom. However on the night of the 15th August, Genji went out with the lady to his country house. The next night she was cursed with an evil spirit and finally died. The first song is about the scene at the house of the lady, and the last song is expressing the tragedy after the lady's death. The middle part is a lonely scene of Autumn night and expressing serenity.
| ||
| Sankyoku Gassō Dai Zenshū (zoku) vol. 20 (続三曲合奏大全集20) |
Voice : Uehara Nobuaki Shamisen : Uehara Nobuaki Koto : Hayashi Masanaga Shakuhachi : Kawase Junsuke III Voice : Shimamura Masao | |
| Sankyoku Gassō Dai Zenshū vol. 17 (三曲合奏大全集１７) |
Koto : Ōta Hisako Voice : Yokota Nobuko Shakuhachi : Konno Reidō Shamisen : Yagi Keiji | |
| Sasagawa Shizue no Shigei Vol. 2 |
Shamisen : Sasagawa Shizue Koto : Takenaka Ryoko | |
| Sō no Shiori (Ikuta Ryū) vol 1 |
Shamisen : Kikuhara Hatsuko Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō Voice : Fujii Kunie Koto : Fujii Kunie | |
| Sokyoku Jiuta Taikei 34 |
Voice : Yonekawa Fumiko I Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko I Shamisen : Yonekawa Fumiko II | |
| The Flower - Yoko Hiraoka and David Wheeler |
Shakuhachi : David Kansuke Wheeler Shamisen : Hiraoka Yoko | |
| Togashi Noriko - 01 |
Shamisen : Togashi Noriko |
| Yamaguchi Goro - Performance study 1 |
Shamisen : Kikuhara Hatsuko Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō Koto : Fujii Kunie | |
| Yoshida Seifu Collection of Famous Performances volume 2 |
Koto : Yoshida Kyōko Shakuhachi : Yoshida Seifū | |