Chi and Tsu in old-style (Myoan / Fuke) Honkyoku

Some people think that old-style honkyoku players (think Tanikita Muchiku, Kobayashi Shizan, or even my own teacher Takahashi Suiko) are "out of tune" or "can't play tsu meri." It's true that chi and tsu (along with many other aspects of our playing) don't sound like they do in modern shakuhachi playing, but this is not because we're out of tune. In this video, I go into detail as to how and why our playing is different, exploring factors like
- the scale we use
- location in place and time
- the specific shakuhachi being played
- the player
- music theory, feelings, and other stuff.
We also discuss what my grand-teacher Toya Deiko writes on the subject in his book Komuso Shakuhachi Shinan:
“In Shakuhachi no Hi-gi published in １９２１ by Kobayashi Shizan (student of Higuchi Taizan), he says ‘Chi, u, and tsu, concerning their meri tones - in many cases, when these are to be played meri, there is no meri symbol attached to them, so you just need to know that they are all meri.’ However, he also says ‘since chi, u, and tsu, in many cases must always be played meri, you put your finger along the flute so that it rests just above the hole, rather than covering half of it.’ If we trust this just as it is written, then chi should usually be fusho (Ab) - but old flutes are made so that chi, when played as-is, is too high, so if you shade it a little we could understand this to mean that it’s Oshiki (A) - so the meaning is unclear… The first hole on Kyu-han wari shakuhachi is low, so it’s easy to produce tsu chu-meri and meri. However, for shakuhachi players used to playing yosen [inakabushi] honkyoku, tsu meri [meaning tsu dai meri, Eb on a modern 1.8] isn’t used very much, and being unaccustomed to it their meri doesn’t go all the way down; players who learned gaikyoku in Kinko-ryu and Tozan-ryu would say ‘those honkyoku players can’t play tsu meri.’”

[@neosan82]

Excellent, Nick! Very well explained and illustrated. Thank you! 🙏

[@justplayflute]

Thanks a lot Nick, loved that! 💚👍

[@FranciscoVerdugoM]

Thanks

[@Diehydro]

👍

[@Thedailydrawchannel]

Takashi Tokuyama is my favorite from the myoan linage with a fresh element

[@audreyhermans8903]

Loved it thank you! Question : when you talk about « old style » honkyoku, is it koto honkyoku? If so, is it Edo era?

[@hon-onold-styleshakuhachic8017]

Old style honkyoku refers to shakuhachi pieces played by komuso in the Edo era. It can include some newer pieces, though, if they are played in the same style. The flutes used are different from modern flutes, with smaller holes, and meri tones are done primarily with the breath, not with the fingers. At most, the finger will hover above the hole a little bit.

[@audreyhermans8903]

@@hon-onold-styleshakuhachic8017Thank you for your explanation. This is all really interesting, can’t wait for the next video 😊.