The only theory behind the kana used in shakuhachi notation that I have
heard of goes like this:
The earliest notation (early 1600s) used the kana fu, ho, u, e, ya, i. These
were chosen because they evoked the breathy or airy sounds of the solo
shakuhachi. At this period in time, most if not all shakuhachi music was
solo, predominantly honkyoku.
This is fact.
By the way, the "fu-ho-u" set of kana is still used by some lineages,
notably in the Chikuho notation system. The late Watazumi also used these
kana to notate his honkyoku.
The kana used in Kinko notation, that is, ro tsu re chi ri (or in the case
of Tozan notation, ro tsu re chi ha), were chosen when Kinko notation was
developed in the18th century. They were chosen because at that time, the
shakuhachi was more and more being played in ensemble with the koto and the
shamisen. The kana was chosen because they evoked the percussive sounds
these two instruments make when their strings are plucked with picks or
plectrum.
This is supposition.
The conclusion drawn by shakuhachi players who use variations of the "fu ho
u" system is that it is more suited to honkyoku and it is older and
therefore better than the "ro tsu re" systems.
The opinion held by the 99% of the shakuhachi population who use the "ro tsu
re" systems is that the above information is marginally interesting, but
which kana used in the notation has no affect on the music, honkyoku or
otherwise, and in any case, older is not necessarily better.
Best regards, Riley
-- Dr. Riley Lee Sound of Bamboo PO Box 939 Manly NSW 1655 Australia Tel: 02 9976 6904 mobile: 0414 626 453 www.rileylee.net> From: James Jennings <jennings@megaseattle.com> > Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2001 19:46:49 -0700 > To: shakuhachi mail list <shakuhachi@weber.ucsd.edu> > Subject: Where do the note names come from? > > I'm curious, how did they decide to associate particular kana > ("ro-tsu-re...") with certain notes on the shakuhachi? They say that > "do-re-mi..." came from the first syllables of the lines of a hymn to > Saint John the Baptist. > <http://www.accad.ohio-state.edu/~spencer/FF/G.html#Guido%20d'Arezzo> > Is there something similar going on here? > > A related question is why different schools have different note > names, but I'm mostly interested is what kind of system it is, rather > than the precise details. > > Curiously, > James >
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