Hello everyone,
I would like to add a few ideas that I have been investigating
recently. They seem to have pretty major implications for the entire
way I conceptualize shakuhachi practice. If they are useful, great! If
not, please print this out and blow your nose with it!
I got started, as many people do, as a musician with an interest in Zen
and a desire to have some tangible way to combine the two. However, the
more I play shakuhachi, the less interested in reading about Zen I
become. Zen has a remarkably developed body of writing describing
experience and but little actual description of method. Certainly this
is influenced by Zen being a "Japanese" discipline, where the guts are
rarely articulated and must be discovered individually and silently.
I would like to bring your attention to the plethora of "Western"
schools out there (Alexander Technique, Rolfing, Feldenkrais, etc) that
have come up with tremendously sophisticated ways of conceptualizing
breathing, moving, and bodily usage. In my opinion, these methods have
parallels to Zen, but as highly articulate methods are more directly
applicable to shakuhachi practice. For example, I recently read a book
by a California architect and Alexander Technique practitioner that
discusses the completely unergonomic nature of the common chair and the
torture our bodies are put through by sitting all the time. It seems
reasonable that if one is serious about Zen practice and shakuhachi, it
is vital to examine how the physical use (or disuse!) of our body
impacts our sound.
The potency of such methods can be easily experienced yourself. Sit
far back in a conventional chair and play. You will notice your spine
assumes a "C" shape, which compresses your lungs and airway. Notice the
sound. Next, stand up and blow. Try to diminish or lengthen your
posture. Experiment with the position of your head, tongue, neck, and
arms. What is the musical result? Another tremendously rich exercise is
to examine how different syllables impact breathing and tone. For
example, imagine the vowels internally (a, u, i, e, or o) while
playing. Do you notice a change?
Happy blowing, moving, and grooving!
Adam Friedman
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