The Big Sound and the Silent Sound
I've been thinking about these two ways of playing for while now and they
are related to the diffences between the shakuhachi and the ginashi nobekan
(a.k.a. kyotaku, hocchiku, which I'll use in this mail for convenience
sake). Forgive me if I tend to generalize and fail to mention things or
contradict myself. I'm writing on impulse right now. Although it may be old
news for some, I'm still fascinated with it since they are discoveries of
gems in the wilderness for me. Ai apologize in advance if it's repetitive
for you.
I play mainly the style taught by Yokoyama Katsuya from Kakizakai Kaoru. But
also play ginashi, as taught by Okuda Atsuya. In the west, people refer to
Yokoyama's style of honkyoku playing as "do-kyoku", but actually, in Japan,
that term is not used so much. Yokoyama actually prefers to call it just
plain "honkyoku". Do-kyoku is alluding more to Watatzumido, his teacher in
honkyoku. And as many people know, there was a friction between the two
because Watatzumido played only ginashi flutes and considered gi-ari
shakuhachi to be "too vulgar and loud", therefore criticized Yokoyama often,
also because Watatzumido practically hated all styles where gi-ari
shakuahchi were employed which included sankyoku, gaikyoku, shinkyoku, etc.
More than a particular school's playing style, it's the individual that
creates a unique sound. Talking to Christopher Yohmei Blasdel recently, he
mentioned that he was very moved at the ability of Yamaguchi Goro to play
quietly (due to the fact that he played mostly within the sankyoku context),
but with a power that had everyone in a hall enrapt in listening. But a big
difference that other styles of playing don't do (at least from my
observation so far) that Yokoyama does is that he plays with a lot of power
and big, embracing sound, yet with great sensitivity and emotion. Yokoyama
compares it to an actor on stage who must exaggerate his moves so that the
audience can understand what's going on. So he applies this analogy to the
shakuhachi especially when playing with an orchestra, like on November
Steps. Most (if not all) of his accomplished students play in this way. Part
of this lies in the design of the flutes, but most of it is in the way he
blows and interestingly how he uses his skeletal structure (this is
something I want to look into further!) I haven't heard this kind of sound
in other styles. Yokoyama picked this up from Watazumido who played with
great power. The question is, is this desirable? I think if you learn to
play this way, it opens a whole new vista for your explorations of sound
with the shakuhachi. Some players play loud with a hard, tight, cutting
sound, but without the open, wide sound. Others play with an open wide sound
but without the power. I guess the descriptions are endless. More than just
decible levels, however, playing with sensitivity and nuance of tonal
colorations is getting closer to a deeper shakuhachi experience.
Making a Big Sound
How this big sound is created takes a lot of practice, and I hear from
players that this is a most desirable way to play shakuhachi. (But I'm sure
not all players care to play this way.) Most players are taught to blow
down, perhaps blowing about 50/50 or more of their air across the edge down
into their flute. But actually the aim is to get about 20% down into the
flute and 80% going over the top. This style of blowing is referred to as
"soto-buki", or blowing outwardly, as opposed to "uchi-buki", playing into
the flute more. So, in essence, one is blowing more "kari". This is very
important in creating the desired effect. A test to see if you're doing it
well is to blow the shakuhachi with the bell facing a lighted candle. If
you can blow with maximum power without blowing the flame out, then you're
doing it well. That means you're blowing over the top more than into the
flute. Sounds impossible? Not only do you need to blow kari, but the lips
must stay relaxed and controlled. Blowing kari accomplishes two things: it
allows more space between the lips and blowing edged for the air to achieve
the effective impact between edge, and it allows more space between lips and
edge so that access to the meri position is more easier. Hitting the meri
notes perfectly is very important since most people develop the habit of
blowing meri, or flat, too much into the flute. One of the list members
commented to me that he was trying to blow more kari, but he felt that he
was getting too much of an airy sound and overtones. I told him not to
concentrate on that airy sound as a negative. It is part of the shakuhachi
aesthetic. But once your embrochure becomes more developed, it is possible
to blow kari, and in perfect pitch while minimizing the airy sound. But
don't throw away the windy sound! The tendency is to blow closer to the edge
to get rid of the airy sound. This just makes you blow more meri, thus
limiting your range of motion. Also, the cavity of your mouth should be
wide. Kakizakai sensei often says to imagine a ping pong ball inside your
mouth, and if you're having problems with a too narrow cavity, imagine you
have a basketball in there! Teeth should be slightly apart. Throat should be
wide open as well, not pinched, or tight. Yamaguchi Goro also wrote in one
issue of the Hogaku journal about keeping the inside of the mouth wide open
was important in the production of a good sound. In addition to a
controlled, developed embrochure that blows more kari, the air must be
pushed from the diaphragm.
Learning to blow this way may cause you to modify your flute as well. In my
experience, my 2.4 was tuned at 440 in my normal first position for my
bottom ro note. But when I started playing more kari, of course my otsu no
ro (and every other note) was now much sharper. I was kind of worried at
this point at what I should to. So my sensei said, " you must get your flute
lengthened!" Wow. So I promptly sent it back to the maker and he lengthened
my flute about an inch. The place where he cut the flute and added the extra
bamboo has an attractive rattan binding. Now, this was very meaningful for
me, since I've been trying to play kari for a long time, so I consider it a
badge of achievement, that rattan binding. The fact that it was not just
decorative gave me an even great sense of acconplishment. It took me a while
to get used to this new way of blowing; I also did some work on the angle of
the chin rest for better kari positioning, but once I could play this way
with some proficiency my experience of the shakuhachi deepened considerably.
The Silent Sound
This is a topic that I think should be dicussed more in relation to
shakuhachi playing. When playing hocchiku it is a much different approach
than with the shakuhachi. First of all, the hocchiku lacks the technological
advancement of the gi-lined shakuhachi. It is a raw bore with much more
resistance for the air, therefore, a softer, more concentrated way of
blowing is required to play. It is also much more difficult to control the
pitch due to the irregularities of the bore. But it is possible to tune the
bamboo by oneself by filing some parts of the inner area of the holes of the
flute. When it is tuned in that manner as best as possible, leaving the bore
as is with the bumps of the remaining nodes and waves of the bamboo wall,
the control of the person playing is the final determiner of the hocchiku
experience. Of course you can add a little gi and urushi to tune it and get
it sounding close to a shakuhachi as well. But among hocchiku enthusiasts,
rawer is better. Inlays in the utaguchi have no effect on the sound. Riley
mentioned earlier that it is rare to find a good ginashi flute. True, if you
are a musician looking for the best instrument possible. But I don't think
it is an issue when playing a hocchiku. Watazumido used to play with the
most undesirable pieces of bamboo like a bamboo clothesline pole and was
able to make amazing sounds come out of it. (Or maybe it was all an act, a
sham, and he really did have awesome flutes!) I think developing one's body
(especially the embrochure) in relation to the instrument is most important
in hocchiku (and shakuhachi!). Now, to play a raw flute with a dark, subdued
tone color combined with the technique of big, bright sound creates a very
nice balance in playing hocchiku. But rather than the big sound, the power
of the hocchiku lies in it's accent on the still, silent, and often complex
sound which is consciously (or unconsciously) achieved when you have control
of your embrochure and body. Listening to the flute in a small, intimate
space is a subtly intense and beautiful experience.@Furthermore, I find
that hocchiku and shakuhachi are symbiotically connected in that playing one
enhances the other.
I think playing with good pitch is important when playing the hocchiku. It's
not like the shakuhachi where you can hit each note on pitch every time in
the same position (at least for most well-tuned shakuhachi), so to control
this wild creature is the challenge. In my experience, I find that in
playing the hocchiku (even more than the shakuhachi with gi) the changes of
the bamboo and/or my body from one day to the next are much more
perceptible.
But even if you play hocchiku off pitch, and in a simple manner, even if you
barely get a sound out of it, but play from your heart, it still moves me
greatly to experience that. Not everyone can reach the heights of
greatness. To be yourself simple, and unadorned is true beauty. This is what
it's all about. The real heart of shakuhachi. One of my pipe dreams (pun
intended!) is to get a chance to hear everyone in the world (of all levels)
who plays hocchiku or shakuhachi.
By the way, I'd like to let you know about Hoshi Bonchiku, a new shakuhachi
maker on the North American block, who recently moved to Vancouver, Canada
from Japan. He's in the process of setting up shop there. Please have a look
at his web page for more information on him. Drop by or give him a call. He
would more than appreciate it!
http://www.Bamboo-In.com/Bonchikupage.htm
al
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