Godan Ginuta
五段砧
| [Genre] | Sokyoku |
| [Style] | Kinuta mono |
| [School] | Ikuta Ryû - 生田 |
| [Composed] | Mitsuzaki Kengyō - Koto |
History (Tsuge Gen'ichi):
| This work originally composed for two koto(s) is considered the highest point of instrumental development in the sokyoku genre of the nineteenth century. The title means 'a composition consisting of five sections (godan) based on the rhyme pattern of kimuta.' Kimuta originally means a wooden block used in former times to press and soften newly woven cloth. Kimuta as a musical piece, however, is an instrumental piece based on the rhythmic patter derived from the soft tapping sound of the fulling block. Sandwiched by two short songs (maeuta 'introductory song' and atouta 'concluding song'), this highly instrumental piece virtually actually shows the tegoto-mono form. The tegoto is composed of two independent pieces, namely Sandan-jishi and Godan-ginuta. |
Poem (translated by Tsuge Gen'ichi)
| Of flowers, The mountain-cherry at Yoshino. Of fall leaves, The maples at Takao. Of pines, Those at Karasaki. Of mist That at Toyama. My love always Wears green. How gentle she is! When I daydream My thoughts turn to her. The pine is green, The pine is green. It never changes, Ever green. | Hana wa yoshino yo momiji wa takao matsu wa karasaki kasumi wa toyama itsumo tokiwa no furi wa sansa shiorashiya tonikaku omowaruru (tegoto) Matsu wa tokiwa yo matsu wa tokiwa yo itsumo kawaranu toshinoha goto ni |
Godan Ginuta appears on the following albums
| Album | Artist | |
 | All the Best from Japan | |
| Art of the Koto - Volume I |
Koto : Fukami Satomi Koto : Yoshimura Nanae | |
| Ensemble Nipponia - Japan Traditional Vocal and Instrumental Music | ||
|
A frequently performed koto duet from the mid-19th century, this formally constructed work features angular rhythms that derive from the sound of the kinuta (a set of wooden blocks for beating silk). "Godan" means "five variations." The Japanese variation technique was developed in the 17th century, originating With the famous piece Rokudan no Shirabe; it includes not only modifications and decorations of the basic theme, but also compression and expansion of thematic materials. The last variation of Godan ginuta betrays its debt to the earlier Rokudan by including the entire first section of Rokudan in the second koto part, not unlike a cantus firmus in a Renaissance choral work.
| ||
| Fukami Satomi - Sokyoku Jiuta Shu - 1 |
Koto : Nosaka Keiko Voice : Fukami Satomi Koto : Fukami Satomi | |
| Hōgaku Taikei Vol. 4 - Sōkyoku - Shakuhachi 2 (LP 1) |
Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko I Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko II | |
| Ikuta Ryu Sokyoku Senshu Volume 03 （下） |
Koto : Kobashi Mikiko Voice : Miyagi Kazue Koto : Miyagi Kazue | |
| Ikuta-Ryū Sōkyoku Senshū - volume 5 |
Voice : Matsuo Keiko Koto : Matsuo Keiko Koto : Matsuo Kazuko | |
| Japan - Splendour of the Koto | ||
| Koto - Keiko Nosaka |
Koto : Nosaka Keiko |
| Koto Music of Japan, The |
Koto : Hagiwara Seigin Koto : Mineuchi Ginshō | |
|
The Kinuta is primitive machinery for refining cloth materials. Though this machine no longer exists, the sound of the kinuta has often been described in poetry and music and suggests the sad monotones of the fall season. The rustling leaves and the voices of insects always accompanied the sound of the kinuta when autumn arrived. Godan-Kinuta (kinuta in five steps) is regarded as the unequalled music of autumn. A number of works which simulate the kinuta have been composed, but none of these are comparable to this piece by Mitsuzaki Kengyo. | ||
| Koto no Miryoku - Disk 1 |
Koto : Yamauchi Kimiko | |
| Kou |
Shakuhachi : Aoki Reibo II | |
| Melody of Japan - Pathos of Autumn |
Koto : Hanabusa Harue Koto : Miyakoshi Keiko Koto : Yui Ensemble | |
| Midare - Kazue Sawai Plays Koto Classics |
Koto : Kuribayashi Hideaki Koto : Sawai Kazue | |
| Music of Japan, The - Vol I | |
| Musical Atlas - Japan |
Koto : Ueno Kazuko Koto : Matsuo Keiko |
|
The Koto is a long zither made of paulonia wood. The back of the upper board is hallowed out to provide a thin and long soundboard. Thirteen silk strings are strung between the two ends of the body. Each string passes over a movable ivory bridge which determines the length of the sounding part. The player plucks the strings with three ivory picks attached by leather bands to the thumb, the index and middle finger of the right hand. The instrument was introduced from China in the 8th century and used in the orchestra of the ancient court music, the Gagaku. In the 17th century a blind musician, Yatsuhashi, created a new genre of music using the Koto as a solo instrument and for the accompaniment of songs. This type of music was developed by his successors, mainly blind professional musicians. It became fashionable among the common people, especially among women. Koto music was combined with a genre of Shamisen song called Jiuta, also created by blind musicians, giving birth to the Koto and Shamisen ensemble. This kind of ensemble allowed the development of increasingly sophisticated styles of polyphony, and so did the Koto ensembles. The piece chosen here, a Koto duet, is a representative masterpiece of the polyphonic Koto ensemble. It was composed by Mitsuzaki, a musician who died in 1853. Two kotos are tuned at different pitches; the main Koto (an the left) is tuned a fifth lower than the second one (on the right). The title of this piece comes from the form of the composition, which is in five sections (go-dan). The term Kinuta means a fulling block, since the piece reminds one of the sound of someone making felt. The third, fourth and fifth sections of the piece are recorded here. | ||
| Nakanoshima Kin’ichi no Koto - Godan Ginuta; Rokudan; Chidori no Kyoku; Higurash |
Voice : Nakanoshima Kin'ichi Koto : Nakanoshima Kin'ichi Koto : Nakanoshima Keiko | |
| Rokudan |
Koto : Miyagi Kiyoko Koto : Miyagi Michio |
| Rokudan Koto no Meikyoku |
Koto : Yonekawa Toshiko Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko II |
| Sankyoku - Hagi no Tsuyu / Sōkyoku - Godan Kinuta |
Voice : Matsuo Keiko Koto : Matsuo Keiko Koto : Matsuo Kazuko | |
| Sankyoku Ensembles For The Shakuhachi Of The Kinko-School Vol II |
Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō | |
| Sankyoku Gassō Dai Zenshū (zoku) vol. 16 (続三曲合奏大全集16) |
Voice : Sunazaki Tomoko Koto : Sunazaki Tomoko Shakuhachi : Aoki Reibo II | |
| Seiha Hogakkai Play Favorites 04 - Mitsuzaki Kengyo |
Koto : Yuize Shin'ichi Koto : Nakashima Yasuko |
| So - Japanese Traditional Music |
Voice : Yonekawa Toshiko Koto : Yonekawa Toshiko Koto : Satō Chikaki | |
| Sō-Sangen-Shakuhachi ni yoru Mei Senshū - volume 5 |
Koto : Matsuo Keiko Koto : Matsuo Kazuko | |
| Sokyoku Jiuta Taikei 10 |
Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko I Koto : Yonekawa Fumiko II | |
| Tomiyama Seikin - So |
Koto : Tomiyama Seikin I | |