SHICHISEIKAI + INDIAN MUSIC PROJECT
Period
June and July in any year
Venue
Concert Hall, Church, Cultural space etc.
Performers
The Shichiseikai:
Shomyo and Gagaku instruments
Sitar player
Tabla player
two
Tambura players
HIROS: Bansuri
Minimum Numbers of Performers:11
Sound engineer:1
Performance time
2 hours
Example time division of the performance
Shomyo <40 minutes>、Intermission <10 minutes>, Hindustani music on Sitar or Bansuri <40 minutes>、Shomyo+Indian music <30 minutes
The aim of the project
The origin of the two performing
arts, Shomyo Buddhist Chanting and Indian Classical Music, can be
traced to the Veda chanting tradition of ancient India. There is a
very strong relationship between the Veda tradition and Japanese
Buddhist chanting.
In the earliest Vedic chanting only one or two different notes were
used. Brahmin monks developed this chanting style using only one or
two notes early on into a musical form using seven notes.
Indian Classical music can be thought of as developing, in part, out
of this early Vedic chanting. And it became an independent modern
musical form influenced by secular music. It can be found in the
Natya Shastra, 2nd century A.D. by Bharata, one can find reference to
a musical form that was derived from the earlier Vedic chanting. In
the fifth century A.D. the concept of Raga appeared. In reading the
Sangeet Ratnakara we discover that by the thirteenth century A.D. the
form of our contemporary music, the Raga-Tala system, had already
been established. From the tenth century A.D. on the Muslims began
establishing their influence in India. One of the results of this
Muslim presence in India was the metamorphosis of classical Indian
music into Muslim Court Music. At the same time, as a result of this
metamorphosis, there was also a flowering and sophistication of the
Indian classical music. And this remains the classical Indian music
of today.
In listening to the Japanese Shomyo form of today we can hear the
influence, the remnants, of the Ancient Vedic tradition. This
connection depends on the fact that they are both a reading of the
Sutras with a melody. This reflects the fact that the chanting itself
leads naturally to a musicality. The musical accompaniment that
colored the chanting of the Sutras was remonstrated by the priests
when the message of the Sutra was lost to the music. We know this is
the case from the content of some of the earlier Sutras. This is
evidence that the chanted Sutra is basically musical.
Buddhism, along with its way of chanting Sutras, flowed into China
from India by a multitude of routes. As the Sutras were translated
into Chinese it is reasonable to assume that the way of chanting, as
well as the melody, was modified.
The Shomyo, modified Indian Sutras, were introduced into Japan and
further adapted to the Japanese musical aesthetic. Counter to this
was the order from the Japanese Emperor, 720, to follow exactly the
Chinese way of chanting the Sutras. Thus, we have proof here that the
Japanese priests were altering the original Sutras.
Present day Shomyo followed a path from Shingon and Tendai, eighth
and ninth century A.D.. The Shomyo of Shichiseikai, the monks of the
Jodo sect, follows the Tendai tradition because the Jodo sect of
Buddhism branched off from the Tendai sect. The Shomyo of the
Shichiseikai sect are mostly from the Tendai tradition, although
having their own unique characteristic. This characteristic can be
easily appreciated by ordinary people, differing, as it does, from
the exclusivity of the rest of the sects in the Tendai tradition.
The above talks about the journey of Shomyo and Indian Classical
Music from their beginnings in Vedic Chanting to modern Japanese
Shomyo and modern Indian Classical Music. They appear to be different
from one another. One is practiced by the Japanese Bhuddhist monks,
the other by professional musicians. In spite of the large distance
between country and musical form one can find an underlying
connection in the Shomyo and Indian Classical music.
Our purpose in this project is to bring together in India these two
forms of music, Shomyo and Indian Classical music, in their
birthplace in order to show new possibilities in the way of musical
expression. Hopefully, this will encourage a cultural exchange
between our two countries.
Contact
Tengaku Planning Office
3-2-6-1-705, Port Island, Kobe 650-0046, JAPAN
phone & fax:+81 78-302-4040
mobile:+81 804231-6465
hirosnaka@yahoo.co.jp