A Collection of Moving Shakuhachi Masterpieces | Beautiful Japanese Melodies That Stir the Heart
Transcending the ages, the profound melodies of the Japanese traditional instrument, the shakuhachi, bring quiet and peace to our hearts.
The shakuhachi pieces passed down through the generations carry the breath of nature and people’s emotions, and their tones move those of us living in the present day as well.
In this article, we have gathered shakuhachi masterpieces that resonate with the soul.
From works woven by our predecessors to pieces that harmonize classical sonorities with contemporary essence, we have selected a wide range.
If you wish to experience the spirit of Wa or are interested in Japanese traditional music, please take your time and enjoy.
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A Collection of Iconic Shakuhachi Pieces That Resonate with the Heart | Beautiful, Moving Melodies of Japan (31–40)
Nagashi Rinbo
One of the classical honkyoku pieces for shakuhachi.
It is a honkyoku of the Nezasaha Kimpū school, belonging to the suzumori (Rinbo) category.
It was traditionally played during alms-begging pilgrimages.
It is performed using the Nezasaha school’s distinctive technique known as Komi-buki.
The high-register passages are especially characteristic, reminiscent of the ringing of Fuke Zenji’s hand bell, conveying a lingering sense of poignancy and sorrow.
Kinsan Kyorei
This is one of the classical shakuhachi honkyoku pieces called Kyorei.
It is also a honkyoku piece of the Kinko school.
Originally it was known as Shamisen Kyorei, Kinzan Kyorei, and Kinsha, but under the witness of Yuko, the chief priest of Rinpō-ji, and Taigon, the chief priest of Ichigatsu-ji, Kurosawa Kinko appears to have changed the name to the characters for Kin San Kyorei.
Meguro Lion
A honkyoku piece of the Kinko-ryu, belonging to the shishi-mono genre.
It is one of the pieces in the Ura-gumi Juhachikyoku (Eighteen Inner Pieces).
It was handed down from Roshūshi, a disciple at Nishikōji of Aokiyama in Bushū Kanagawa (present-day Yokohama), a branch temple of Ichigetsuji.
The Kinko Notebook records that at that time, at Roshūshi’s request, the first-generation Kurosawa Kinko taught him Kyō Reibo in exchange.
Rinbo-ryu
A classical honkyoku piece of the Ōshū lineage for shakuhachi.
It is a honkyoku of the Kinko school, Myōan Shinpō school, Myōan Taizan, Kimpū school, and Seien school.
According to legend, when a komusō played this piece in the Yoshiwara pleasure quarters, a rash of double suicides followed, and from then on playing it in the pleasure district was forbidden.
Kumoi Shishi
A type of classical shakuhachi honkyoku known as a “shishi-mono” (lion piece).
It is also called Kumo-i no Kyoku (“Piece of the Cloud Tone”) and was actively performed in Kyushu, especially at Icchōken in Hakata.
In the Kinko school, there are three kinds of Kumoi Shishi: (1) the piece said to have been transposed by the first-generation Kinko from the Meguro Shishi into the Kumoi mode; (2) the Icchōken Kumoi Shishi of the same school’s Taketomo-sha lineage, which Junpuku Kawase I imported into the Kinko school from the piece transmitted at Icchōken in Hakata; and (3) the Kumoi Shishi (also called Kumoi Sakae Shishi or Sōjō Shishi) created when the first-generation Kinko adapted Sakae Shishi into the Kumoi mode.