Rakuson is a bugaku dance said to portray a male and female blue dragon descending to the Imperial Court and dancing in celebration of the Emperor’s long and auspicious reign. The dance was originally performed by two dancers; the solo version is known as Rakuson. Rakuson belongs to the category of bugaku known as hashirimono […]
Ryūkaden is a piece in the gagaku repertoire that is said to have been brought to Japan by Kure no Sanemochi, a member of an imperial mission to Tang China during the Enryaku era (782–806). It is further said to have been rearranged from the Taishikichō mode into the Sōjō mode during the Jōwa era […]
Goshōraku is one of the pieces in the gagaku repertoire and is classified as Tōgaku, the tradition of music of Chinese origin. It is traditionally attributed to Emperor Taizong of the Tang dynasty. The title, meaning “Music of the Five Virtues,” derives from the Confucian Five Constants—benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faithfulness—which are associated with […]
“Shirabyōshi” is a contemporary original bugaku dance created by the Harashōkai. It is choreographed to “Etenraku Imayō,” a version of the classical piece Etenraku in the Hyōjō mode to which lyrics were added. The lyrics attributed to the monk Jien (Jichin Oshō) are especially well known: In the dawn of Yayoi, the spring month,When I […]