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February 21, 2005
Hitoyogiri Ancient Shakuhachi
Here is a photo os a Hitoyogiri I made. I saw one on display in 2002 when I visited Nara, Japan. This one was modeled after that one.
The Hitoyogiri was used around 13th century in Japan. It is a clear link to China's Xiao bamboo flute. This one plays a lot like a Xiao except that the Xiao has a few differences in construction: It has a notched blowing edge beveled into the flute where as the hitoyogiri (shakuhachi) has a bevelled utaguchi going out of the flute. The Xiao is also thinner in diameter and plays easier in second octave. It's clear why the Hitoyogiri gave way to the shakuhachi.
The lower octave of the hitoyogiri is quite easy to play, easier than the standard shakuhachi. I attribute this to the larger general bore size. It sounds a lot like the native American flute in both timbre and range (maybe proof of the Chinese crossing the barren straits into the Americas can be traced here! Any music anthroplogists out there?!) They may have done some jiari work (pasted bore) on these flutes but there is little information on how the construction since there are no makers of the hitoyogiri around today. The tradition was not passed on and music of the hitoyogiri died along with it.
Here is my music of the hitoyogiri recorded for a sound loop for a Student film at Columbia University.
HEAR this flute.
This certainly wasn't how it was used back then in the 13th century but today, according to the filmaker, "Acid sound loops are the bomb!" He wanted a contemporary sound with an ancient Asian feeling.
Namaste,
Perry
Posted by Perry Yung at 10:41 AM | Comments (1)
February 11, 2005
New to the shakuhachi
Another email I think you all would find interesting. Again, the name has been changed to protect the innocent ;-)
Hello Mr Cruise, Thanks for your email!
> Mr. Yung, I have been looking at your postings on ebay. I
>enjoy your VERY dynamic sound clips and shakuhachi you
>have been making available to the public.
> If you don't mind, I have a few questions about your
> playing style. I live in an area at the time where
> instruction and anything about shakuhachi is a
> little
> hard to come across.
I'll try to keep this email short and to to point since your questions can generate a master's thesis! ;-)
Even the greatest shakuhachi players can only sound as good as their flute is capable of sounding. It could be that your flute is only capable of so much. Having said that, a master player can still sound sublime to mind boggling on a simple shakuhachi, as long as it is fully functional. Many shakuhachi sold on EBAY are shakuhachi-like flutes. They may be fine bamboo flutes but probabaly not capable of the traditional and/or advanced fingerings used in shakuhachi music and most likely not capable of making dynamic shakuhachi sounds.
Much of shakuhachi playing is about tone color. Tone production and color comes from embroucher techniques (how close and far your lips are to the blowing edge), you probably know this from the silver flute. The shakuhachi has it's own unique timbres that are exploited by the embroucher techniques of strong technical players. The sound is made from the player's understanding of shakuhachi techniques and how they are used on the unique blowing edge called the utaguchi. The sound and timbre are flexible to the point that the bore shape allows. The better shaped the bore, the higher level of technical playing it can handle. Much of knowing how to get these sounds come from years of study with a competent teacher on a well made shakuhachi. Unfortunately, for you and many others in the world there is no access to this special experience.
There are some shakuhachi CDs that may be helpful. I will only discuss the styles I am familar with as there are many. I think the style I studied mostly in Japan is the most dynamic to unfamiliar ears, the Dokyoku style. But even in this school, there are different players who have managed to find their own identity through their own sound so it's confusing to newcomers as to what the Dokyoku sound is. The founder - Watazumido - is unlistenable to many Western ears. His playing sounds rough and out of tune but to seasoned ears, the rawness and improvised "feel" is what Zen is all about. Watazumido plays in his way deliberatley and deftly. Some seem to think that anyone can play like Watazumido but I think that would be like saying anyone can paint like Picasso. At the other end of the spectrum is the late Goro Yamaguchi, a Kinko Style Master. His playing is deep and sublime and tone colors are all of a similar palette but rich in it's shades. Listening to Goro Yamaguchi is like looking at a Paul Rothko painting. At first, the color scheme of the whole canvas seems simple and mono chromatic but after careful viewing, one can see that the shifts in hue (within that color) are minute but powerful, resulting in deep resonating vibrations.
Watazumido is the opposite. His playing hits you right away demanding a viseral reaction. To use another painter as an example, Jackson Pollock comes to mind. Some hate him right away, others love him at first site. Most take a while to start to appreciate and understand his genius. Like these painters, shakuhachi players belong to a specific school each with it's own canons.
For someone like me, in order to understand shakuhachi, I look to art history as a guide. In order to understand and appreciate art with heightend awareness, I have to be able to follow the progression from the cave paintings in ancient times to abtract art of today. Understanding the historical context of the schools and players help me understand the music and the flutes I make.
You will find find in your thirst for the shakuhachi that your taste will change. It will be one thing today, another next week and and then entirely something else in a year from now. Then in 10 or 15 years, you'll come back to what it is today. That's sort of where I'm at.
> 1. Is there an exercise book you might recommend
> that
> would be good for becoming more dynamic in the
> non-western playing aspects, i.e. swells, bending,
> troublesome notes, etc? I'm not a beginner to music,
> I've studied classical and jazz with the silver
> flute,
> and I have switched to playing daily with the
> shakuhachi. Basically right now the second and first
> octaves are very comfortable, but they lack the
> color
> you have while playing.
Try to contact Michael Gould at chikuzen@earthlink.net
He has scores and music from Yoshinobu Taniguchi - a Dokyoku master. Also, visit my BLOG at http://www.yungflutes.com/log There is an entyry called Sasa Buki. It outlines my practice technique to develope strength in playing. I think many flutists have a similar exercise of blowing long tones with crescendos to get to know the instrument's timbre and dynamic range. I find that most shakuhachi books are impossible to learn by unless you are already a musican and can apply your musical technique. I have all the books and can not recommend spending any money on them. I would suggets to a beginner to buy the best flute they could and just spend the time that they normally would reading the book to just sit alone with the flute in a quite space. So many possibilities are negated with a book. So many pathes are open without it. In the same breath, I can not stress the importance of having a good (the right) teacher if that option is available.
> 2. Do you use half-wholing or do you use alternative
> fingering while playing?
Yes, all the trime I use traditional Dokyokyu fingerings. Every school has their own fingerings for certain pitches and notes for specific tone colors. These are combine with blowing techniques such as Komi Buki (big breath) for dynamic playing.
What about the third
> octave?
Most traditional shakuhachi music is not written using notes above the minor third in the third octave. Only the best shakuhachi can play the to fifth of the third octave. But, even really fabulous old shakuhachi can not play up there sometimes.
> I have been practicing using half-wholes, but I find
> on my 1.8 the Eb is nearly impossible to get a full
> sound that I desire.
It may be your lips or it may be your flute, or both. I would have to check to flute. But that note - Tsu Meri - the the bane of most shakuhachi players' exhistance. It usually is a soft, subtle and "dark" note. It takes years to learn how to play well. Most beginners do noty have proper guidance on how to get the embroucher to cooperated with the fingering to get the tone color.
>
> 3. Do you have any recommended recordings I should
> listen to?
There is a plethora of CDs in Japan but here, I will only give you a glimpse into the shakuhachi world through my window:
Watazumido and Katsuya Yokoyama for Dokyoku. My teacher in Japan is incredible but recording a CD does not interest him. Fukudo Rando (Modern shakuhachi from around 1950).
Goro Yamaguchi and Ralph Samuelson (Ralph's "Offerings" can be found on Amazon.com) for Kinko style. Christopher Blasdel's new CD is also great.
Riley Lee and John Neptune fo. Both play traditional music but their contemporary shakuhachi Cd's are great.
Brian Ritchie Shakuhachi Club NYC a Jazz quartet with a Watazumi approach. It's probably one of the grooviest shakuhachi Cd's around!
>
> Again, I just want to say I admire your work / music
> /
> art (even your website is great), and thank you in
> advance if you are able to help me at all.
Thanks, I am incredibley fortunate in my experience with this special instrument. My shakuhachi path has been revealed to me through very generous individuals whose lifelong relationship with the instrument inpires me daily. I only hope to make this flute accessible to as many people as possible outside of Japan.
My experience, although wide compared to some is still tiny compared with those who live in and study in Japan with knowledgable teachers. There are many other styles of shakuhachi music that I know very little about. My path to discovery is well worn and continues to unfold before me.
>
> Kindest regards,
>
> T.Cruise.
Thanks again and enjoy the discoveries,
Perry
Posted by Perry Yung at 11:02 AM | Comments (1)
February 07, 2005
Repairing a crack with monofilament binding.
I have gotten a lot of repairs this winter. Keep your flutes in air tight containers! I like using air tight long plastic bags with rubber bands around the end. It prevents the flute from drying out.
Here's a binding technique that a few shakuhachi makers in Japan are now doing. Topical bindings are not invasive to the bamboo and can save your flute before or after it's cracked.
If there is already a crack, put a damp cloth near it and leave it in a sealed container over night.
Here's what you'll need;
20lbs fishing line ( monofilament thread), an exacto knife (razor blade), C Clamp and a pair of pliers.
Start with clampinging the spool of fishing line to a fixed surface like a kitchen counter top. Release about 7 feet of line before you clamp it down. Cut off a 4" length for use later.
Once it's clamped, go to the end of the line and make one winding over about 2" of the open end. You should do this right over the middle of the crack.
Start to roll the flute with both hands while using your thumbs to hold down the windings and especially the point where they overlap the open end. This prevents the end from slipping out. You will have to experiment with how much tension you can apply until you get it tight. It'll take several tries to get it tight. The tighter the better. This photos shows 8 windings.
At this point use the exacto knife to cut off the excess open end. Press down gently and pay attention so as not to cut the windings.
Take the 4" piece of line and make a loop while slipping it under the next new winding. You will wind on top of the loop and pull it out at the end.
Continue to wind in the same fasion. Keep it snug and tight but not to much tension. You'll have to pull the loop out.
Once you wind another 8 times, cut the line about 3" pass the loop. Slip the open end through the loop and continue to hold the open end against the bamboo after you do so.
Make sure you are grabbing both ends of the loop with the pliers. Once you have it, pull quckly with a jerk so that the entire loop pulls clear under the bindings.
You can grab the open end and pull it tighter and to where it meets the first end.
Then use an exacto knife and gently push down between the windings to cut off the excess.
Be very very careful here or you will cut the bindings and the whole thing will unravel.
The finished product.
Posted by Perry Yung at 07:45 PM | Comments (3)
February 04, 2005
Moldy Hocchiku
Here's a question asking about dealing with mold in Hocckiku. The name has been changed to protect the innocent ;-)
Hi Sylvestor,
Thanks for your email.
> I was reading posts at the shakuhachi email list web
> archive and you
> mentioned about mold forming in the bore of
> Hocchiku.
> I have a few Hocchiku from Japan and I do experience
> this phenomenon,
> especially right in the finger holes in addition to
> the bore.
> I have figured out that it has to do with moisture
> ,but is there any
> way to inhibit the mold forming?
The only way is to leave it out in in the air. An airtight humid environment breeds mold.
I even tried
> leaving the flute out of
> the plastic bag for hours but this still happens.
Once the mold has started, you must kill it or it will never go away.
> Do you know if there are any negative side effects
> or dangers of
> playing the flute with mold or mildew forming in it?
You might develope an allergy from repeated exposure to the same mold.
> It has been a concern of mine but I had not known
> who to ask. I have
> not experienced anything or any reactions but I am
> wondering if it is
> harmful.
Maybe, maybe not. Everyone's immune system is different.
> Also, I would love to know how you go about the
> cleaning of the bore
> with tea tree or grapefruit seed extract.
First, ask an herbal specialist. I would go to a big health food store and ask the chemist which is better to kill mold in dry bamboo with - tea tree or grapefruit seed extract. Then ask what is a good mixture to make for this antifungal use. See which one has a smell you won't mind smelling for a while. Lastly, ask if it needs rinsing after the application.
> I would appreciate the instruction on how to do
> this.
After you've prepared the mixture at home, run the flute through the faucet in your bath tub with warm water. Use a stiff brush and scrub the walls of the flute as you run the water through it. Make sure you get the finger holes. After the a few minutes, when you see clear water running through, apply the mixture with the brush and scrub the bore out gently but firmly. Then, depending on what the chemist said, either leave the extract in or flush it out.
Dry the bore by pulling a draw cloth throgh it several times. Then put a fan at one end to dry it out.
Also, how often
> do you do this procedure?
I would do this once and then wait to see if the mold comes back. If it does, then you might need a stronger cleaning agent and/or find a way to store the flute without too much humidity.
> Thanks for your time,
> -Prem
Normally, flutes crack when they are dried out. Your flute should not crack under these circumstances. However, during the drying process, you would want to keep an eye on it. Take the fan off it after an hour or two and let it room dry.
Please let me know if this works for you.
Good luck,
Perry
Posted by Perry Yung at 06:04 PM | Comments (0)