The Music and Musical Instruments of Japan (Classic Reprint) - Softcover

Francis Taylor Piggott

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1331980143 ISBN 13: 9781331980148

Publisher: Forgotten Books, 2018

Synopsis

Explore the soundscape of Japan through its instruments, scales, and playing styles. This edition surveys traditional instruments, their construction, tuning, and role in performance, from ancient court music to popular strings and drums. It also examines how Japanese music relates to broader Asian traditions and how pitch, rhythm, and harmony are understood in practice.

Delving into the mechanics and theory behind the music, the book explains tuning systems, time signatures, and how performers achieve expressive nuance. You’ll discover how instruments like the koto and bugaku ensembles are described, compared, and contextualized within Japanese culture and history. The discussion remains grounded in practical details, avoiding conjecture while offering readers a clear view of the music’s structure.

• Clear explanations of tuning modes, scales, and how they differ from Chinese and Western systems.


• Descriptions of key instruments, their construction, and their musical roles.


• Insights into rhythm, time, and how performers shape musical expression.


• Context on how traditional Japanese music connects to broader historical practices.

Ideal for readers of traditional music, ethnomusicology, and anyone curious about Japan’s musical heritage.

About this title

Product Description

Excerpt from The Music and Musical Instruments of Japan Any Preface which I write to the following pages must of necessity be so full of apologies for their shortcomings that I shall reduce it to the smallest compass possible. The book contains the results of observations made in leisure moments in Japan, supplemented by studies made since my return from the East. I am now painfully conscious how incomplete those observations must have been. I have, nevertheless, some confidence in the accuracy of the results of my Western studies, because I have had more than an author's fair share of assistance from others more competent than I to grapple with scientific difficulties. Sir John Stainer has, with customary kindness, helped me to unravel some of the mysteries of the Japanese scale: and, though I have no right to say that my conclusions are justified by his assent to them, I may plead his help to show that they have not been lightly arrived at. Mr. Southgate's erudition and historical knowledge have been placed so unreservedly at my disposal that I cannot but regret that the sheaf of notes with which he has contented himself is of such modest proportions. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Edition details

• Publisher: Forgotten Books
• Publication date: 2018
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1331980143
• ISBN 13: 9781331980148
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288