Yagibushi
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The Yagibushi (Japanese: 八木節, meaning song of yagi [1]) is a popular folk song and dance performed at matsuri (and occasionally Undokai sports days) in Gunma and Tochigi, Japan. It consists of dancers with broad hats called kasa going in a counter clockwise circle around a mikoshi. The dance is very energetic and ends with everyone throwing their hats in the air. The "Yagi" (八木, literally "eight trees") came from Yagi-shuku, one of the post stations on the Nikkō Reiheishi Kaidō Road, and is not to be confused with the "yagi" (山羊, goat).
History
[edit]The song was first sung by Seizaburo Maruyama, who was from the town of Asakura (currently Ashikaga, Tochigi) and known as "Seizo Asakura", and popularized by Gentaro Watanabe "Genta Horigome".[2]
The original form of the song is said to be Shimpo Kōdaiji (新保広大寺), which originated in Niigata.[3][4] It was later arranged and spread along the Nikkō Reiheishi Kaidō Road by craftmen and traveling entertainers such as Goze. Eventually one around Yagi-shuku became the most popular, where Watanabe and others developed today's form.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ garland encyclopedia of world music volume 7 East Asia: China Japan and Korea
- ^ "'Ōta Karuta' Efuda, Yomifuda Ichiran Ya Gyo" 『太田かるた』絵札・読み札一覧や行 [List of Karuta cards (Ya) in Ōta Karuta] (in Japanese). City of Ota. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
- ^ a b Tsutomu, Takeuchi [in Japanese]. "Yagibushi" [ja:八木節]. Encyclopedia Nipponica (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
- ^ 「広大寺節」の全国大会 保存会設立50周年 八木節などの源流 新潟・十日町 ／群馬 (in Japanese). March 26, 2022.
External links
[edit]- "Yagibushi (Video)" 八木節. NHK Archives (in Japanese).
- Yagibushi (Japanese): The homepage of Yagibushi Sōke (head family)