The autumn performance season reaches its peak during the final months of the year, and an array of hogaku performances, including rare koto pieces, gagaku and dance, will be presented this November.
Namino Torii is a colleague of the master Yamada-style koto player Shoin Yamase, about whom I wrote in my last column. Torii is also one of the most accomplished Yamada-style players of her generation. Her 15th recital will feature some unusual and rare pieces.
I described briefly the differences in Yamada and Ikuta koto styles in my last column -- and in so doing, inadvertently made a mistake in describing performance postures: Yamada players sit squarely facing the koto, while the Ikuta players sit at an angle, not, as I wrote, the other way around. While this may seem like a minor point, appearance and style are extremely important aspects of all the Japanese stage arts, and as such are the first things the teacher corrects with beginning students.