Event overview
The Shakuhachi, Its Capricious Background and Collaborative Performance Research
The instrument and the monks’ background is surrounded by mystery, which makes myth and historical facts difficult to differentiate. In recent years, a change in the scholarship of the shakuhachi has been observed, which abrogates the belief that the Fuke sect of the komusō monks were connected to Zen Buddhist groups. In this paper I will consider what role historical facts and the importance of myths have played in the minds of shakuhachi players, at least since the beginning of the 20th century. What is the role of the ethnomusicologist when historical facts and beliefs of players do not correspond?
Furthermore, I will present my work as practice research by employing a micro-phenomenological interview technique developed by Claire Petitmengin to discover and describe the subtle and fine-grained experiences of playing and collaborating with other performers and composers. By interviewing myself and the collaborator, I found that this technique was useful for elucidating aspects of a creative process that is left unconscious and unaccounted for. How can we discover and describe the fine and subtle changes in the mood, excitement or irritation in a process that would eventually lead to two (or more) people creating a piece of music together? I employ Theory U, which aims to map the process of creation. Practice research has until recently been seen as an underdog in academia, and I hope performers or composers at Goldsmiths will join me in creating music and writing about the process.
About the speaker
Dr Kiku Day (PhD, London; MFA, Mills; BA, London) is a shakuhachi player and ethnomusicologist from Copenhagen Denmark. She is a Visiting Research Fellow at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Day gave up her studies in classical Western flute to study honkyoku (classic solo repertoire of the komusō monks of the Fuke sect of Zen Buddhism) with the master Okuda Atsuya in Tokyo for 11 years before she returned to Europe to study ethnomusicology. She has her BA Honours and PhD from SOAS, MFA in Performance from Mills College, USA focusing on playing contemporary music and improvisation on the shakuhachi. She has worked as external staff at SOAS, Aarhus University and Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark. Her research interests are among others practice research, contemporary use of the shakuhachi, online music communities, race and ethnicity in music, meditation and shakuhachi.
Day has since her return to Europe dedicated her life to the potential use of jinashi shakuhachi today. She is dedicated to creating a contemporary repertoire for this archaic shakuhachi. Several composers from different parts of the world have written for her, among others: Roxanna Panufnik, Takahashi Yūji, Frank Denyer, Vytautas Germanavicius, Mogens Christensen, Marisol Jimenez and Yumi Hara.
Music Research Lectures are free and all are welcome.
Photo: Anja Blaksmark
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Dec 2022 | 6:00pm - 7:30pm |
Accessibility
If you are attending an event and need the College to help with any mobility requirements you may have, please contact the event organiser in advance to ensure we can accommodate your needs.
