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Banka

NA

[Genre]Modern
[Composed]Hosokawa Toshio - Koto - 1989

Banka appears on the following albums

Album Artist
Play ButtonTradition and Avantgarde in Japan Voice : Tani Sumi
Koto : Gotō Makiko
"Banka" means something like "elegy," that is, a sung poetry in which a person's death is lamented. The banka I used for this composition is taken from the poetry anthology "Manyoshu" (ca. 760), Japan's oldest collection of native poetry, written by Prince Otsu no Miko.

Momozutau
Iware no ike ni
naku kamo wo kyou
nomi mite ya
Kumogakurenamu

Whether the wild duck
that I call on Iware Pond
can only be
seen today?
Whether my life will end?

Language in ancient Japan was called kotodama (soul, wondrous power of words), which expressed the belief that every single word has a soul. And it was thought that vocal intonation could enhance even more the magical power inherent in words.