地無し尺八の基本奏法と地無し尺八を鳴らす極意
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地無し尺八の基本練習
地無しの太くて長い尺八を鳴らすための注意点（逆腹式丹田呼吸法についての実践法）
太い 地無し管を鳴らすには、琴古流や都山流のように胸式呼吸で強く吹いても本物の音味は出せません。ほほを膨らませて、舌の先で 下唇を前におすようにして、口先から流速の遅い長い息を 、尺八の内部に押し込み、空気柱を
動かして音を出します。現代管のように、流速の早い息を入れれば、歌口付近で騒音がでます。京都明暗系の楔吹き用に製作されました古管尺八で奥州系の本曲を吹かれる方がいますが、奥州系の古管尺八は、奏法は京都系とは息の入れ方が違い、ふうわりとした息を入れて 尺八を鳴らす奏法のものです。京都明暗寺系の楔吹きならば、まず息を深く吸い込みながら、腹はへこみます。曲を吹き出すには、腹が元に戻りながら膨らみます。吹き矢を吹く要領で、息を吐き出す時は腹も膨らみます。この連続で曲を吹きますが。奥州系では、腹の力を自在に変えて、音の強弱をコントロールします。これにより、独特の味わいのある曲を吹くことができます。実際に尺八を手にすると、腹のことは忘れて口先で尺八を吹くようになりますが、息を吸い込みながら、同時に腹をへこますことは、意識しないとできないことです。この逆腹式丹田呼吸法の練習は、寝る時に布団の上で天井を見ながら腹の上に枕を置き、息を吐き出しながら、腹は膨らみ、枕は上昇します。息を吸い込むときは、枕は下がります。この繰り返しで、呼吸法を身に付けることができます。但し、あくまで呼吸法であり、腹筋運動ではありません。腹が自在に動くようになれば、体の負担もなくなり、丹田を動かすことで、健康にも良きことになります。ほほや、口先に力を入れたならば、決まった尺八以外は鳴らせませんが、力を抜くことで、どんな尺八でも自在に鳴らすことができます。
太い 地無し管を鳴らすには、琴古流や都山流のように胸式呼吸で強く吹いても本物の音味は出せません。ほほを膨らませて、舌の先で 下唇を前におすようにして、口先から流速の遅い長い息を 、尺八の内部に押し込み、空気柱を
動かして音を出します。現代管のように、流速の早い息を入れれば、歌口付近で騒音がでます。京都明暗系の楔吹き用に製作されました古管尺八で奥州系の本曲を吹かれる方がいますが、奥州系の古管尺八は、奏法は京都系とは息の入れ方が違い、ふうわりとした息を入れて 尺八を鳴らす奏法のものです。京都明暗寺系の楔吹きならば、まず息を深く吸い込みながら、腹はへこみます。曲を吹き出すには、腹が元に戻りながら膨らみます。吹き矢を吹く要領で、息を吐き出す時は腹も膨らみます。この連続で曲を吹きますが。奥州系では、腹の力を自在に変えて、音の強弱をコントロールします。これにより、独特の味わいのある曲を吹くことができます。実際に尺八を手にすると、腹のことは忘れて口先で尺八を吹くようになりますが、息を吸い込みながら、同時に腹をへこますことは、意識しないとできないことです。この逆腹式丹田呼吸法の練習は、寝る時に布団の上で天井を見ながら腹の上に枕を置き、息を吐き出しながら、腹は膨らみ、枕は上昇します。息を吸い込むときは、枕は下がります。この繰り返しで、呼吸法を身に付けることができます。但し、あくまで呼吸法であり、腹筋運動ではありません。腹が自在に動くようになれば、体の負担もなくなり、丹田を動かすことで、健康にも良きことになります。ほほや、口先に力を入れたならば、決まった尺八以外は鳴らせませんが、力を抜くことで、どんな尺八でも自在に鳴らすことができます。
Basic exercises for playing jinashi shakuhachi
Points to be cautious of when playing long and wide bore jinashi shakuhachi (the method of practice based on reverse abdominal breathing technique)
If you want to play long and wide bore jinashi shakuhachi, you will not be able to produce an au-thentic sound unless you give up playing according to Kinko or Tozan school where practice is based mainly on chest breathing. In order to produce a sound on your jinashi shakuhachi you need to inflate your cheeks and press out the lower lip with the tip of your tongue. In this way you will achieve a velocity of slow and long breath coming out from your mouth right into the inside of shakuhachi creating the effect of resonance. In the case of modern shakuhachi, when you make a high velocity breath, it produces noice around the mouthpiece area.
Traditionally in Myōan school from Kyōtō a sound is produced by blowing “wedge” style. There are some people who use specifically Myōan shakuhachi to play honkyoku from the northern Japan, like Ōshū, but in Ōshū tradition the method of playing differs significantly from Myōan school, es-pecially when it comes to breathing in. In Ōshū the emphasis is put on producing a soft, wave-like breath which you blow into shakuhachi and not blowing g “wedge” style. In the “wedge” style blowing within Myōan school first of all you must take a deep in-breath while your stomach sinks in. Then, when you produce a sound, the stomach inflates returning to its original position. The point in blowing arrows is the same - your stomach inflates when on the out-breath. Playing honkyoku is based on this pattern. In Ōshū school you control the weakness and strength of the sound by freely adjusting energy of your stomach. As a result, you can produce a unique sound.
When one takes shakuhachi in your hand, many people tend to forget about their stomach and in-stead blow with their mouth so while breathing in their belly sinks in. To avoid it, you need to be constantly aware of your lover belly and make sure it moves.
There is a simple exercise to master reverse abdominal breathing. Before you go to sleep and you lie down on your bed looking up to the ceiling place a cushion on the lower part of your belly (below the navel). On the out-breath your belly should inflate and the cushion moves up. On your in-breath the cushion moves down.
Repeat this exercise regularly and naturally your body will get used to this breathing method but remember that this is not a physical work-out. It is a breathing technique. Once the lower area of your belly moves in and out naturally, you will not feel any strain in your body and you will feel healthier. When you force your cheeks and lips while playing you can be successful only on a lim-ited number of shakuhachi but when you let go of unnecessary physical strain within your body and relax you will be able to enjoy playing naturally any kind of shakuhachi.
If you want to play long and wide bore jinashi shakuhachi, you will not be able to produce an au-thentic sound unless you give up playing according to Kinko or Tozan school where practice is based mainly on chest breathing. In order to produce a sound on your jinashi shakuhachi you need to inflate your cheeks and press out the lower lip with the tip of your tongue. In this way you will achieve a velocity of slow and long breath coming out from your mouth right into the inside of shakuhachi creating the effect of resonance. In the case of modern shakuhachi, when you make a high velocity breath, it produces noice around the mouthpiece area.
Traditionally in Myōan school from Kyōtō a sound is produced by blowing “wedge” style. There are some people who use specifically Myōan shakuhachi to play honkyoku from the northern Japan, like Ōshū, but in Ōshū tradition the method of playing differs significantly from Myōan school, es-pecially when it comes to breathing in. In Ōshū the emphasis is put on producing a soft, wave-like breath which you blow into shakuhachi and not blowing g “wedge” style. In the “wedge” style blowing within Myōan school first of all you must take a deep in-breath while your stomach sinks in. Then, when you produce a sound, the stomach inflates returning to its original position. The point in blowing arrows is the same - your stomach inflates when on the out-breath. Playing honkyoku is based on this pattern. In Ōshū school you control the weakness and strength of the sound by freely adjusting energy of your stomach. As a result, you can produce a unique sound.
When one takes shakuhachi in your hand, many people tend to forget about their stomach and in-stead blow with their mouth so while breathing in their belly sinks in. To avoid it, you need to be constantly aware of your lover belly and make sure it moves.
There is a simple exercise to master reverse abdominal breathing. Before you go to sleep and you lie down on your bed looking up to the ceiling place a cushion on the lower part of your belly (below the navel). On the out-breath your belly should inflate and the cushion moves up. On your in-breath the cushion moves down.
Repeat this exercise regularly and naturally your body will get used to this breathing method but remember that this is not a physical work-out. It is a breathing technique. Once the lower area of your belly moves in and out naturally, you will not feel any strain in your body and you will feel healthier. When you force your cheeks and lips while playing you can be successful only on a lim-ited number of shakuhachi but when you let go of unnecessary physical strain within your body and relax you will be able to enjoy playing naturally any kind of shakuhachi.
地無し尺八を鳴らす極意
写真の1.琴古流や都山流の尺八を吹くときの口の形状。何十年も 、この吹き方で慣れているので、いきなり太い地無し管を吹こうとしても音が出ません。まずは口の形状を変えることから始めて、それから逆腹式丹田呼吸法により、丹田の圧力を尺八の中にかけるようにします。写真2.基本的に舌先を下の歯の上にかぶせて、下唇の 先を押すようにして、歌口内部の隙間を埋めるようにします。こうすれば、ほっぺたは自然に膨らみ丹田からの息は、舌の上を流れるように尺八内部に出ていきます。太い尺八ほど、舌先で下唇を余計に押し出して、歌口内部の隙間を埋めることになります。写真3.ほっぺたが膨らみ、ブルドックのように、息を送るたびに、震えるようになれば、顔全体の力も抜け、口の中の息を自在にコントロールできるようになればそれぞれの材質の違う尺八の音味も吹分けることができます。地付き管ではメリ音の時は息も弱めますが、この奏法では、ノズルの方向を自在に変えるだけで息は、メリもカリも同じ強さになります。稽古の時に岡本竹外先生から、メリの時に息までメらないようにと指導を受けました。高齢になって地無し尺八の道に入られる方が多いですが、胸式呼吸のような無理な負担を体にかけずに、ただ丹田だけを動かして鳴らす、この奏法ならば健康に、竹の音味を楽しめます。
Essential points in playing jinashi shakuhachi
The photo no. 1 shows the shape of the mouth when playing in Kinko or Tozan school. When you have long years of experience in any of these schools and you shape your mouth accordingly, it will be very difficult to produce a satisfactory sound after suddenly taking up a wide-bore jinashi shakuhachi. First of all, you must begin with changing the shape of your mouth. The next step is to blow the air into the inside of the bore producing the sound from the energy coming from the lower part of your belly, using the reverse-abdominal breathing method.
The photo no. 2 illustrates how to position your tongue. As you can see in the photo, it is important to push out the lower lip with your tongue covering the teeth. You must make sure that the inner part of the mouthpiece (utaguchi) is firmly closed with the oval shape of your mouth. In this way breath coming out from the lower area of your belly will naturally inflate your cheeks and flow ever your tongue entering the bore. The wider is the bore, the easier it is to fill the inside gap of the mouthpiece by pressing out your lower lip with the tongue.
The photo no. 3 shows the inflation of the cheeks which resemble the cheeks of the bulldog. Every time you direct your breath and your facial muscles are not tense you will feel your cheeks naturally trembling. Once you manage to freely control your breath so that it fills the bore of shakuhachi you will also be able to taste the differences in sound when playing different kind of shakuhachi.
When you want to produce meri sound on jiari shakuhachi your breath too gets weakened but using the jinashi method of playing it is enough to freely change the direction of the nozzle and the breath has the same strength no matter if meri or kari. When you produce meri sound, as it was taught by my teacher Okamoto Chikugai, don't try to make meri in your breath.
In Japan there are many elderly people who after retirement take up jinashi shakuhachi and they often force themselves to produce a sound thus only tiring their body with lung breathing (having very often long experience of playing in Kinko or Tozan traditions). Instead, it should be remembered to soften your lower belly area so that it moves in and out freely without any artificial contraction when playing. In this way it is not damaging to one's health but quite the opposite, it has numerous health benefits and the player can enjoy the natural sound of the bamboo.
The photo no. 2 illustrates how to position your tongue. As you can see in the photo, it is important to push out the lower lip with your tongue covering the teeth. You must make sure that the inner part of the mouthpiece (utaguchi) is firmly closed with the oval shape of your mouth. In this way breath coming out from the lower area of your belly will naturally inflate your cheeks and flow ever your tongue entering the bore. The wider is the bore, the easier it is to fill the inside gap of the mouthpiece by pressing out your lower lip with the tongue.
The photo no. 3 shows the inflation of the cheeks which resemble the cheeks of the bulldog. Every time you direct your breath and your facial muscles are not tense you will feel your cheeks naturally trembling. Once you manage to freely control your breath so that it fills the bore of shakuhachi you will also be able to taste the differences in sound when playing different kind of shakuhachi.
When you want to produce meri sound on jiari shakuhachi your breath too gets weakened but using the jinashi method of playing it is enough to freely change the direction of the nozzle and the breath has the same strength no matter if meri or kari. When you produce meri sound, as it was taught by my teacher Okamoto Chikugai, don't try to make meri in your breath.
In Japan there are many elderly people who after retirement take up jinashi shakuhachi and they often force themselves to produce a sound thus only tiring their body with lung breathing (having very often long experience of playing in Kinko or Tozan traditions). Instead, it should be remembered to soften your lower belly area so that it moves in and out freely without any artificial contraction when playing. In this way it is not damaging to one's health but quite the opposite, it has numerous health benefits and the player can enjoy the natural sound of the bamboo.
