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Which instruments are used in matsuri-bayashi festival ensembles?
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Japanese music
Courtesan playing a samisen, Japanese woodcut print.
In the context of Japanese music, matsuri-bayashi refers to the festival ensembles that developed at Shintō shrines in Edo (modern-day Tokyo) during the Tokugawa period.1
These ensembles typically feature a combination of the following instruments:
- Bamboo flute: Often used to provide the melodic line.1
- Taiko drums: Most ensembles include two folk-style taiko stick drums and one larger ō-daiko barrel drum.1
- Kane: A small hand gong, also known as an atarigane, which is struck inside its rim.21
While these are the standard components for general festival music, variations exist depending on the specific performance. For instance, ensembles accompanying dance or pantomime may replace the standard flute with a Noh flute and utilize different drum configurations, such as the diabyoshi barrel drum. Other folk pantomimes may occasionally incorporate cymbals (chappa) or the samisen.1