Kogō no Kyoku
小督の曲
| [Genre] | Sokyoku |
| [Style] | Uta mono |
| [School] | Yamada Ryū - 山田 |
| [Composed] | Yamada Kengyō - Koto |
History (Tsuge Gen'ichi):
| One of the Kengyo's 'Four Greatest Works,' this piece, Kogo no kyoku ('The Song of Kogo') stands on its dignity and requires the highly controlled technique characteristic of the Yamada style. The text is based on the story 'Kogo' in Book Six of 'The Tale of the Heike' (Heike monogatari). Kogo no Tsubone, a favorite mistress of Emperor Takakura, fled from the palace in fear of Taira no Kiyomori's plots against her, and hid herself in Saga, on the outskirts of the Kyoto plain. The heart-broken Emperor, sent Minamoto no Nakakuni, a trusted warrior, to find her one moonlit night in Autumn. Nakakuni rode through the wild plain hoping to hear the sweet sound of her koto which would reveal her whereabouts. |
Poem (translated by Tsuge Gen'ichi)
| 'A solitary stag cries In this mountain village,' Thus the ancients sang On the Saga Fields. In autumn, Among the many wild flowers In their varied hues, The insects cry sadly, The night grows dark, The pine-cricket calls to the moon, The tail-flower wags, And on the bush-clover, The jewel-bugs cling like dew! On the quavering reeds A noisy cricket chirps. Accompanied by the insect voices Nakakuni rides Upon a royal steed On night patrol, His flowered cloak dimly visible. In his mind the remembered form Of the person he seeks... There, in the thin mists Stands the courtesan-flower! Is it she, or is it not? As in that futile search Which took place (1) On the phantasmal Island of Yomogi He pulls up his horse In the shade of a bamboo grove... And rests. The pine winds Come, and bring the sounds Of plucked strings. This is not like the deer who follows The lovesick stag's cry, And yet, As once in the past, He takes his bamboo flute... By playing together He is determined, without question (It is she) Using her voice as a guide He comes upon a lonely hut Hidden in the Saga Fields. She plays The song of Sofuren (2) 'In Heaven Let us be twin birds That share a wing,' And then In the Banshiki mode, 'On Earth let us be twin pines With branches intertwined.' The Lady Kogo Hiding in seclusion - Her dwelling tomorrow The nunnery at Ohara. For the last time Before she takes the tonsure She plays a melody In a meek and gentle tone. Her feelings spill unchecked Over the rocky crags. Her tears Drench her sleeves. Were one there to behold, What might he think? The music of her strings Acts as a guide; In the moonlight that streams From distant skies, The imperial messenger Introduces himself. This is an Imperial edict From His Majesty. Across the distant fields, I have come through the wild brush, To present this letter Drenched in dew. Let is once again tie the knot Between the palace chambers And my retreat. Such is her answer, And as a token, she gives him A five-folded garment. In the early dawn Soon thereafter, The Emperor sends forth A royal palanquin. Ah, no return To the splendid days of old! Ah, no return To the splendid days of old! A vow that will last forever, Like the evergreen pine. (1) The search by a sorcerer in the service of the T'ang Emperor Hsuan Tsung for the whereabouts of the departed soul of his dead mistress, Yan Kuei-fei. (2) In Chinese pronunciation, Hsiang Fu Lien: i.e. 'Song of Love for one's Husband.' | (maebiki) "Ojika naku kono yamazato" to eiji ken saga no atari no aki no koro chigusa no hana mo samazama ni muchi no urami mo fukaki yo no tsuki ni matsumushi maneku wa obana hagi ni wa tsuyu no tamamushi ya soyogu ogimushi kutsuwamushi (ai) Naku ne ni tsurete nakakuni ga ryoo no on-uma tamawarite tonoi-sugata no fuji-bakama tazunuru hito no omokage ni tatsu usugiri ominaeshi soreka aramuka maboroshi no yomogigashima ni tazunewabi koma hikitomuru sasa no kuma (ainote) Yasuroo kage no matsukaze ni kayoo kayoo tsumaoto tsumakoi no ne ni yoru shika ni aranedomo mukashi oboyuru fue-take ya awasu shirabe no magai naki koe wo shirube ni shitaiyoru sagano no oku no kata-orido (gaku) Soofuren no shooga wa hiyoku no tsubasa no kumoi wo koi hanshiki-joo no shirabe wa matsu no renri no eda ni kayoo Kogoo no tsubone yo wo shinobu sumika mo asu wa oohara ni kaen sugata no nagori tote yowa ni tenarasu tsuma-goto no Iwa kosu omoi sekikanete namida ni sode wo kashiwaba ya hitome mo ikaga ayame-gata Ito no irone wo shirube nite sashiiru tsuki no kumoi yori on-tsukai ni mairishi to kashikoki kimi ga mikotonori nobe no tamazusa sashiyosuru tsumado no hashi no en no tsuna mata hikimusubu on-kaerigoto soete tamawaru itsutsu-ginu kinuginu okuru hodo mo naku makai no kuruma tatematsuri (ai) Mukashi ni kaeru momoshiki ya mukashi ni kaeru momoshiki ya chiyo wo chigiri no matsu no kotohoha |
Kogō no Kyoku appears on the following albums
| Album | Artist | |
| Sankyoku Gassō Dai Zenshū vol. 6 (三曲合奏大全集６) |
Koto : Inagaki Hiroho Koto : Takano Kazuyuki Shamisen : Higashi Hiroka Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō Voice : Nakada Hiroyuki Voice : Kikuchi Hirone | |
 | Shakuhachi no Shinzui-Sankyoku Gasso - 04 |
Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō |
| Sokyoku Jiuta Taikei 47 |
Voice : Uehara Masaki II Koto : Uehara Masaki II Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō | |
| Uehara Masaki - Number 2 |
Koto : Uehara Masaki II |
| Yamada Kengyo o Utao Disk 1 |
Voice : Fujii Chiyoga II Koto : Fujii Chiyoga II Voice : Takayanagi Chikaga Voice : Kishibe Michiga II Koto : Kishibe Michiga II Voice : Takaba Yōga Voice : Fujii Chiyoga III Shamisen : Fujii Chiyoga III Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō Koto : Tomiyasu Mizuga Koto : Suzuki Seiju | |
| Yamada Ryū Sōkyoku Tokusen 4 - Kogō no Kyoku (山田流箏曲特選 四ー小督曲） |
Shamisen : Fujii Chiyoga III Shakuhachi : Yamaguchi Gorō Voice : Fujii Chiyoga II Koto : Fujii Chiyoga II Koto : Kishibe Michiga II |