Kotsuzumi
| Musical Instruments | |
|---|---|
| Fue | Flute |
| Chanpon | Cymbals |
| Hyoshigi | Wooden clappers |
| Taiko | Large drum |
| Surigane | Gong |
| Kotsuzumi | Small drum |
| Koto | |
| Shamisen | |
| Kokyu | |
The kotsuzumi or small drum (also hand drum) is one of the nine Narimono or instruments for the Service.
The tsuzumi is a hand drum that originated in India and introduced to Japan in the 6th or 7th century.[1] It is comprised of a body made from cherry wood and two drum heads, which is strung together with a cord. Various sounds and pitches can be made according to how tightly the cords are squeezed with the left hand and by the strength of the hits made by the right.
The manner of holding the cord of a tsuzumi with the left hand and striking the drum head with the right developed during the Heian period (794–1185). A smaller version of the tsuzumi was the kotsuzumi (literally, small tsuzumi).
The instrument was adopted in Noh and Kabuki as well as many forms of folk music.
Use within Tenrikyo
Between 1888 and 1936, the kotsuzumi was replaced by a gagaku instrument called the kakko. It is assumed that government officials regarded the kotsuzumi as an instrument that was not appropriate for use in a religious service.
Notes/references
- ↑ Unless noted, most of the information on this page comes from 『改訂 天理教事典』 Kaitei Tenrikyo jiten, pp. 347.
