What is Gagaku ?
Gagaku, i.e. the Japanese court music is one of the tradition entertainments in Japan based on dances, songs, concerts and so on which were born in the Heian Period about 1200 year ago. It was born with cultural exchange of the Japanese native songs which were handed down from ancient times of Japan and of technology of artistes which came from Korea to Japan. Then it has been developed with supports of noble and priests. At first, it was one of the amusement at banquet for noble, but it was used as ceremony music for shrine and temple owing to the progress of the Noh which took over culture of Gagaku in the times of Busi ( i.e warrior ) since Kamakura period.
Nowadays, you can listen to it at the places such as Sinto wedding ceremony, Sinto festival and court ceremony. The number of Gagaku players these days in Japan is about 500 persons which are very small numbers comparing with other traditional entertainments. Gagaku established the first system in the world in performing a concert with more than 20 players and it is one of the very rare case that cultural property has been traditionally handed down as it was since 1200 years before.
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