Generic Topic Two

The Tayu and Shamisen

The tayu or narrator is responsible for relaying all of the dialogue for each character. He breathes life into the wooden puppets by expressing every emotion of the writing and each individual character. In addition to speaking for each of the characters, the tayu explains the background as well as the scene. Typically, the tayu has the highest status within the entire Bunraku troupe due to his talent of creating the atmosphere for the entire performance and his ability to voice the extensive variety of roles.

The shamisen is an instrument with a long neck, three strings, and a box-like hollow body resembling a long necked banjo. Three types of shamisen exist; however, only the futozao (thick necked) shamisen is used in the current Bunraku performances. The instrument is large, heavy, and resonates a full, deep tone. The body of the shamisen sits in the player’s lap with the player’s left hand holding the neck. Shamisen are used to give texture and punctuation to the performance. Since no visual contact is made within a performance between the tayu,
shamisen player, and the puppeteers, the shamisen
player sets the pace of the performance and accentuates elements for the puppeteers and tayu. The player follows the emotions and moods of the tayu based on pure feeling and heart. Throughout the performance, the shamisen player and tayu must understand one another and be in unity concerning the emotions and moods of the entire performance. The only elements needed to become a shamisen player are patience, perseverance to practice constantly, and heart. Feeling or heart cannot be taught, so a shamisen player is a unique group of gifted men.