Catalog of Shōdan: Recitative Chants
Sashi
There are three types of Sashi : The one that sits between the Issei-music and Issei-chant, that the shite sings after his entry; the one that leads into a hiranori chant, sung in the middle range it often leads to a Sageuta. Finally the one members of the tripartite Kuse: Kuri, Sashi, Kuse. Kokaji’s Sashi is an example from the latter.
Based on arhythmic poetic text, all Sashi are sung in recitative sashinori style by actor(s), jiutai, or by both actor(s) and jiutai. In contrast to einori chant and its prolongation of certain syllables and the rise and fall of the vocal line, a sashinori chant is akin to a recitative. The non-congruent vocal line, with alternating verses of seven and five syllables and the percussion part in flexible rhythm, suggest that the text is still in the descriptive rather than poetic part of the play. The addition of the non-congruent nohkan part contributes to create a rather complex texture. In this context, it is the percussionists’ responsibility to adapt their sparse mitsuji patterns to the chant, whose tempo is in constant flux.
Singing in tsuyogin style, the shite and jiutai, accompanied by the two hand-percussion instruments and the nohkan, perform Kokaji's Sashi. The shite’s two verses divide the shōdan in two parts. His first verse is followed by six lines delivered by the jiutai, each one sung on a single accelerating pitch that comes to a concluding sustained-tone. Accompanied by the nohkan’s kuse no ryō pattern, the jiutai’s reply to the shite’s second verse has a definite melodic attribute that contrasts with the recitative quality of the first six lines.