February 3, 2012 in 和 (wa) Wednesday
This piece is simply two kotos improvising over the Ritsu scale that is found commonly in Gagaku.
I used the chords that are commonly played on the Shou (seen right), repeated and improvised with the koto.
The drums aren’t in time on purpose here. One feature of old Japanese music is the lack of ‘perfect in time’ playing. The more natural, the closer to the earth you are. Enjoy!
August 9, 2011 in 和 (wa) Wednesday
I love the sound of Gagaku and how sparse and simple it is. The Ritsu scale is the most common scale found in gagaku pieces and here I decided to copy the chords for the instrument: 
sho (pictured on the right) and use them for comping on the keyboard, which creates this wispy, thin sound.
In the piece below, I used the koto as a lead instrument, which of course is breaking the rules, but whatever! Typically the lead instrument is played by this guy on the left. 
But if you know me, you know that’s not me and I don’t own that instrument yet. Enjoy the video featuring my floating girlfriend’s head below!
Quiet!
