Sekirei

Japanese: せきれい

A song accompanied by koto and shakuhachi (1 shaku 6 inch long). Composed by Miyagi Michio in 1921. The lyrics are two stanzas based on a poem by Kitahara Hakushu, depicting the scenery of a mountain stream with wagtails flying about. The song has a light rhythm of 3/4 time, a stanza format, and an introduction, interlude, and postlude. The fast hand movements in the instrumental parts express the fluidity of the rapids, and the staccato parts used frequently in the vocal, koto, and shakuhachi parts skillfully express the dynamism of the wagtails jumping around with their tails swaying, making this a song that excels in describing the scenery. In various aspects, including form, technique, and style, this piece offers a new flavor that had not been seen in previous Japanese music, and is counted among Miyagi's masterpieces, despite being a small piece.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

箏･尺八(1尺6寸管)伴奏の歌曲。1921年宮城道雄作曲。歌詞は北原白秋の詩で2節より成り，セキレイ(鶺鴒)の飛び交う山間の渓流の情景を描く。曲は軽快なリズム感の3/4拍子，有節形式で前奏･間奏･後奏がある。器楽部分の速い手が急流のせせらぎの流動感をよく表し，また，歌，箏，尺八の各パートに多用されたスタッカートが尾を振りながら跳びまわるセキレイの躍動感を巧みに表して，情景描写に優れた曲である。形式，技法，曲風などさまざまな面でそれまでの邦楽曲になかった新味を出した作品で，小品ながら宮城の傑作の一つに数えられている。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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