Dance

It can be used broadly to mean "dance," or to distinguish between the two elements of "odori" and "mai." The word "buyo" became popular in 1904 (Meiji 37) when Tsubouchi Shoyo published "Shinrakugekiron," but in the Kansai region, where the dance form had remained for a long time, it was customary to use mai to mean "dance," and in Edo to use odori. Mai originally meant the movement of "turning" or "spinning," and it was mainly a circular movement, with the feet not raised high, but sliding across the floor. There were many dances in ancient times, such as "Hayatomai," "Yamatomai," and "Gosechimai," and in the Middle Ages, such as "Kowakamai," "Kusemai," and "Shirabyoshimai," and Noh dance was perfected. While "odori" developed greatly mainly in the early modern period and has a commoner character, "mai" is older and can be said to have an aristocratic character. "Kamigatamai" (Kamigata Dance) handed down in Kyoto and Osaka is called "jiutamai" (Jiuta Dance) because its music is often classical jiuta (Chinese folk song), and it incorporates elements of Noh dance and the movements of Bunraku puppets, giving it a unique flavor. "mai" is one of the techniques that make up Japanese dance, along with "odori" and "furi", and is included in various forms of Kabuki dance.

[Kisaragi Aoko]

To say that performing Noh is "dancing Noh" succinctly expresses the Noh philosophy that all performance must leave realism behind, be unified into the stylization of dance, and be abstracted. In the narrow sense, dance can be broadly divided into dances that are performed according to chanted texts, such as Kuse, and inorganic dances (maigoto) performed only with instrumental accompaniment, such as Jo-no-mai, Chu-no-mai, Kagura, Gaku, and Shishi. The idea is that motionless performances such as Iguse are also a more advanced dance in which the heart dances, and the fact that Maigoto, which has no concrete expression at all, is performed at the climax of the Noh drama, shows that Noh is a theater that goes in the opposite direction to reenactment and realism. Kyogen also contains many elements of dance, but the fact that most of them are performed as entertainment is an essential difference from Noh.

[Masuda Shozo]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

広く「舞踊」の意に用いる場合と、「踊(おどり)」に対する「舞」としてその異なる要素を区別していう場合とある。「舞踊」の語は1904年（明治37）坪内逍遙(しょうよう)の『新楽劇論』から一般的になっていったが、関西では古くから舞の形式が残存していたため、舞踊の意を舞、江戸では踊という習慣がある。舞は本来「まわる」「まわす」という動きを表す意味のことばで、巡り回る運動を主とし、足は高く上げず床を滑るようにする。古代に「隼人(はやと)舞」「倭(やまと)舞」「五節舞(ごせちのまい)」等々、中世に「幸若(こうわか)舞」「曲(くせ)舞」「白拍子(しらびょうし)舞」等々、数多くあり、能の舞が完成されている。「踊」が主として近世に大きな発展を遂げ、庶民的性格をもつのに対し、「舞」は時代的に古く、貴族的性格をもつといえる。京阪に伝わる「上方舞(かみがたまい)」は音楽が地唄(じうた)（地歌）のものが古典として多いところから「地唄舞」とよばれ、能の舞、あるいは文楽(ぶんらく)の人形の動きなどを取り入れ、独自の味を備えている。また「舞」は、「踊」「振」とともに日本舞踊を構成する技法の一つで、歌舞伎(かぶき)舞踊にも種々含まれている。

［如月青子］

　能を演ずることを「能を舞う」というのは、すべての演技が写実を離れ、舞という様式性に統一され、抽象化されねばならないという、能の理念を端的に表している。狭義の舞は、クセのように、謡われる文章によって舞われるものと、序ノ舞、中(ちゅう)ノ舞、神楽(かぐら)、楽(がく)、獅子(しし)などの、器楽演奏だけによる無機的な舞（舞事(まいごと)）に大別される。居グセのような不動の演技も、心が舞う、より高度の舞という考えであり、また能のドラマの頂点部分で、具体的表現をまったくもたぬ舞事が舞われるのも、能が再現写実と逆方向の演劇であることを示している。狂言にも舞の要素は豊富であるが、その多くが余興として舞われることは、能との本質的な違いである。

［増田正造］

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