Late Spring - Kabuki

[Guest Tosh]

I've become very interested in Kabuki over the years, it all started after watching the scene in Kagemusha, being a musician I've grown very bored of most Western music styles (rock/hiphop) and have grown fond of more traditional Asian insturments and musicals, after doing a google search looking for the kabuki scene in Kagemusha I found this scene from Late Spring(1949) -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Hxu73Dki3g

I noticed they just released this, I've always watched more Samurai related films, and realize this wont have limbs being hacked off and blood spraying everywhere, but this looks like a classic, any opinions?

[Guest Mr. Vampire]

Ozu's films are usually good... If you have patience... for the depth. They're more modern-era real-life drama films, which I usually can't unwind with. I am more into the jidai-geki stuff from the 50's and 60's, they have a smattering of this sort of 'opera' or folk songs. Then again I also think the 60's and 70's Yakuza eiga are very theraputic in a way.

So what do you play then? I took a left turn form the western world of music in the late 80's and study and play a variety of eastern music, mostly near and mid... It's harder to kind people that are knowledgeable about Chinese and Japanese music in the upper midwest.

[Guest vengeanceofhumanlanterns]

I absolutely love traditional japanese music. Actually, any solo w/vocals or not, japanese instrumentation, Biwa etc., is awesome stuff in my book.

[Guest Tosh]

I've played bass for 20 years, electric and upright but I wanted to buy a Ur Hu, unfortently I didn't have the room for it when I was in China, so I don't play any Asian insturments at the moment, but I love listening to it, I think when I can buy something it wouldn't take to long to learn with a little determination. I went to the Japan Fest here in Atlanta the other month, they had a traditional Drum troupe there, and was saying this is what they used when the Samurai went to battle, I instantely thought of the end scene in Goyokin where those guys were going off on the drums with those masks on at the end fight. I'd love to get some drums and masks and pull some shows off, there is nothing around here like that. I'd also like to buy a shamisen or biwa.

This troupe was called matusuri(Something like that), they were great!