No.205-4
Date: February 21, 2004 (Sat.) 12:00 p.m.
Venue:
Gymnasium, Gohongi Elementary School |
It sounded like a chorus of angels coming down from the Garden of Eden. Yes, Georgia is said to be greatly influenced by the ancient story of Eden. Mt. Ararat, known as the place Noahfs ark landed after escaping the great flood, is located in neighbouring Turkey and to the south of Georgia. Northwest of Georgiafs current capital, Tbilisi, is Mtskheta; an ancient capital that prospered from 4th century BC to 6th century AD. And it is this historical district that UNESCO has designated as a World Heritage Site.
Ensemble Mtskheta performed for the World Traditional Performing Arts Festival and kindly spared time to give a goodwill concert at Gohongi Elementary School, before leaving for their home country from Narita airport. Polyphonic singing is one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity that have been declared by UNESCO.
All vocal parts mutually interwoven; the secret technique of Polyphonic
Singing
Ikuko Suzuki (music producer; Meguro Ward resident)
Georgia is a country I had never heard of before. So after e-mail about the concert came from Ms. Hamada, a member of Meguro UNESCO Association, I browsed the Web for some basic information about the country. I found it is wedged between Turkey, Russia and the Black Sea. I had been in Salzburg, Austria to study eeducation on music and movement (dancing)f till last summer. A Turkish classmate had brought an instrument from his homeland and often played for the other students. The instrument was a sort of drum, 80 cm in diameter, suspended from his shoulder and hit by a thin drumstick held in each hand. The performance of this instrument is always accompanied by dance; men play the instrument and women dance. He showed us how to dance, which was great fun. The memory of our dancing together came back while listening to this concert. Polyphony is two or more vocal parts, each with its own individual melodic importance. So there exists no clear distinction between which part is the main melody and which part is the accompaniment. This technique is not restricted to European folk music; it can be found in folk music all over the world. For instance, Jongarubushi in Japan has the same feature.
What made the audience feel uplifted? Was it because of the interwoven sounds of all the vocal parts? It is a mysterious art.
I appreciated the depth of consciousness the Ensemble Mtskheta had in terms of music. I wanted an encore and left the concert with a hunger for more. I found myself looking for a further opportunity to watch and listen to it again.
Such a rich voice and solemn harmony a long tradition produces! It was not long before I was touched by the attractive sounds of the ensemble. I suppose that most Japanese rarely hear of Georgia, and even those who do, their knowledge of the country is very limited. Maybe we know it is near the Black Sea and know of its special yoghurt, but that is about all. Very few Japanese people can imagine how this small country, far from Japan, has experienced a complicated history chiefly because of its location, and yet kept a unique and profound tradition developed by the mixture of western and eastern cultures. I was one such person
Polyphony is not only Georgian; it can be found in many places in the world. However, the perfectly formed and beautiful sounds of the ensemble made me understand the countryfs dignity cultivated through its long history, peoplefs love for their country and the pride of their cultural tradition.
Nowadays, new things are being produced one after another and appreciated
around the world, including of course, Japan. However, I think it would be nice if people
could evaluate other cultures and traditions that have passed through the
generations. The concert was arranged very quickly, but more than hundred
people gathered there. The performance was short, but I and the other concert
goers were absolutely thrilled and deeply impressed by the wonderful encounter
with their culture.
Surprises continued! As the concert was at noon, we offered the performers lunch at Gohongi elementary school, and after the lunch they reciprocated by giving another performance. A small number of people had stayed behind, including the President. The lunchroom echoed with sounds, holy sounds of anglesf chorus, as if the place were a solemn cathedral. Although it was just a short impromptu performance, we enjoyed a gorgeous cultural exchange.
The wonderful and surprising concert was held due to the support of the following: Ms. Yuko Togashi (specialist of East European culture including Bulgarian and Georgian culture) who worked as an interpreter and translator for Georgian performers at the World Traditional Performing Arts Festival; Japan Folk Performing Arts Association Inc.; and Ms. Yasuko Hamada (Byzantine artist), who is a member of Meguro UNESCO Association and a friend of Ms. Togashi.
We only had 10 days from the confirmation of the concert to the day of the actual performance. Mr. Furukawa, the principal of Gohongi elementary school, kindly let us use their gymnasium. We quickly prepared and distributed many pamphlets advertising the concert, and put a notice on our homepage, but we feel very sorry that the announcement was not more widespread. All are welcome to the secretariat to watch the video recording the beautiful performance and sounds of the day.