The Law of Dynamic Progression (jo-ha-kyu) and "Pause" (ma) in Traditional Musical Theatre, Music, and Other Temporary Arts of Japan: the Problem of the Analytical Approach

Abstract

The specific Japanese principle of organization of the compositional process (Japanese: jo-ha-kyu), which has no analogues in world musical practice, has increasingly attracted the attention of composers and theater directors in recent decades. Formed within the framework of the medieval musical drama Noh, this law spread not only to subsequent musical and theatrical genres, but also to other traditional temporary arts of Japan. In terms of importance, jo-ha-kyu is compared with the law of the golden section in European art. The no less specific Japanese interpretation of pause – silence and stop of movement (ma) creates difficulties not only for musicologists, but also for Japanese performers, for whom the feeling or intuitive finding of the duration of a pause-ma is an indicator of superior skill and spirituality.

Keywords

Japanese traditional music, musical drama Noh (Nogaku), jo-ha-kyu, ma pause, tempo, metre and rhythm, dynamic fractality in music