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Kan'ami
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
Kan'ami Kiyotsugu was a Japanese Noh actor, writer and musician of the Muromachi period. He was born in 1333 in Iga Province as Yūzaki Kiyotsugu and died in 1384 in Suruga Province. He is the father of the famous playwright Zeami Motokiyo. His name occurs in several forms, such as Kanze Kiyotsugu.
Music and breakthrough
His career began in Obata in the Kansai region, where he founded a sarugaku troupe. The troupe moved to Yamato and became the Yuzaki troupe, which would become the basis of Noh theatre. He grew ever more popular and travelled to Kyoto to perform. In 1374 the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was in the audience. He was so impressed that he became Kan'ami's patron. That brought the troupe into high circles.
Influence
Kan'ami was the first writer to work the kusemai style of singing and dancing into his plays, together with dengaku dances from rural harvest festivals. In this way he blended popular elements with the court audience. He trained his son Zeami in his style, and Zeami eventually succeeded him as head of the Kanze school of Noh. In this way Kan'ami laid the foundation for a form of theatre with song, dance and music that is still performed today, and that is also important for the music history of Japan.
Listening
Mentioned in other articles
- Noh Genre
In 1374 the young shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu saw a performance by Kan'ami and his son Zeami and became their patron; Zeami then wrote dozens of plays and the theory of the genre.