2. International and Interdisciplinary Nōgaku Research from new perspectives
2024
・New publication: A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen Theatre
Edited by Yamanaka Reiko, Monica Bethe, Eike Grossmann, Tom Hare, Diego Pellecchia, and Michael Watson.
Brill: LEIDEN, BOSTON
Volume 1 E-Book（PDF）2025/01/20 Hardback 2024/12/19
Volume 2 E-Book（PDF）2024/12/30 Hardback 2024/12/19
・Joint research on the transmission of nō techniques and media (continued)
Focusing on the transmission of techniques from one professional actor to another, the project comprehensively investigates the following themes, to list a few: communication between a master and their apprentice, the gap between the performer’s inner perception and how they look from the outside, and performers’ understanding of katatsuke, a basic document for the transmission of techniques. We initiated preparations for collaborating with Fujitsu Human Motion Analytics.
・Compilation of a word-segmented dictionary for a database specialized in nō plays and treatises (continued)
Based on the agreement on academic exchange between the National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics (NINJAL, or Kokuritsu kokugo kenkyūjo) and Noh Theatre Research Institute, we provided the text data of one hundred plays to construct the Nōgaku UniDic and Historical Japanese Corpus Nōgaku Edition.
・Improved format and the expansion of data of the nō commentary database
We changed the format of our nō commentary database into a more accessible format, added more data, and published it as part of “Vocabulary Online Resources.”
・Expansion of the resources
We added 113 new data of the nō movement motion capture (fbx file).
2023
・International collaboration towards the publication of “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen”
As a joint project continued from the first phase of the centre-led research, thirty-eight researchers of various nationalities were involved in the writing: fifteen from Japan, fourteen from the USA, five from Germany, one from Italy, one from the Czech Republic, one from Singapore, and one from Australia. Based on the publishing contract signed in 2022 with Brill, a Dutch publisher, we did proofreading, indexing, and image captioning for the book. The publication is scheduled to be at the end of August 2024.
・Joint research on the transmission of practical skills and media (interdisciplinary research of theater studies and sports science)
In order to elucidate the process of transmitting nōgaku’s technical and artistic skills, we conducted interdisciplinary research from the perspectives of sports science and theater studies. This year, our efforts culminated in the publication of Waza wo tsutaeru (Transmitting the Skills) edited by Tarō YOKOYAMA, the ninth volume of the nō research series.
・Compilation of a word-segmented dictionary for a database specialized in nō plays and treatises (continued)
This is a joint project between the National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics (NINJAL, or Kokuritsu kokugo kenkyūjo) and Noh Theatre Research Institute. We converted some text data into XML format, and conducted a morphological analysis on a trial basis using the existing dictionary, Chūsei Bungo UniDic. We also did a partial corpus maintenance and created a prototype dictionary for nō plays.
2022
・International collaboration towards the publication of “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen”
This is a collaborative project continued from the first phase of the centre-led research. Thirty-eight researchers of various nationalities were involved in the writing: fifteen from Japan, fourteen from the USA, five from Germany, one from Italy, one from the Czech Republic, one from Singapore, and one from Australia. In 2022, a publishing contract was concluded with Brill in the Netherlands. The book is currently under final proofreading.
・Construction of a full-text search database of 500 woodblock utaibon (nō chant books) from the Edo period
This is a collaborative project by twelve researchers in the nō theater studies and information linguistics. Together with the results of other open collaborative research projects, our aim is to build an online resource for comprehensive, cross-disciplinary research on the nō vocabulary. This year, we completed the data processing of 400 Edo-period woodblock utaibon. In order to facilitate this joint research and another joint research by younger researchers, named “Compilation of the keywords of Muromachi-period nō treatises using information processing technology”, the Institute signed the “Basic Agreement on Academic Exchange and Cooperation” with the National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics.
2021
・International collaboration towards the publication of “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen”
This is a collaborative project continued from the first phase of the centre-led research. Thirty-eight researchers of various nationalities were involved in the writing: fifteen from Japan, fourteen from the USA, five from Germany, one from Italy, one from the Czech Republic, one from Singapore, and one from Australia. After multiple edits, the 900-page draft was sent to Brill in the Netherlands on February 2nd, 2022.
・Construction of a full-text search database of 500 woodblock utaibon (nō chant books) from the Edo period
This is a collaborative project by twelve researchers in the nō theater studies and information linguistics. Together with the results of other open collaborative research projects, our aim is to build an online resource for comprehensive, cross-disciplinary research on the nō vocabulary. This year, we completed the data processing of 200 Edo-period woodblock utaibon.
・Writing commentary for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Noh Festival pamphlet (Japanese and English).
Utilizing the network created through the joint research for “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen,” four Japanese and two foreign researchers from Noh Theatre Research Institute wrote commentaries on the basics, history, performance, costumes, masks, and other aspects of nō and kyōgen. The commentaries are also available on the Nohgaku Performers′ Association website.
・Digitization of Zeami treatises and analysis of their transmission and reception
Collaborative research by Hanna MCGAUGHEY (International Visiting Scholar) and Reiko YAMANAKA.
2020
・International collaboration towards the publication of “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen”
This is a collaborative project by thirty-eight scholars continued from the first phase of the centre-led research. We revised the draft aiming for publication, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, important editing process, such as final confirmation of the materials and selection of images, was heavily delayed. Although the book is not yet complete, the content in each section has deepened, and we are making our efforts for further improvement. A part of the draft was made available on the web on a trial basis (limited access to members only).
2019
・International collaboration towards the publication of “A Companion to Nō and Kyōgen”
This is a collaborative project by thirty-eight scholars continued from the first phase of the centre-led research. We have mostly completed the English draft and entered the editing phase.
