This paper investigates the relationship between a song and its genre in thachingyi (great song), which also refers to Burmese classical songs. There are over one thousand songs listed under this category, and they are divided into approximately twenty different genres in song anthology publications.
Conventional literature has attempted to define genres according to their musical features or the origin of their names, and there have been no doubts with regard to the division of genres. According to these literatures, it is evident that the genres are distinct and almost any song can be classified under a certain genre. This opinion is based on the fact that many of the songs belonging to the same genre have the same melodies and therefore are similar to each other; further, all song anthology publications are segregated on the basis of the genres they belong to, and consequently, all songs can be categorized under a particular genre.
I have discussed the adequacy of genre divisions in song anthologies, which serves as a background for the perspective that genres have immovable boundaries. By analyzing palm-leaf and paper manuscripts, I have highlighted that during their inception, songs were not slotted into any particular genre.
It was only in 1870 that a manuscript was edited, which featured a compilation of song titles that were edited according to genres. Following this, all manuscripts and publications of songs began to include songs that were comprehensively edited and compiled according to their individual genres. Gradually, the genres for each song stabilized. However, even today, some songs can be categorized under two different genres. Therefore, I hypothesize that the genre of a song and its relationship with the song is not determined at the time of the song's inception.
There are some collimating marks that are used when composing or performing songs. A particular set of marks is said to define a certain genre; however, when performed, the marks and the genres of some songs are sometimes changed. Conventional literature assumes that these songs are exclusive to certain genres. However, as a result of genre divisions being imposed on songs, these songs are not exclusive to one genre but exist on the borderline between two genres. In addition, I believe that genres in thachingyi should be examined from the following two perspectives: the definition of certain genres and the relationship between a song and its genre. I also opine that the relationship between individual songs and their genres is not absolute.
Therefore, I shall now proceed to investigate the adequacy of genre divisions. There are five marks that are assumed as constituting a certain genre: (1) mode, (2) rhythmic patterns, (3) tunes that are frequently used in a certain genre, (4) a prelude that is fixed according to a certain genre, and (5) a postlude that is fixed according to a certain genre. There are some genres that are defined by their contents or forms of lyrics. However, there are also some songs, the marks of which deviate from those that are assumed to belong to a particular genre. I consider that it is these songs that highlight the blurred line separating one genre from another.
I have discussed some marks that are assumed to constitute classification under a certain genre. There are four modes consisting seven tones. The four modes are classified into two types based on their gapped structure. Garfias [1975] classified the hninlon tuning and aukpyan tuning modes as type I , and pale tuning and myinzain tuning as type II. Modes are assumed to be the most important mark defining a certain genre. Any conventional literature draws the relationship between a certain genre and the mode used to play songs from that genre. But a certain mode can be used to play a song belonging to not one but many genres. Therefore, it is impossible to define a genre by its mode. Becker [1968] discusse

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In this paper, I examine how the dances in modern Expositions can be analyzed from a perspective of colonialism. I will focus on two specific examples of Ryukyu-teodori and Takasagozoku-buyo. By doing so, I make the relationship between Japanese colonialism and performing arts clear.
The modern era has been known as “the era of Expositions”. In 1851, the first World Exposition was held in London, and then expositions took place continuously in larger Western cities such as Paris and Vienna in Europe, Philadelphia and Chicago in the United States. Each country competed to set up colonial pavilions in Expositions. To place colonial things on exhibition was to show the nations' capability for foreign influence. Therefore, the expositions might be the best opportunity for effective propaganda in presenting a country's growing national power to the global community.
The representation of colonies has its roots in earlier ages. From the 18^th to the 19^th centuries, Western powers have made wide inroads into non-Western countries. At that time, the study of natural history was prevalent in Europe, and European scholars were strongly interested in the people of non-Western cultures. And the same features also appeared in Japanese modern expositions, since both Japan and Western countries shared the same characteristics as settlers, despite the geopolitical differences.
In 1900, the 5^th National Industrial Exhibition was held in Osaka. The Academic Anthropic Pavilion (Gakujyutsu jinrui-kan) exhibited examples of colonial populations gathered from Okinawa, Hokkaido, and Taiwan, as a kind of “freak show”. This action caused a huge uproar in some regions, because people in those areas thought that it was degrading to have shown some region-specific (in other words, “abnormal”) folklores to the colonizing culture which decided the standard of “normal” during the era of colonial rule. This idea was especially strong in Okinawa, and the fact that several women of Okinawa gave a public performance of the traditional dance (Ryukyu-teodori) in this pavilion came under severe criticism in the Okinawan media, particularly among intellectuals. Such arguments are clearly related to Japanese Okinawan policies based on the idea of assimilation, which requires Okinawa to become a part of Japanese culture, even while severe discrimination remained. The people in Okinawa were educating themselves as “Japanese citizens” in these days. The colonists forced the people in Okinawa to make an effort to become “Japanese” like the immigrant settlers. In spite of this, people from Okinawa were exhibited in a showcase with Ainu or Taiwanese, who were retarded as “inferior breeds” by them.
However, another performance by Okinawan people was widely and favorably accepted, though it was at the same Exposition and was the same kind of traditional dance as was displayed at the Academic Anthropic Pavilion. That was the dance revue by “beautiful Okinawan women” (Ryukyu-bijin teodori-kai). This shows that not content, but context of performance is at stake. It is interesting from the perspective of colonialism and gendered body, since there were accusations that the women who appeared in the Academic Anthropic Pavilion were “prostitutes”, while women who performed in the Okinawan dance revue were praised as “actresses”.
Meanwhile, there was a completely different phenomenon in Taiwan, another colony of Japan. The Takasago, a Taiwanese indigenous tribe who performed at the Taiwanese Exposition in 1935 responded in another way. The colonizers viewed the traditional performance like Takasago-dance as a peculiar but interesting entertainment in this Exposition. Yet, even though they were treated as a “freak show”, the Takasago performers who appeared on the stage h

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This paper draws on visual materials to push back the date of the earliest instance of sankyoku gasso, the ensemble of koto, shamisen, voice and a third instrument—shakuhachi or kokyu.
A Prostitutes' Critique (yujo hyobanki) called Naniwa monogatari, published in 1655, contains an illustration in which a shamisen, a koto and a hitoyogiri (a predecessor of the shakuhachi) are placed together on the floor. This is the earliest clearly dated record of a combination of three instruments including koto.
However, an earlier source in a screen believed to have been painted “between 1615 and approximately 1630” depicts ensemble performances of shamisen and kokyu, and of shamisen, koto and kokyu. This is the Kaka yuraku-zu byobu (Scene of amusements beneath the blossoms), now held by the Shokokuji Temple in Kyoto.
Furthermore, another source, believed to originate from approximately the same period, can be seen in the Seikyoku Ruisan (volume one, part one; first published in 1847). It is a pair of illustrations titled ‘From an old six-panel painted screen dating from the Kan'ei or Shoho eras (1624-48)’ (Kan'ei Shoho no koro no koga rokumai byobu no uchi shuku-zu). One of these illustrations is a scene of entertainments in the licensed quarter. This illustration is only a sketched copy, and the old six-panel painted screen no longer exists. However, a copy of the original screen was introduced by KIKKAWA Eishi as the “Otobe byobu”. As the structure and arrangement of the figures are different in each version, it can be assumed that the Otobe screen is more faithful to the original.
Towards the centre of the Otobe screen, eleven figures form a group. This scene from the entertainment quarter shows a figure dancing in time to a song accompanied by instrumental ensemble of shamisen, kokyu and hitoyogiri. Guests are drinking and eating as they watch the performance. If we ignore the dance, this performance is none other than what later came to be the sankyoku ensemble comprising three instruments.
Ensemble performances of instruments such as the above were occurring from around the Kan'ei era (1624-44), before the formation of sankyoku as we know it today. After this time, many other pictures depict these instruments in various combinations being performed or positioned together. So we can surmise that similar kinds of ensemble performances occurred long before the formation of sankyoku as we know it today.

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This paper explores the formation process of the Yamato school go-eika in the 1920s-30s. Go-eika is a genre of Japanese hymns sung in Buddhist temples. Today there are various schools of go-eika, among which the Yamato school is the first originating school from which other schools descended.
The Yamato school was founded by Chikumatsu Yamasaki in 1921. He invented 11 melodies as the main repertoire of the Yamato school go-eika. He then founded the institution called Yamato-ko, which consists of a go-eika grand master and his pupils. Chikumatsu became the master himself and instructed his pupils how to sing go-eika.
Through the establishment of this institution Yamato-ko, a new transmission system was formed. First, the Yamato-ko published songbooks with the text and notation of go-eika, setting the model performance for the pupils through its national publication. Second, the Yamato-ko established a hierarchical structure for go-eika singers. In this hierarchy, when singers pass the examinations for go-eika techniques, they are awarded a higher level of proficiency. This ranking system is similar to the iemoto system, which is characteristic of traditional Japanese arts. Third, the Yamato-ko periodically held nationwide contests for go-eika techniques. These endeavors helped the Yamato-ko to expand into a large-scale group, transmitting go-eika nationally.
The Yamato-ko was able to become a nationwide institution because the hierarchical structure like the iemoto system was introduced into it. In the Yamato-ko, when the pupils are awarded specific grades of proficiency, they are licensed to instruct go-eika on behalf of the master. Therefore, the master is able to gain more pupils without instructing them directly. Such a relationship between the master and pupils is typical of the iemoto system. Through this system, the number of go-eika singers increased in the Yamato school, and the Yamato-ko enlarged nationally.

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The Taiwanese opera, Gezaisi (_??__??__??_), established by a private theatrical company in the early 20th century, went through transformation under social and political circumstances. In the 1990's, it was transformed into a new genre of theatrical performing arts, known as Jingzk Gezaixi (_??__??__??__??__??_), the “Refined” Taiwanese Opera. While traditional Gezaixi was characterized by lack of “scripts”, Jingzhi Gezaixi is noted for its incorporation of elements of European music style of performing arts, including “scripts” and division of labor in production process. Today, along with private theatrical companies, the Lang-yang Taiwanese Opera Company, Taiwan's only public theatrical company, also performs Jingzhi Gezaixi.
In performing Jingzhi Gezaixi, both private and public theatrical companies use the traditional tunes of Gezaixi such as Qi-zi Diao (_??__??__??_) and Du-ma Diao (_??__??__??_), and follow the conventions of its original music style. However, they present different degrees of “refinedize” (_??__??__??_) in new innovation aspects of performance such as in the structures of new music pieces. Such differences are due to these companies' different social positions and operational policies. In Jingzhi Gezaixi, thus, the concept of “refinedize” has not been defined clearly and the forms of performance have not been specified. Nevertheless, the Taiwanese government encourages both private companies and public company to perform Jingzhi Gezaixi as a representative of Taiwanese performing arts.
The work of the private theatrical companies where the novelty was emphasized to pursue pulling in customers and the originality of the theatrical company shows a figure of “the development” of Gezaixi. Meanwhile, the public theatrical company's performance shows “Succession of the tradition” that respect a traditional style while it gropes for artistic development the radical of the action policy of the company. The music style of Jingzhi Gezaixi is diverse, and in this diversification coexist “refinedize” and “tradition”. The base of this diversification is the existence of governmental policies that attempt to promote simultaneously “development” and “succession” of Taiwanese traditional culture.

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