Shakuhachi Music, Notes, and More --------------------------------- The Shakuhachi is an Japanese end-blown bamboo flute. It is tuned to the pentatonic minor scale, but is capable of producing virtually any pitch in a roughly 3 octave range. It is a Zen medatative instrument, but can also be used for traditional Japanese ensemble music, western folk, jazz, and more. Not only is the instrument capable of any pitch, but it offers extreme variety in tones and coloring by subtle changes in embouchere and movement of the head to modify the air-flow over the blowing edge (utaguchi). Music for the Shakuhachi spans a lot of different styles. In the eastern traditions there are the following general styles: doyo - Children's songs minyo - Folk tunes shinkyoku - Music composed between 1900-1950 gendai kyoku - Modern music san kyoku - Trio music for shakuhachi, koto, and shamisen honkyoku - Classical shakuhachi music for Zen meditation, or a free-form in this style (DIR) Music