“With Each Passing Breath”: Documenting Japan’s Classic “Rōkyoku” Narrative Singing Tradition

Renowned rōkyokushi Minatoya Koryū. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

(© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Koryū, right, hugs shamisen player Sawamura Toyoko after a performance. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Tamagawa Yūko, right, instructs Kosome at her apartment in Akabane. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Koryū and Tamagawa share a moment with the other resident of the apartment, her cat An-chan. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

A collection of cassette tapes of Koryū’s old performances. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Kosome performs at the Harumi Wharf. She set off on her own as a chindon’ya performer in 1997, and in 2013 she began studying rōkyoku under Koryū. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Kosome, right, is joined by Tamagawa as she makes her formal debut at the Mokubatei. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)

Banners flutter outside the Mokubatei in Asakusa. (© Passo Passo/Kawakami Atiqa)