Location: Kami-Jinego, Chokai-machi, Yurihonjo City Site(s) of performance: Gassan Shrine and other places in the community Date(s): 1st Saturday of September Category: Furyū At the annual festival of the local shrine of Jinego, chests (nagamochi) are offered to the shrine with offerings in them. Nagamochi song is an a cappella song to be sung while …
Location: Shinzan, Hotta, Daisen City Site(s) of performance: Takanashi Shrine Date(s): August 19 and 20 (the days of annual festival of Takanashi Shrine) Designation: City-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Miko-Kagura and Yudate-Kagura This kagura is performed as an offering every year at the annual festival of Takanashi Shrine. This kagura is of pure Shinto …
Location: Sanno, Akita City Site(s) of performance: Anywhere Date(s): Anytime Designation: Prefecture-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Manzai and Talk Show Akita Manzai is a kind of celebratory performance during the New Year’s days, performed by two performers, Tayū and Saizō. Tayū wears an eboshi cap (suggesting a highly ranked status) and a samurai costume. …
Location: Higashi-Imaizumi, Ota-machi, Daisen City Site(s) of performance: Hachiman Shrine Date(s): August 14 (the day of Hachiman Shrine’s annual festival) Category: Taiko-Furyū and Matsuri-Bayashi There existed a Higashi-Imaizumi Kagura in the old days, which, however, disappeared more than 200 years ago and is only known in little detail. Higashi-Hachiman Drums was started in 1980 with …
Location: Bozawa, Kita-Akita City Site(s) of performance: Eianji Temple, Bōzawa Shinmei Shrine, and other places in the community Date(s): August 14 Category: Sasara and Horse Dance Although it is now performed only on August 14, villagers used to perform the dance from August 13 to 20 in the village and surrounding villages and received congratulatory …
Location: Tsuchizaki, Akita City Site(s) of performance: Tsuchizaki Shinmei Shrine and other places in the community Date(s): July 20 nad 21Designations: State-Designated Important Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property; UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as Yama, Hoko, Yatai, float festivals in Japan Category: Taiko-Furyū and Matsuri-Bayashi This is music (hayashi) for the yama float …
Location: Kanaashi-Kurokawa, Akita City Site(s) of performance: Kurokawa Community Center Date(s): August 13 and 14 Designation: City-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property Category: Shishimai and Bangaku Kurokawa Bangaku has an institutionalized system where the Miura family is in charge of it with intergenerational succession. It is performed mostly as the prayer for bumper crops, though in …
Location: Fukuda, Kita-Akita City Site(s) of performance: Fukuda Inari Shrine and Fukuda Shishimai Hall Date(s): August 14 Category: Dai-Kagura This shishimai (lion dance) seems to belong to the School of Ise Dai-Kagura. The role of one lion is performed by two people. Around 1805, a villager learned the kagura at the town of Noshiro, where …
Location: Kunimi, Ota-cho, Daisen City Site(s) of performance: Junkei-Jizōdō Temple, Cemetery Park, Kunimi-Hachiman Shrine, and other places in the community Date(s): July 7 in the lunar calendar (the day of annual festival of Junkei-Jizōdō Temple, August 13 and 15 in the modern calendar, and some indefinite day for the closing of the lion dance season …
Location: Tsuchiya, Yurihonjo City Site(s) of performance: Hakusan Shrine’s administrator’s house and other places in the community Date(s): August 13 Category: Shishimai and Bangaku The villagers of Tsuchiya learned lion dance bangaku from the community of Nishisawa-Yashiki (in the former Yuri Town) around the 10th year of Meiji (1877). The lion head is older and …