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Suikinkutsu

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Musical Instruments

   Double suikinkutsu at Iwasaki Castle, Nisshin city, Aichi prefecture
   Enlarge
   Double suikinkutsu at Iwasaki Castle, Nisshin city, Aichi prefecture

   A suikinkutsu ( Japanese: 水 琴 窟; literally "water koto cave") is a type
   of Japanese garden ornament and music device. A suikinkutsu consists of
   an upside down buried pot with a hole at the top. Water drips through
   the hole at the top onto a small pool of water inside of the pot,
   creating a pleasant splashing sound that rings inside of the pot
   similar to a bell or a Japanese zither called koto. It is usually built
   next to a traditional Japanese stone basin called chozubachi, part of a
   tsukubai for washing hands before the Japanese tea ceremony.
     * "Suikinkutsu" —
          + "Recording of the sound of a suikinkutsu"
          +

Traditional construction

   Constructing a suikinkutsu is more difficult than it looks, because all
   components have to be finely tuned with each other to ensure a good
   sound. The most important piece of a suikinkutsu is the jar, the upside
   down pot buried underground. Initially, jars that were readily
   available for storage of rice or water were utilized for the
   construction of a suikinkutsu. Both glazed and unglazed ceramic jars
   can be used. Recently, metal suikinkutsu have also become commercially
   available. Unglazed jars are considered best, as the rough surface aids
   in the building of drops. The height ranges from 30 cm to 1 m, and the
   diameter from 30 cm to 50 cm. The hole at the top has a diameter of
   circa 2 cm. Similar to a bell, the jar of a good suikinkutsu will ring
   when struck. A jar producing a good sound will create a good sounding
   suikinkutsu. Similarly, a cracked jar, like a cracked bell, will not
   produce a good sound.
   Cross section of a suikinkutsu
   Enlarge
   Cross section of a suikinkutsu

   The suikinkutsu usually rests on a bed of gravel underground. The base
   underneath the jar is sometimes mortared to keep the water, and
   sometimes consists only of soil as for example clay. The drainage pipe
   makes sure that the water level in the suikinkutsu does not rise too
   high. Sometimes ceramic tiles are also used on the sides of the jar.
   Fist size stones are on top of the suikinkutsu to cover the jar
   completely. Traditionally suikinkutsu are always found near a hand wash
   basin chozubachi used for the Japanese tea ceremony, and the
   suikinkutsu is buried between the basin and the stepping stone next to
   the basin. The designs and materials used for a suikinkutsu also vary
   widely, often depending on the local region.

   Usually, only a single jar is buried underneath a chozubachi Japanese
   stone basin. However, in some rare cases there may also be two
   suikinkutsu adjacent to each other in front of the same chozubachi.
   Such a double installation can be found for example in front of the
   Iwasaki Castle, Nisshin city, Aichi Prefecture, in the campus of the
   Takasaki Art Centre College, Takasaki, Gunma prefecture, or in Kyoto
   University, Kyoto. However, having two openings about 50cm apart means
   that it is difficult to cover the ergonomic best spot for washing hands
   with both openings. Thus, the creation of the sound is usually done
   intentionally by splashing water over the two designated spots, rather
   than accidentally by washing hands. Suikinkutsu with more than two jars
   may also be possible, although no reference for this is available.

Modern variations

   There are a number of modern variations form the traditional
   suikinkutsu. the list below shows some of the possibilities for modern
   suikinkutsu.
     * Modern suikinkutsu are not always located next to a chozubachi as
       traditionally required.
     * Suikinkutsu can also be built with a continuous stream of water for
       a continuous suitekion sound instead of the ryusuion and suitekion
       alteration (see below).
     * Metal suikinkutsu are also available nowadays.
     * Some above ground devices similar to a suikinkutsu have also been
       installed, for example as part of sculptures.
     * Suikinkutsu are also installed indoors
     * Commercial venues (restaurants, shops, and also offices) may have
       the sound of the indoor or outdoor suikinkutsu amplified
       electronically and played through speakers.
     * An additional pipe may also be installed to convey the sound from
       the cavity in the suikinkutsu to another location, e.g. indoors.

History

   Historically, suikinkutsu were known as tosuimon (Japanese: 洞水門), but
   they were rarely used in Japanese gardens. It is believed that
   initially a vessel was buried upside down next to the washing basin in
   Japanese gardens to act as a drainage system. This sometimes produced
   pleasant sounds, and gardeners subsequently sought to improve the sound
   quality of the device. Their rise in popularity and the name
   suikinkutsu originated from the middle of the Edo period ( 1603- 1867),
   around the same time the stone basin chozubachi was developed. The
   famous tea ceremony teacher Kobori Enshu of that time had a suikinkutsu
   in his garden, and he is subsequently often credited as the inventor of
   suikinkutsu. At the end of the Edo period, the creation of suikinkutsu
   became less frequent, but became popular again during the Meiji Era (
   1867- 1912).

   At the beginning of the 20th century, i.e. the early Showa period, both
   the name suikinkutsu and the device were all but forgotten, and a
   report of Professor Katsuzo Hirayama at the Tokyo University of
   Agriculture from 1959 could find only two suikinkutsu in Japan, both of
   them inoperable and filled with earth. However, a journalist from the
   Asahi Shimbun wrote about suikinkutsu in 1982, and requested
   information from the public about the topic. This lead to a
   re-discovery of many suikinkutsu, and a number of articles about
   suikinkutsu in the Asahi Shimbun. Shortly thereafter, in 1985, NHK
   aired a program about suikinkutsu on Japanese television, and sparked a
   suikinkutsu revival, with many new suikinkutsu installed.

Acoustics

   The sound of a suikinkutsu has its own name in Japanese, called
   suikinon. the sounds can furthermore be divided in two sub groups,
   ryusuion and suitekion. The ryusuion is the sound of the first few
   water drops at the beginning of washing hands. The suitekion describes
   both the sound of a lot of water falling at the same time during
   washing hands and the slower drops at the end of the washing.

   A superior suikinkutsu has water drops originating from different spots
   on the surface of the jar. Unglazed jars hold moisture better, and
   therefore have drops originate from more spots on the surface. The
   impact of the water on the surface creates a sound, that is amplified
   by the design of the jar. Some suikinkutsu do provide a bamboo tube
   nearby, which can amplify the sounds if one end is put on the ground
   near the top of the suikinkutsu and the other end is placed on the ear.

   It is said that every suikinkutsu sounds different.

Philosophy

   An important part of the idea behind the suikinkutsu is that the device
   is hidden from the view. Instead, the visitor washes his/her hands, and
   suddenly hears the pleasant sounds coming from underground. The act of
   washing the hands can also be considered as playing the suikinkutsu,
   and the sounds emerge shortly after the washing. This clear sound of
   water drops is considered relaxing and soothing, and also described as
   beautiful and peaceful.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suikinkutsu"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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