Shamisen Week 23 Lesson

I return from the long, football infused Labor Day weekend ready to go. I have had one additional week of practice for the previous lesson and for the song Sakura. I've played ahead a bit in anticipation that we will move from what we have done the previous two weeks into new material.

New material, yes. What I expected, no.  Instead of advance fingering in some new practice pieces with the ni agari tuning, we switch gears yet again and take on the new tuning of San Sagari.

San Sagari means "lowered three" or "lowered third" wherein the honchoshi tuning is taken (D-G-D), but the third string (San) is lowered a whole step. Thus, the tuning of the instrument now becomes D-G-C.

Going from D-A-D to D-G-C is a dramatic change in the sound. It is much mellower with the third string not so "strident" in the playing. This third tuning (combined with the other two) covers about 85-90 percent of the music for jiuta sangen. There are some additional tunings in the future, but my sensei says they are less important than the major three: honchoshi, ni agari, and san sagari.

The new material is challenging although there is not much new as to string positions. The transitions and the tempo of the practice pieces are always a challenge for me, a "counting challenged" individual. But I look forward to new material. My sensei always seems to know when to move on with new material or new challenges. Thus, just at the point where I have about "played out" in practicing, we go to new material.