Matsukaze
There are only voice parts in this recording.
Script (English/Modern Japanese)
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A traveling monk visiting Suma Bay in the Settsu province (today Suma Ward in Kobe) notices an unusual pine tree and asks a local man to tell him its story. The local man says that this ancient pine is a memorial to the two saltmaker sisters, Matsukaze (Pine Wind) and Murasame (Autumn Rain), who were loved by Heian period poet Ariwara no Yukihira (818-893). The local man then urges the monk to offer prayers for their souls. Soon the autumn sun sets, and the monk looks for shelter in the saltmakers’ hut.
As twilight falls, two women appear on the shore, lamenting the lonely life of the saltmakers. The two mention famous sea locations, then pour the brine into a bucket and enjoy watching the moon reflecting in it. Afterwards, they put the bucket on a cart and bring it back to their hut. When the monk in the hut recites Yukihira’s poems and mentions the names Matsukaze and Murasame, the two women weep, revealing that they are in fact the spirits of Matsukaze and Murasame. They recall the time they spent as Yukihira's lovers.
The spirit of Matsukaze dons the robe Yukihira gave her as a keepsake before he left them and returned to Kyoto, then dances full of nostalgia. When the dance reaches its climax, the spirit of Matsukaze recites Yukihira’s famous poem, “Though I may leave for Mt. Inaba, / famous for the pines / covering its peak, / if I hear you pine for me / I'll come straight home to you.” (Trans. Peter Macmillan in One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each. Columbia U.P. 2010). Overwhelmed with nostalgia and confused by her own feelings of love and longing, Matsukaze mistakes the pine tree for Yukihira, and embraces it. Finally, the two sisters ask the monk to pray for their souls before disappearing, leaving nothing behind them but the wind in the pines.
Sung by Kanze School