Art of the Japanese Bamboo Flute

Hideo Osaka and Watazumido-Shuso, two of Japan's legendary masters of the bamboo flute, are featured here on this vintage recording from the 1950's. Watazumi Doso Roshi (1910 - 1992), an acknowledged master of the end-blown Japanese bamboo flute, performed on a variety of bamboo flutes, often on quite large bass instruments. He studied Rinzai Zen, one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism, attaining the title of roshi. In the 1950s, Watazumi assembled the Dokyoku Honkyoku repertoire of pieces. Watazumi played the unlacquered hocchiku, as opposed to the modern shakuhachi, stressing that to truly understand nature and oneself, one had to use an instrument of the most raw and natural origin. This belief inspired him to create and lead the Watazumido (or "Way of Watazumi") school of spiritual discipline. Watazumi was also referred to as Watazumi-do Shuso (also spelled Watazumido Shuso or Watazumido-Shuso), "shuso" meaning "head student," a Zen term referring to the student selected by the Zen master to instruct the other students. Contained here are 21 vintage tracks, all selections newly remastered.