D02-8 Understanding “YUGEN” that means the subtle and profound in Noh singing as ambient sound
The aim of this study is to clarify the distinct physical characteristics of Noh singing, which humans perceive as “YUGEN,” by focusing on spectro-temporal modulation (STM). “The first and most important thing in Noh is to be YUGEN,” Zeami said (Zeami, “Kakyou,” 1424). “YUGEN” means “subtle and profound.” YUGEN is a very traditional Japanese word for deep SHITUKAN. We will not only focus on the human voices in the Noh singing but also on the ambient changes caused by the stage and Noh masks. We will demonstrate the spectral modulation component (corresponding to the change of the vocal cords and vocal tract) and the temporal modulation component (corresponding to the change of the ambient) that produce the YUGEN by clarifying the STM information related to the YUGEN in singing. We will also conduct perceptual experiments to investigate how the perception of YUGEN changes with the change in the STM information. We will contribute to the promotion of this research field by focusing on the subtle and profound aspects of sound.
