Just as Taoism in China must have Taoist bands in its regular sacrificial activities, Shinto shrines also have their own God bands, with different numbers, but the number, musical instruments and scale are much smaller than those in China. The sacrificial process and main contents of Japanese shrine mainly include three parts: holding ceremony, playing divine music and praying to God. It means fasting for a period of time before sacrifice; Divine music, also known as fugue, like Taoist music in China, shows a kind of musical immortal thought, which is a religious music played when offering sacrifices to gods; Prayer is to put your hands together, clap your hands, pray and pray for the blessing of the gods.
Shinto band members can be male priests (divine officials) or female priests (goddesses), all of whom use Japanese national musical instruments. When a shinto ceremony is held, the shinto band is usually outside the shrine or shrine worship hall, and at least four members must play, even numbers being auspicious. Musical instruments include flute, clarinet, sheng, drum and so on.
The band of Shinto shrine in Japan not only plays instrumental music, but also sings vocally. In every Shinto ceremony, the God band also has the task of leading the singer, with a slow and solemn tone. It's just the instrumental form of China Quanzhen Daoism, which is often used in the whole ceremony, the course of singing, the change of queue and the steps. And vocal form is the main part of Zhan Mu's music. Solos are usually performed by Gao Gong or Du Jiang, and all the Taoist priests serve as chorus and soloist. I'm afraid it is still difficult for Japanese Shintoism to achieve such a detailed division of labor.
Shinto music in Japan is divided into court music and folk music. Shinto music in court is called "Shinto music", while Shinto music in folk countries is called "Shinto music", and they are different in playing content, playing place and playing object. Palace music only exists in the ceremonies of Meiji Jingu in Tokyo, Ping An Shrine in Kyoto, Ise Shrine and other royal shrines, and the band members are full-time; The divine music in folk villages includes the popular music of folk and shrines in various regions of Japan, which is more like a folk band, and the band members are not all full-time.
At the same time, Japanese Shinto music is not only a simple performance and singing, but also combined with Japanese Shinto music, including the dance of the goddess in the sacrificial ceremony. In shrines in some big cities in Tokyo, there are short-term trainings to teach goddess dance, but in some folk places in Japan, they can be heard when offering sacrifices to shrines. Musicians use flutes and drums such as leather drums and drums to accompany their songs and dances.