Traditionally, religious music in Japan consisted of songs and dances that were performed as offerings to various gods. Songs and dances also served to work performers into trances in kamiasobi (singing songs and dancing for gods) in order to call a god or gods into attendance. During the Tumulus period (third to seventh century CE), songs and dances were performed by virgins consecrated to deities, continuing a tradition of shamanistic music from the Yayoi period (fourth century BCE to third century CE). Such performances were accompanied by koto (a long four- or eight-stringed zither) and tsuzumi (a hand-beaten drum). These instruments appear in clay figures of consecrated virgins and the songs and dances are described in several ancient texts, including Kojiki (712 CE), Nihonshoki (720 CE), and Fudoki (first half of the eighth century). The songs incorporated into these works were probably...