■ Explanation
This is a songbook taking a Japanese woman named "Oyuchasan" as its theme. The first three pages are filled with musical score credited to F.M. Bostwick, a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. The colophon contains an authorship ascription in Japanese to the same person. It therefore appears that Bostwick wrote the lyrics as well as the music.
The music is written in the key of F major, in three-quarter time. It also contains parts for koto and samisen, and was apparently composed with the assistance of a Japanese acquaintance, possibly Takejiro Hasegawa, the publisher. The song can be sung either as a solo or by a chorus, and this suggests that it was a popular piece at gatherings of foreign residents.
The music is followed by lovely illustrations, some depicting the demeanor of Oyuchasan in correspondence with the meaning of the lyrics, others portraying Japanese scenery, flora, birds, and the like. These illustrations heighten the lyrical tone of the book as a whole. The words of the song extol the beauty, grace, gentleness, and deportment of Oyuchasan, who stands as a symbol of Japanese femininity with her "quaint clothes" and "glossy black hair." There are ten verses in all in this book. The illustrator is referred to as Kason Suzuki. |
