was a nobleman and

gagaku is a type of Japanese classical music that was historically used for imperial court music and dances. was developed as court music of the Kyoto Imperial Palace, and its near-current form was established in the Heian period (794-1185) around t ...

musician in the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

. He was the eldest son of Prince Katsuakira and the grandson of

Emperor Daigo was the 60th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 醍醐天皇 (60)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Daigo's reign spanned the years from 897 through 930. He is named after his place of burial. Ge ...

. His mother was the daughter of

Fujiwara no Tokihira was a Japanese statesman, courtier and politician during the Heian period.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Tokihira" in ; Brinkley, Frank ''et al.'' (1915). Career Tokihira was a minister under Emperor Daigo. * 891 ('' Kanpyō ...

Career

Because the highest rank he achieved was Provisional Master of the Palace of the Empress as a lower-third rank non-councillor, he was known as , which is the Chinese reading of the characters for 'Hiromasa' and those for 'third rank'. He was an expert in , orchestral gagaku which does not accompany dance. He was also called or ''Lord Autumn after the Autumn Palace'', the poetic name for the empress and her dwelling. When he was removed from the imperial succession, he was granted the surname

Minamoto was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during the ...

. In 934, the lower fourth rank was conferred upon him. In 947, he became the Senior Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Central Affairs. In 959, he became Captain of the Right Watch. In 965, he became the Middle Captain of the Left Palace Guards. In 974, he was promoted to the lower third rank and became Provisional Master of the Palace of the Queen Mother. He attained his mastery of gagaku, music lore has it, by studying vocal music with Prince Atsumi,

koto Koto may refer to: * Koto (band), an Italian synth pop group * Koto (instrument), a Japanese musical instrument * Koto (kana), a ligature of two Japanese katakana * Koto (traditional clothing), a traditional dress made by Afro-Surinamese women * K ...

with Emperor Daigo,

biwa The is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. The is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime duri ...

with Minamoto no Osamu,

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

from Ooishi no Minekichi, and

hichiriki The is a double reed Japanese used as one of two main melodic instruments in Japanese music. It is one of the "sacred" instruments and is often heard at Shinto weddings in Japan. Its sound is often described as haunting. According to scholar ...

from Yoshimine no Yukimusa. Bass hichiriki was his strong point, but he disliked song and dance. In 951, he played biwa at the Emperor's New Year's banquet. In 966, by the order of

Emperor Murakami was the 62nd emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 村上天皇 (62)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Murakami's reign spanned the years from 946 to his death in 967. Biography Before he ascended to ...

, he compiled an imperial music anthology, the . The system of notation he developed is still used today. There is a story that he was called upon to participate in the so-called "Forth Year of Tentoku Poetry Contest" in 960, but that he froze in front of the emperor and accidentally gave the title of one poem but recited another. He received the famous flute from the demon at the Suzakumon Gate. He retrieved the famous biwa from the Rashomon Gate. After three years of visiting

Semimaru was a Japanese poet and musician of the early Heian period. His name is recorded in the ''Ogura Hyakunin Isshu'', but there are no historical accounts of his pedigree. Some accounts say he was a son of Uda Tennō, Prince Atsumi, or that he was ...

in Osaka, he was taught the secret tunes "Flowing Spring" and "Woodpecker". He appears in many tales of this kind in sources like the

Konjaku Monogatarishu Konjac (or konjak, ) is a common name of the East and Southeast Asian plant ''Amorphophallus konjac'' ( syn. ''A. rivieri''), which has an edible corm (bulbo-tuber). It is also known as konjaku, konnyaku potato, devil's tongue, voodoo lily, sn ...

. Also, it is said that he held his liquor well and was a heavy drinker. About his personality,

Fujiwara no Sanesuke , also known as Go-Ono no Miya (後小野宮), was a Japanese statesman and aristocrat. Biography He was born the fourth son of Fujiwara no Tadatoshi. He became the adopted heir to his grandfather Saneyori, the head of Ononomiya family (小� ...

made the following comment in his diary the shoyuki: "As for Hiromasa, he's a poet and a writer, but he neglects his duties."

In fiction

*In the novel " Onmyoji" (novel:

Baku Yumemakura is a Japanese science fiction and adventure writer. His works have sold more than 20 million copies in Japan spread across more than 280 titles. He is published in a variety of formats including feature films, television shows, movies and comic b ...

, manga:

Reiko Okano is a Japanese manga artist. Okano attended a graphic design school after graduating from high school and has never worked as a manga assistant. Her first serialized work was ''Esther, Please'' in 1982. In 1989, she won the Shogakukan Manga Awar ...

), Hiromasa appears as the partner of the protagonist,

Abe no Seimei was an ''onmyōji'', a leading specialist of ''Onmyōdō'' during the middle of the Heian period in Japan.Miller, Laura. "Extreme Makeover for a Heian-era Wizard". ''Mechademia 3: Limits of the Human''. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Pres ...

. He was portrayed as a young court official (and partner of Abe no Seimei) by actor

Hideaki Itō is a Japanese actor. Biography Ito is best known for starring in the hit franchise ''Umizaru'' film series which consistently topped the Japanese box office of the year. He has also head-lined many other major Japanese films such as Takashi M ...

, in director

Yōjirō Takita Yōjirō Takita (滝田洋二郎 ''Takita Yōjirō'', born December 4, 1955) is a Japanese filmmaker. Takita received an Academy Awards, Oscar for Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, Best Foreign Language Film for his 2008 drama '' ...

's movies " Onmyoji" and "

Onmyoji 2 is a 2003 Japanese historical fantasy film directed by Yōjirō Takita, starring Mansai Nomura as ''onmyōji'' Abe no Seimei. Both it and its predecessor, ''Onmyōji'', are based on the ''Onmyōji'' series of novels by author Baku Yumemakura. ...

Film

* Portrayed by

Deng Lun Deng Lun () also known as Allen Deng, is a Chinese film and television actor, born on October 21, 1992, in Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. He graduated from the Performance Department of Shanghai Theatre Academy. He made his acting debut in t ...

in the 2020 film '' The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity''. * Portrayed by Qu Chuxiao in the 2020 film ''

The Yinyang Master ''The Yinyang Master'' () is a 2021 Chinese fantasy film directed by Li Weiran and starring Chen Kun and Zhou Xun. It is adapted from the NetEase game ''Onmyōji'' (which in turn is based on the novel series, ''Onmyōji'' by author Baku Yumemak ...

''.

References

Much of the content of this article comes from the equivalent Japanese-language Wikipedia article (retrieved January 28, 2006). {{DEFAULTSORT:Minamoto no, Hiromasa 918 births 980 deaths Japanese male musicians Japanese musicians Japanese mythology Minamoto clan Noblemen