Fukagawa's Dog-Lineage Residents' Association Begins Drum Practice for Next Year's 'Three-Lineage Autumn Festival'
Fukagawa's dog-lineage residents' association began drum practice on the 19th for next year's two-day, provisionally named 'Three-Lineage Autumn Festival,' previously reported as agreed on the 17th. For the dog lineage, common among port and firefighting workers, the festival drums are also where generations pass down their craft. Association chair Koji Inui, 56, said, 'Next year we'll be out there alongside the fox and bear lineages. We can't afford to sound embarrassing.'
As previously reported on the 17th, Fukagawa's dog- and bear-lineage residents' associations and Kameido's fox-lineage association, led by chair Jo Saotome, previously reported, had agreed to expand next year's joint inter-lineage autumn festival to two days under the provisional name "Three-Lineage Autumn Festival." Just two days after that agreement, on the 19th, Fukagawa's dog-lineage association began drum practice at its community hall. Chair Koji Inui, 56, a second-generation Drifter of the dog lineage, laughed, "The moment the dates were set, people started lining up in front of the drums on their own. I think they just couldn't wait."
As previously reported in the sports guide, the dog lineage is common among port, security, and firefighting workers, and the festival drums are considered a showcase of that lineage's character. Inui himself is a former firefighter, and says he once used the drum's rhythm as a cue for hose timing on the job. "A drum's breathing and a hose's breathing are similar — both build and build, then release in one burst," he said. Active firefighters and dockworkers reportedly rotate into the practice sessions as well, some dashing in straight from their shifts.
Next year, the dog lineage will appear in the same festival run as the fox and bear lineages for the first time. "Kameido's food stalls and the bear lineage's cooking up in the hills are both things to be proud of," Inui said. "If our closing drums fall short, it reflects on the dog lineage's name." A firefighter in his twenties who joined the practice said, "I've played the drum since I was a kid, but knowing I'll be representing the lineage next year puts more weight behind every stroke than usual."
The joint organizing committee of Fukagawa's dog and bear lineages and Kameido's fox lineage continues its coordination, centered as previously reported on chair Saotome and others. A venue and specific dates are expected to be settled in November, and local interest is already running high over an event that will, for the first time, bring all three lineages into the same festival run. Inui closed by saying, "Between marriages and rivalries, the lineages have had their share of history with one another. Even so, if a day comes when we can layer our drumbeats together, that's not a bad thing at all."
A dockworker in his twenties who stopped by the practice said, "I only just learned today that the dog and fox lineages even bury their dead differently. It's interesting hearing the older members talk about that kind of thing between drum sets." As previously reported in the sports guide, each lineage is said to differ in dialect, festivals, burial customs, and cooking, and next year's joint festival is reportedly being planned to showcase those very differences rather than paper over them. "It's a lot more worth watching if we stay different and stand side by side with our drums, rather than hiding the differences to look like one thing," Inui said.
As previously reported, the bear lineage in the hill district is also expected to join next year's joint festival, and Fukagawa's dog-lineage association is said to be coordinating a joint practice session with the bear side. "It'd be something if our drumbeat started carrying over while they're prepping their cooking," Inui said. "I'd like us to meet at least once before next year and get our rhythms in sync," showing enthusiasm for ties that cross lineage lines.
