Koto no Koto

Detail of the cover of Koto Manual: Ikuta Style by Kayoko Wakita

Cover detail from Koto Manual: Ikuta Style by Kayoko Wakita

Adriaansz, Wiliem. (1973). Kumiuta and Danmono Traditions of Japanese Koto Music Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
DeFerranti, Hugh. (2000). Japanese Musical Instruments: Images of Asia. London: Oxford University Press.
Harich-Schneider, Eta. A History of Japanese Music. London: Oxford University Press.
Out of print, but amazon.com can check used book dealers. read a review from Pacific University.
NEW>>> Johnson, Henry (2004). The Koto. Amsterdam: Hotei Publishing.
Midwest Book Review: The Koto: A Traditional Instrument In Contemporary Japan is a thorough, illustrated history of a traditional stringed Japanese instrument. The text goes into depth on the koto's useage throughout history, techniques for tuning and playing it, its performance today, methods for constructing individual instruments as works of art, and much more. A comprehensive resource covering just about anything and everything there is to know about the haunting melodies that continue to be played on this remarkable instrument, up to the modern day.:
Kishibe, Shigeo (1984). The Traditional Music of Japan. Tokyo: Ongaku No Tomo Sha Corporation.
Kyrova, Magda. (2000). The Ear Catches the Eye. Music in Japanese Prints
Kishibe, Shigeo (1984). The Traditional Music of Japan. Tokyo: Ongaku No Tomo Sha Corporation.
Malm, William P. (1986). Six hidden views of Japanese music.. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Malm, Willam P. (2001). Traditional Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Kodansha International.
Donald Richie, The Japan Times: "... the new, revised and updated edition of the book that has become the standard text..."
New York Times Book Review: "Malm's achievement is spectacular... The Western reader is offered a great wealth of information, both general and specific."
Malm, Willam P. (1995). Music Cultures of the Pacific, the Near East, and Asia. Prentice Hall.
amazon.com: "The purpose of this book is to survey the basic kinds of music and musical instruments found in the major oriental civilizations and in the island cultures of the Eastern Hemisphere. It is also intended as an introduction to the basic attitudes, techniques, and nomenclature of the discipline of ethnomusicology. Presents a romanization of the book of vocal examples along with a translation or explanation of their meaning. A sonic glossary index at the end of each chapter shows all non-western terms in alphabetical order including a unique prononciation audio cassette. The inclusion of human figures in all new drawings add information about playing positions as well as instrument designs. Contains a unique cassette of pronunciations by noted and qualified speakers."
University of Oklahoma, Early Music Television (Videos). Japanese Music Series: Gagaku: Court Music of Japan, Music of Bunraku, Shinto Festival Music, Nagauta: Heart of Kabuki, Music of Noh Drama
Wade, Bonnie C. (1976). Tegotomono. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press Inc.
NEW>>> Wade, Bonnie C. (2004). Music in Japan: Experiencing Music, Expressing Culture. Oxford University Press.
amazon.com: "...Music in Japan offers a vivid introduction to the music of contemporary Japan, a nation in which traditional, Western, and popular music thrive side by side. Drawing on more than forty years of experience, author Bonnie C. Wade focuses on three themes throughout the book and in the musical selections on the accompanying CD. She begins by exploring how music in Japan has been profoundly affected by interface with both the Western (Europe and the Americas) and Asian (continental and island) cultural spheres. Wade then shows how Japan's thriving popular music industry is also a modern form of a historically important facet of Japanese musical culture: the process of gradual popularization, in which a local or a group's music eventually becomes accessible to a broader range of people. She goes on to consider the intertextuality of Japanese music: how familiar themes, musical sounds, and structures have been maintained and transformed across the various traditions of Japanese performing arts over time. Music in Japan is enhanced by eyewitness accounts of performances, interviews with key performers, and vivid illustrations. Packaged with an 80-minute CD containing examples of the music discussed in the book, it features guided listening and hands-on activities that encourage readers to engage actively and critically with the music."
Wakita, Kayoko, (1984). Koto Manual: Ikuta Style. Los Angeles, CA: Wasabe Publishing.
Source 1
Source 2