Bugaku Imperial Court Dance

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

As early as the sixth or seventh century, dance and music from China and Korea were combined with native songs for court performances known as gagaku. Performed from the tenth century at court functions and banquets by nobles and by hereditary guilds of professional musicians under the patronage of the Imperial Family, gagaku and its dance repertoire, bugaku, were an important part of life at the Kyoto court.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art