Noh Theater

Key elements of Japanese Noh theater seem to be the following:

Emotion: Each piece has some sore of motive attached to each melody and very specific moods for specific sounds and movements.

Vocal Chanting: As seen in this video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUTG6N0KFj4 , one can hear the chanting in the background. This is closely related to shomyo, which is Buddhist chanting.

Instrumentation: There is a musical ensemble that accompanies the Noh performance called the Hayashi. It consists of four instruments: the nohkan and three small drums. Of the small drums, the ko-tsuzumi is the most important because its pitch can be changed throughout the performance.

Nohkan: The bamboo flute used in Noh theater plays nonpulsatile melodies to contrast the pulse of the drums and movement of the Noh actors.

Drumming patterns: as seen in the video earlier, the drums are played in multiple patterns. each drum playing a different one. The drums are still nonpulsatile though.

Symbolism: Eveything in Noh theater is standardized to the point that every sound, instrument, movement, element, has some sort of symbolic meaning.