音元出版社長 和田光征の「巻頭言」2019年5月：アキュフェーズ創業者・春日二郎氏の短歌に感じとるもの

歌人・春日さん

1988年、アキュフェーズ（株）の当時の春日二郎会長より、歌集「冬の花」を贈って頂いた。青春時代から詠んでおられた歌はおそらく大変な数だと思うが、その中から選ばれた素晴らしい歌が「冬の花」を飾っていた。

私も歌が好きである。高校生の頃から創りはじめたのだが、駄作ばかりで発表するほどのものではなく、いつしか筆が折れているのが実態である。春日さんの「冬の花」を手にした時は、歌づくりに多少だが関心のある私の魂が呼び起こされた。読み終えた時は東の空がうっすらと白んでいた。

歌にしろ、ほかの芸術にせよ、ちょうど水道の蛇口をキシッと締め、最後のひと雫が蛇口の中からふくらんで、そして錘のようにゆれ下がって、ぽつんと離れる、その一瞬を捉える感性がなければ成立しないと信じているが、春日さんの歌の最初の一首に触れて、この歌集の重みを感じとったのだった。

春日さんは幼少より病弱であった。おそらく普通の人生が送れないのではないかということから、絶望の淵に幾度となく立たれたのではないだろうか。青春時代の歌には、草木や空気の流れを鋭利に捉えた、病弱がゆえの心象風景が多く感動深かった。

そんな春日さんが普通の生活人としての人生を歩み出すことになったわけだが、その感激は春日さんの歌の底流にある自然界との調和、生命への讃歌、祈りの発露となって、激しく燃焼していった。

　かたじけな　一日（ひとよ）の閑を　わが妻と
　河原に遊ぶ　日の光かも

　粉袋　染めて作れる　産着着て
　妹がかたえに　眠る愛しさ

　男の児かも　ああ我が児かも　吾妹子よ
　力に満ちて　いのち湧き立つ

さて春日さんはトリオ（株）を退社された後、ケンソニック（株）（現アキュフェーズ（株））を設立された。そんな折の歌も印象深く、春日さんの未来への意思を思わずにいられない。

　昼暗き　海の底より　釣り上ぐる
　鯛のまなこは　金色に光りぬ

新会社も順調に推移し、出原さんに社長を譲って、随分と月日の経った頃の歌。

　会議室に　冬の日差しの　暖かく
　まなこ細めて　外を見ており

春日さんの、出原社長以下全社員への強い信頼と今日までの回顧、未来への安堵感が表現されていて、素晴らしいと思った。アキュフェーズ商品はこれまで幾度となく小社の「オーディオ銘機賞」金賞を受賞していることでも分かるように、評価は非常に高い。春日さんの歌人としての深い洞察と平常心が社風を創り出し、そうさせていることを深く理解したのだった。

　九時すぎて　妻寝間に入り　静まりぬ
　炬燵に一人　寝転ぶ我は


ENGLISH
Mr. Kasuga, the Poet

In 1988 Mr. Jiro Kasuga, then chairman of Accuphase Laboratory, Inc., presented me with an anthology of his tanka (short poems) titled Fuyu no hana (Winter Flowers). Mr. Kasuga had been writing poems since his adolescent years, so he must have had a huge number. The anthology that he gave to me contained the selected crème de la crème.

I like tanka as well, and I did begin penning verses in my high school days. But they were very poor works, certainly not fit for presentation, and at some point I later gave up trying. When I received Mr. Kasuga’s Fuyu no hana, it sparked my interest once again. When I finished reading it, the sky in the east was already turning a faint whitish color.

I believe that tanka, and any other arts really, depend on that momentary sensation you get when, for example, you twist the water tap off, and the final drop of water appears from inside, hangs like a bob, and then splashes down. As soon as I read the first poem in Mr. Kasuga’s collection, I sensed the weight of his poetry.

Mr. Kasuga had had a weak constitution since his childhood, and no doubt several times he found himself on the edge of despair, wondering whether he would ever be able to lead a normal life. Because of his poor health, many of his early poems depict mental scenes, sharply catching plants and the movement of the air. They are very moving indeed.

Eventually Mr. Kasuga did become able to lead a normal life as an adult, and his exultancy is evident in the burning undercurrents of his poems: harmony with the natural world, praise of life, and manifestations of prayer.

Most welcome
A day of rest
Strolling by the river
With my wife
In the sunshine


Sleeping beside me
In baby clothes
Made from the dyed cloth
Of powder bags
So cute!

My dearest
A life being born
In your powerful body
Our baby
Maybe it’s a boy!

After he had quit Trio-Kenwood Corporation, Mr. Kasuga founded Kensonic Laboratory, Inc. (now Accuphase Laboratory, Inc.). His poems from that time are very impressive, and one cannot help but feel his hope for the future.

A dull day
Out of the depths
I catch a fish
Its eyes
Gleam in the darkness

The new company steadily grew, and eventually Mr. Kasuga handed the presidency over to Mr. Dehara. Here is a poem from some time after that:

On a winter’s day
Warm sunlight
Floods the meeting room
Squinting
I gaze outside

I think it is a wonderful poem, showing Mr. Kasuga’s deep trust of Mr. Dehara and all the other employees, his memories of the past, and his confidence in the future. As shown by the fact that Accuphase products have won the gold prize in our Audio Excellence Awards on several occasions, that company has an extremely good reputation. That reputation, I believe, stems from the corporate climate built by Mr. Kasuga, with his rich insight as a poet and presence of mind.

After nine
My wife goes to bed
Quiet
I sit alone
In the kotatsu