By the latter half of the Edo Period, the shamisen had become the most important instrument in Japanese music, but towards the end of the period there was a feeling that, with technique having been fully developed, the rise of the 'kaede' ensemble, which involved intricate interplay with the koto, and the 'tegoto-mono' style of composition being perfected, it had nowhere left to go musically and so a new way to express compositions beyond these was sought.
江戸時代の音楽は中期以降、三味線がリードしてきたが、幕末にはその技巧が発展の極に達してしまい、またそこに複雑に箏が絡み合う「替手」式合奏が発達、楽曲形式としての「手事もの」も完成し、行き着く所まで来たという感があり、それを超える新たな作曲表現が模索されるようになった。