to the support of civilian performing groups at that time, the performance pieces were still preserved. Over time, however, these performed within the sacred and private precincts of the Imperial courts, inspired popular ritual dances, called , which, being popular forms, practiced in villages all around the country, were adapted into various other folk traditions and developed into a number of different forms. Among these are , , and Ise-style and Izumo-style dances. Many more variations have developed over the centuries, including some which are fairly new, and most of which have become highly secularized folk traditions. , in particular those forms that involve storytelling or reenactment of fables, is also one of the primary influences on the Noh theatre. Imperial is a ritual dance performed at the imperial court and at important Shinto shrines: Kamo-jinja and Iwashimizu Hachiman-gū. It consists of welcoming, entertaining and greeting the deities with humorous or poetic syllabic songs. Today it is sometimes considered as a sub-genre of , of which it is one of the influences. It predated Chinese inspiration, and has indigenous elements as well as influences from other elements such as , and , which are forms of , More simply, can be considered dances accompanied by music. The is the sacred vocal repertoire of 26 songs (, etc.) traditionally performed by a male choir for several days, but reduced today to 12 chants performed in six hours. Instruments used include the and/or the , with the possible addition of a and claves. There are several dances, including: The , associated with the , making use of the or and a pair of , and with or without a zither; The , using the ; The , associated with the , using the , the and the . The formal Imperial ritual dances were performed in a number of sacred places and on a number of special occasions. At the Imperial Sanctuary, where the Yata no kagami is kept, they are performed as part of court music. are also performed at the Imperial harvest festival and at major shrines such as Ise, Kamo, and Iwashimizu Hachiman-gū. Since around the year 1000, these events have taken place every year. According to the ritual department of the Imperial Household Agency, still take place every December in the Imperial Sanctuary and at the Imperial harvest festival ceremonies. Folk , or "normal ", is a wide