Ceremony of the Utakai Hajime（Imperial New Year's Poetry Reading）

The Ceremony of the Utakai Hajime is attended by Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress, and poems include those chosen from submissions by the general public, a poem of a selector , and a poem of an invited  poet are recited.  Finally, poems of the Imperial Family, Her Majesty the Empress and His Majesty the Emperor are recited. 

The ceremony is performed through several participants, each with special titles: dokuji (master of ceremonies), koji (reader of all verses), hassei (singer from the first verse), and kosho (accompanying singer to the hassei from the second verse).