Yoshio Toyama and his wife, Keiko, have spent most of their lives as unofficial musical ambassadors between Japan and the American city of New Orleans.
In New Orleans, Toyama, a trumpeter and singer, is known as the "Satchmo of Japan" for his skillful ability to imitate Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong's voice and tone. Since 2003, Yoshio and Keiko, a pianist and banjo player, have traveled to New Orleans almost every year to perform at Satchmo SummerFest, a music festival held annually to recognize the jazz great's birthday.
While the Toyamas didn't make their annual pilgrimage to New Orleans this year, the Tokyo-based couple will soon help bring a piece of New Orleans to Japan.