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CULTURE / Music
Sep 18, 2009

Irina Mejoueva

Irina Mejoueva, a Japan-based Russian pianist, always appears on stage with scores — but not because she can't memorize the pieces she performs. "I am a performer. Since I am not a composer, the piece exists only in the score," she remarks with a smile. Mejoueva looks at the score when she plays the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Sep 18, 2009

'Infinite moments' brought to stage

Seminaked men, shaven-headed, their bodies covered in white makeup, move with intent slowness on the stage: Anyone who has ever seen Ankoku Butoh — Japan's most famous dance export — will recognize this description. But, as good as the likes of internationally acclaimed dance troupe Sankai Juku are,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 18, 2009

Irina Mejoueva

Irina Mejoueva, a Japan-based Russian pianist, always appears on stage with scores — but not because she can't memorize the pieces she performs. "I am a performer. Since I am not a composer, the piece exists only in the score," she remarks with a smile. Mejoueva looks at the score when she plays the...
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2009

Hatoyama embraces 'alien' label

Meet new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, also known as "the alien."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 11, 2009

Hiroshima city tracks down elusive artist

Upon entering his current exhibition at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), it is clear that although what he does can be described as making art, Tsuyoshi Ozawa is not an artist.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Sep 11, 2009

Keeping it all in wine family

The Shangri-La Hotel, Tokyo, will host the Primum Familiae Vini at an exclusive gala dinner Nov. 18.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 11, 2009

La Scala tour showcases Milan's finest

La Scala is currently on its sixth Japan tour through Sept. 17.
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Sep 6, 2009

Japanese public housing: It's not just for poor people any more

Public housing in Japan might be associated with the boxy kodan apartments, but they've have come a long way. Question is, have they come far enough?
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 6, 2009

Kawasaki's Nihon Minkaen: Traditional folklore in a natural setting

In an article last May 10 introducing the many attractions of Tokyo's neighbor Kawasaki, this writer made a brief reference to the Nihon Minkaen (The Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum) in Tama Ward.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 6, 2009

Kawasaki's Nihon Minkaen: Traditional folklore in a natural setting

In an article last May 10 introducing the many attractions of Tokyo's neighbor Kawasaki, this writer made a brief reference to the Nihon Minkaen (The Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum) in Tama Ward.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 4, 2009

Dälek and DJ Baku

To promote their "DJ Baku Vs Dälek" CD, Tokyo turntablist DJ Baku and American hip-hop group Dälek (pronounced Die-a-leck) are teaming up for some shows.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 4, 2009

Weekend of jazz features prime performers

Jazz fans are gearing up for a weekend of saxophone, guitar and piano at the 2009 Tokyo Jazz Festival.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 4, 2009

Still photography: a new art market

Tokyo probably has more photo fans than any megalopolis on the planet, but strangely there's never been an international photography art fair here — until now. Tokyo Photo 2009, running Sept. 4-6, offers still photography artworks for sale from 12 Japan-based galleries, four from the United States...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Sep 4, 2009

Dom Perignon lounge opens

In collaboration with Dom Perignon Japan, the Hilton Tokyo launched Japan's first Dom Perignon Lounge on Sept. 1 in the hotel's first-floor St. George's Bar.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 4, 2009

Fresh direction for the Hatakeyama Memorial Museum

A long with other great collections accumulated by early industrialists such as the Goto, Seikado Bunko, Mitsui and Nezu museums, the Hatakeyama Memorial Museum of Fine Art is a hidden gem where only the very best is to be seen.
BUSINESS
Sep 3, 2009

Microsoft cuts price of Xbox 25%

Microsoft Corp., the second-largest maker of video-game consoles, said Wednesday it will cut the price of its most powerful Xbox 360 player 25 percent in Japan, after a similar reduction in the U.S.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 2, 2009

Cell phone culture here unlike any other

Cell phones in Japan have evolved as a virtual extra appendage that people can't walk, ride or relax without, as they constantly peer into their screens, send and receive messages, play video games, watch TV, and sometimes even communicate verbally.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 28, 2009

'Martyrs'

What exactly is the definition of a horror film these days? The genre seems to have moved from its traditional goal of scaring the viewer to a more decadent phase in which extreme depictions of brutality and degradation seem to be its raison d'etre. Suspense and fright have been replaced by torture and...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Aug 28, 2009

Expo has designs on shoppers

Considering the heavy hit corporate Japan has suffered from the current economic downturn, it was only to be expected that entries for the nation's leading industrial design prize, the Good Design Award, would be down this year.
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 23, 2009

Japan's creeping natural disaster

In October 2010, government officials from almost every country in the world will meet in Nagoya for the 10th Conference of Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10). The aim of the Convention, which came into effect in 1993, is simple but momentous: To maintain the richness of life on...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 22, 2009

State taps taxis for bond-sale campaign

Japan is expanding efforts to attract buyers to the nation's growing debt load, flooding the backs of taxi cabs for the first time with pamphlets in the hopes of getting retirees to invest more money in bonds.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 14, 2009

Breaking all the rules in ceramics

For many people, the term "ceramic art" conjures up the image of functional ware on a dinner table: cups and bowls filled with food and drink, or perhaps ornate European platters or wabi-sabi Japanese teapots. To others, it may mean terra-cotta figurines or simply sculpture that uses clay as its primary...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 7, 2009

Anna Tsuchiya's classic new world

"I find beauty in the dark side or in people's anger!" confesses a boisterous Anna Tsuchiya. Surprisingly, Japan's choice wild-child actress, model and singer did not talk about herself egotistically, but merely justified her love of Chopin over Mozart: "When I (first) listened to Chopin's 'The Revolution,'...
MORE SPORTS
Aug 6, 2009

JAAF gives national team warm sendoff

Just days away from the start of track and field's biggest competition of 2009, top officials from the Japan Association of Athletics Federations expressed pride in its athletes and confidence that they'll have a successful showing in Germany.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2009

BeeTV shows coming to cell phone near you

BeeTV, a broadcast service for cell phones, is grabbing the spotlight in the mobile phone industry with aggressive promotions and original content featuring popular TV stars.

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40