Departing from tradition with Hiromitsu Agatsuma and Akiko Yano
Shamisen player Hiromitsu Agatsuma teams up with singer and musician Akiko Yano for a new album which sees both depart from their previous styles and genres.
'The Fourth String: A Memoir of Sensei and Me': Music, life and reflections on the space in between
Janet Pocorobba's "The Fourth String" reconfigures the typical Japan fish-out-of-water memoir into a meditation on music and mastery, relationships, culture and narrative.
Duo Yumeno: Making music across the Pacific
Contemporary classical duo bring together the cello, koto and shamisen for original classical contemporary compositions.
Traditional arts live through kids
Nurturing respect for cultural traditions is a daunting challenge these days, when kids are glued to cellphones and game apps. So what does a country with centuries of carefully polished artistry do to preserve its heritage? Drop a curtain on the whole show? Not ...
The Yoshida Brothers get in on Kubo's big adventure
Speaking as a Japanese person, I can't help but feel a short burst of national pride when Hollywood gives my country any kind of attention, like with the animated film "Kubo and the Two Strings." Directed by Travis Knight of Oregon-based Laika Entertainment ("Coraline," "The ...
After 13-year quest, shamisen maker sheds animal skin in favor of synthetic
A shamisen instrument maker near Tokyo has developed a synthetic substitute for the cat and dog skins used to craft the traditional three-stringed instrument. Developed by Komatsuya Ltd., the artificial material has been well received by professional musicians for its ability to match sound created ...
Shamisen faces crisis as cat skins fall from favor
Few instruments are as integral to a nation's traditional culture as Japan's shamisen, whose evocative sound accompanies a range of performances from kabuki and puppet plays to folk songs and geisha entertainments in teahouses. But in the 21st century, the three-stringed instrument is facing something ...
The central government has named seven individuals as envoys to promote cultural exchanges with other countries in fiscal 2015, the Cultural Affairs Agency said Monday. They include Kenichi Yoshida, a member of the Tsugaru shamisen duo called the Yoshida Brothers, and photographer Naoya Hatakeyama. The five ...
Wasabi crafts sounds of old Japan into something new
Wasabi "Wasabi 2" (Japan Traditional Cultures Foundation) Wasabi refines its take on traditional Japanese music for sophomore album "Wasabi 2." Ryoichiro Yoshida, the elder of well-known shamisen duo the Yoshida Brothers, started Wasabi in 2008 with shakuhachi player Hiromu Motonaga and taiko drummer Naosaburou Bihou. ...
Quebecoise shines as 'minyo' singer
Learning to play the three-stringed Japanese traditional instrument shamisen topped Canadian Maud Archambault's list of things to do while in Japan. She arrived here in 2001 to explore one of her fields of study: Japanese culture. Fast forward to today, where she is recognized as ...
At home on the Maasai Mara range
Asuka Takita has a passion for Africa and its wildlife that took root during her childhood in Singapore and flourished in the soils of Kenya during her third year of university.
African elephants pluck at Japan's heartstrings
Next time you attend a shamisen performance, neither you nor most anyone else there will likely notice the elephant in the room. And those who do probably won’t have given it much thought.
