Asia Society and the Japan Foundation Present
HOGAKU: NEW SOUNDS OF JAPAN

Sunday, January 22, 2006
8:00 p.m. – Performance
at Asia Society and Museum
725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, NYC

7:00 p.m. Pre-Performance Lecture
Mr. Takafumi Tanaka, Editor-in-Chief of ‘Hogaku Journal’

At the Asia Society and Museum located at 725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street) on Sunday, January 22, 2006 at 8:00 pm, Asia Society and Japan Foundation copresent three groups of master musicians in 21st century Hogaku or Japanese traditional music. Trained in classic repertoire and performance practices that date back centuries, these rising stars are taking the contemporary music scene by storm bringing pop, rock and jazz sensibilities to their virtuosic playing, and as a result redefining and extending the vocabulary of Japanese traditional music.

Renowned musical genius and master tsugaru shamisen (lute) player Shinichi Kinoshita , plays with versatile taiko percussionist Hiroshi Motofu ji and shinobue (side-blown flute) player SayuriOno. Aki & Kuniko, an acoustic guitar and koto (zither) duo that are equally at home in both the hogaku and jazz worlds, create haunting sounds joined by Sachi o Suginuma on shakuhachi (end blown bamboo flute). The expressive possibilities of the centuries-old shakuhachi is further expolored by.shakuhachi performers Hiromu Motonaga, Akihisa Kominato and Takuya Iwata who form the trio Han’nya Teikoku. Although most traditional shakuhachi repertoire is for a soloist, the trio (who look more like hip hop stars than acoustic musicians) exploit their instrument’s potential for ensemble playing and creating harmonies.

A pre-performance lecture by Takafumi Tanaka, Chief Editor of the Tokyo-based Hogaku Journal, on the hogaku revival and the instruments to be heard that evening will begin at 7:00 p.m., prior to the concert at 8:00 p.m.

Ticket prices for the performance are $20 for Asia Society members/students/seniors and $25 for nonmembers. For tickets and information, call (212) 517-ASIA or visit www.AsiaSociety.org. Members of the press interested in the performance should contact Asia Society’s public relations department at 212.327.9271 or pr@asiasoc.org.

The Artists

Shinichi Kinoshita is acknowledged as one of the leading tsugaru shamisen (lute) players in Japan. Hailed by music authorities as “a player one might encounter once every century” or as having the “hands of god,” Kinoshita helped popularize the electric shamisen and the performance style of strapping the shamisen over the shoulder like a guitar. His rock star stage presence and musical innovations have inspired a new generation of musicians to learn the tsugaru shamisen. Kinoshita has toured his exciting style of shamisen playing in more than twenty countries and has collaborated with musicians of diverse styles including Hungarian violinist Roby Lakatos and the seminal taiko drummer Eitetsu Hayashi. Kinoshita will be performing with the versatile taiko percussionist Hiroshi Motofu ji and flutist Sayuri Ono on the shinobue .

Aki & Kuniko was formed in 2001 and released their first and highly acclaimed album, “HA” in 2003. After several successful concerts in Japan, the duo made its first international tour to Germany, Italy, Cuba, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic in 2005. Aki has been hailed as one of the most promising guitarists on the international acoustic guitar scene. After being “discovered” by the international master guitarist Peter Finger in 1997, Aki was featured in several European recordings and released his solo debut recording in Japan. Kunikolearned how to play the koto (zither) at the age of three. She studied with several authorities of hogaku, including the late koto master Kiyoko Miyagi who was designated “Living National Treasure” by the Japanese government. She released her first recording in 1994 and has performed solo or as a member of the Miyagi Koto Association in Nepal, Thailand, Germany and the United States. Aki & Kuniuko will be performing with the avant-garde shakuhachi player, Sachio Suginuma.

The Instruments

(Excerpted from “String Instruments” “Percussion Instruments” and “Wind Instruments” by Narumi Takizawa in Traditional Music Today: Performing Arts in Japan published by the Japan Foundation , Tokyo, September 2005)

Koto

The six-foot long instrument usually has 13 strings but 17-, 21-, 25, and 30-string examples are sometimes seen. The tightly stretched strings, which are balanced on an ivory or plastic bridge perpendicular to the body of the instrument, are plucked using ivory picks attached to three fingers. The player sits behind the instrument, using the left hand for tuning.

Shakuhachi

The characteristic sound of the shakuhachi, a result of the strong exhalation required to make a sound, is often used in movies or television to represent “ Japan.” It is a thick bamboo recorder with a standard length of about 55 cm. There are only five finger holes, but it is possible to produce a wide register an almost any musical scale by manipulating the angle of the mouth, how strongly breath is blown and the angle in which the fingers are released. Since the Edo period ( 1603 – 1868), the shakuhachi has often been used in arrangements with the koto and the shamisen.

Shamisen

Similar to the guitar, the player sits the instrument on the knee (recently sometimes played standing up), presses down on the strings with the left hand and plucks them with a plectrum held in the right hand. Because there are no frets, it is hard to achieve the correct pitch. The three strings are separated from the stretched skin on sound box by a small bridge. There are many types of shamisen -- each used for different genres.

Shinobue

The bamboo flute is used in Japanese festival music and background music for kabuki, and more recently, in Japanese popular music. There are various types of shinobue -- from short to long ones.

Taiko

A large drum which is generally referred to as taiko is covered with cowhide, mounted on a stand and is struck in a high-spirited manner with a drumstick. The wooden frame of taiko is sometimes struck as well.

Asia Society

Asia Society is the leading global organization working to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the United States. We seek to enhance dialogue, encourage creative expression, and generate new ideas across the fields of policy, business, education, arts, and culture. Founded in 1956, Asia Society is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution with offices in Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Washington, DC.For more information, contact the Asia Society, 725 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10021. On the web at www.AsiaSociety.org.

The Japan Foundation

Established in 1972 under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Japan Foundation is Japan’s principal agency for international cultural relations. Through its headquarters in Tokyo and 19 overseas offices in 18 countries, the Japan Foundation conducts a wide range of programs concerning arts and cultural exchange, Japanese-language education, Japanese Studies and intellectual exchange, as well as consultation to various actors involved in international cultural exchange with Japan. In the United States, the Foundation is represented by its offices in New York and Los Angeles. For more information, contact the Japan Foundation, New York, 152 West 57th Street, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10019. On the web at www.jfny.org or www.jpf.go.jp.

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