PERFOMERS
Hideaki and Hitomi
Hideaki started to play taiko with Soh Daiko in New York City from 1995 and Hitomi joinethe group in 1999. During those years they had a chance to perform with some taiko players from Hachijo Island and fell in love with their taiko style. They went to Hachijo to immerse themselves in the Hachijo style and there, Hideaki and Hitomi learned their unique and individual style directly from the islanders. The Hachijo style can be learned and enjoyed by anyone, and they encourage you to experience it for yourself. Since 2007 Hideaki and Hitomi have made Sonoma County their home.
Elliot Kanshin Kallen, www.japanflute.com
Elliot Kanshin Kallen plays the shakuhachi, the end-blown Japanese bamboo flute. He uses the instrument in a wide variety of contexts, from classical Japanese ensemble music with koto and shamisen, the traditional solo Zen repertoire, to the exploratory sounds of the avant-garde. He is often performing throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. He performs, teaches, and gives lectures and workshops on Japanese music and the shakuhachi from his home base in Northern California.
Naoko, www.naokokoto.web.fc2.com
Naoko has been playing the koto since she was six years old. She was taught by Koji Kikuhara who was a highly ranked student of National Living Treasure Hatsuko Kikuhara. In 1987, she passed a professional music examination at the Todo
Music Association. She studied classical singing with Ichijuro Kiyomoto and Fujima style dance with Monjuro Fujima from 1979 to 1981. Naoko plays Nogawa-style Jiuta shamisen and Ikuta-style koto and has performed throughout the United States since 1994.
Sonoma County Taiko, www.sonomacountytaiko.org
Sonoma County Taiko is a community-based non-profit organization, whose mission is “building a community of acceptance, harmony, and respect through our love of taiko.” Sonoma County Taiko has been sharing the cultural and musical aspects of Japanese taiko drumming with the communities in San Francisco Bay Area and the North Bay since 1995. Sonoma County Taiko offers performances at schools and festivals as well as cultural and private events. It also offers classes and workshops to people of all ages and abilities.
Ensohza Minyoshu, www.ensohza.org
Formed in 2006, Ensohza is a traditional Japanese folk-performing ensemble based in the San Francisco Bay Area. They perform music that evokes the festival spirit and character of Japan’s diverse rural communities. With lively vocals accompanied by fue and shakuhachi (bamboo flutes), shamisen (a stringed instrument) and the beat of the taiko drum, Ensohza transports you to Japan’s mountain and fishing villages with traditional folk songs and festival dance music.
Ron Kodo Brown
A long-time fixture in the Bay Area world of Ikebana, Ron Brown brings innovative, inspiring enthusiasm to Ikebana audiences and his students. He began his studies in Sogetsu Ikebana in 1979 with Burleigh Fedanzo, then became a student of Shuko Kobayashi, with whom he studied until Kobayashi-sensei's retirement. In 2007, Ron became a student of Kika Shibata, and continues to study with her today. Ron holds the rank of Komon. In April of 2017 Ron went to Japan for the 90th anniversary celebrations of founding of the Sogetsu School where he received the Akane Teshigahara Overseas award. Ron is the Director of the Sogetsu San Francisco Bay Area Branch and a member of the Sogetsu Teacher's Association in Tokyo. Ron makes his home in Cloverdale, California.
Mary Ann Soyo Goodman
Mary Ann Soyo Goodman is a third-generation Urasenke tea master and teacher. She earned her professional tea name, Soyo, from the San Francisco branch of the Urasenke tea school. Her grandfather studied tea while living in Tokyo and her mother was a tea master and teacher in the Sacramento area here in California. Matsuri is honored to have Goodman-sensei return to do our Tea Ceremony demonstrations again this year.
Theatre of Yugen, www.theatreofyugen.org
Founded in 1978 by Yuriko Doi, Theatre of Yugen is an experimental ensemble dedicated to the pursuit of the intangible essence of yugen (幽玄)—yu (“profound” and “tranquil”) and gen (“mysterious”). With a foundation in Japanese noh drama and kyogen satire—the world’s oldest living style of theatre (over 600 years old)—Yugen creates works of world theatre by crafting original material and exploring dramatic and literary classics.
DeLeon Judo Club, www.deleonjudoclub.com
Established in 1970, the DeLeon Judo Club is the oldest, and largest Judo Club in Sonoma County. Head instructor is Henry Kaku, 5th Dan Black belt with almost 60 years of experience. Judo was developed in 1882 for self-defense and to help develop the mind and body. It is the first martial art introduced in the Olympics.
Sakura-Ren, www.facebook.com/sfsakuraren
Sakura-Ren has been performing Awa-Odori, a traditional Japanese dance, in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2013. Always an audience favorite, Sakura-Ren’s brilliant traditional costumes and high energy never fail to enchant and engage Matsuri’s attendees.
Bay Area Miyake
Bay Area Miyake is a group brought together by Sonoma County Taiko, recipient of Matsuri Scholarship. The scholarship helped them invite teachers from Japan to study the traditional taiko piece Miyake Daiko directly from them.
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