THE ART OF THE GEISHA BY YUKO EGUCHI

Tuesday, September 30, Bowker Auditorium 7:30PM
General Admission: $15; $10

 
Yuko Eguchi is a scholar and performer who will perform Japanese traditional music and dance, called kouta (small songs) and koutaburi (dance of small songs), a genre uniquely created by women and primarily preserved in thegeisha artistic culture. The kouta songs describe beautiful scenes of nature, but the true message a geisha’s affection, love and despair are often hidden behind its cleverly composed words. Yuko studied kouta singing and shamisen (three-stringed lute) and koutaburi dance under two former geishas, Toyoseiyoshi Kasuga and Yoshie Asaji. The performance will include Mizu no Debana (As the Water Flows, Harusame (Spring Rain), and Uchimizu (Sprinkling the Garden).   
 
Presented in collaboration with the Five College Center for East Asian Studies.

Monday, September 29- Japanese tea Ceremony 
D’Amour Library, Clark Reading Room at Western New England University, Springfield
In conjunction with The Arts of the Geisha presentation at UMass Amherst, Ms. Eguchi will present a short talk on the philosophy and symbols of the Japanese Tea followed by the Tea ceremony.

Art of Geisha

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Baystate Health New England Hadley Farms Meeting House Mass Cultural Council

JAPANESE SHOMYO BUDDHIST CHANTS & SHIRABYOSHI SONGS

Tuesday, September 23, 7:30 p.m., Bowker Auditorium
General Admission: $15; Five College, GCC, Seniors and 17 & under $10

A multi-faceted musician and singer Makiko Sakurai will present her adaptations of the Shomyo Buddhist chants from the Heian period (701-1192 AD) as well as ancient songs known as Shirabyoshi. Though a Tendai “outsider,” Makiko Sakurai has become famous in Japan as a chanter of Tendai shomyo.  A music graduate of Osaka University of Arts, she majored in piano and composition receiving her masters from the Tokyo College of Music. She has adapted shomyo for contemporary settings in collaboration with Japanese composers Mamoru Fujieda and Ayuo. She appears on two CDs of Ayuo and Mamoru Fujieda: “The Night Chant” and “Izutsu,” both released on the Tzadik label. She has also performed works for American composers, Peter Garland and Carl Stone. Ms. Sakurai has written the scripts for her original collaborative pieces with Noh theatre including “Bamboo Princess” (2006), “Manhattan Okina” (2007-2013), “Pirate Princess” (2009, 2013) and “Sword Mound” (2010). She has also written for a collaborative piece with the puppet theatre, Kokeshi Joruri “The Bridegroom of Hanako” (2011, 2013).

Presented in collaboration with the UMass Japanese Studies program.

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Monday, September 21- 2 Workshops
Ms. Sakurai will present workshops at Smith and Hampshire CollegesSongwriter and vocalist of the Tendai Buddhist chanting as well as a singer of Shirabyoshi ancient songs, Ms. Sakurai will present a lecture demonstration of her work derived from study of the Tendai sect of Buddhism, music of the Ryu-teki (a flute used in Gagaku orchestra) from Master Sukeyasu Shiba and ancient songs, closed to public.

Pink Martini

Saturday, September 20, 8 p.m., Fine Arts Center Concert Hall, Chamber Seating
$55, $50, $25; Five College, GCC and 17 & under $20, $15, $10

Eclectic, romantic and worldly, Pink Martini has become an international phenomenon performing its retro-hip, multilingual repertoire throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas. Featuring a dozen musicians, the ‘little orchestra’ from Portland, Oregon, finds inspiration in virtually every musical genre, from Baroque to disco.

“Classy, charming, sexy, elegant, sophisticated – take your pick to describe the globe-trotting eclectic mix that is Pink Martini.” – The Sun. Buy your tickets early, this concert will sell out!

Join us as we celebrate the new season @ the FAC! Enjoy a pre-show dessert party on the plaza with free desserts, live entertainment, and a cash bar featuring the signature drink, a pink martini of course. Tent opens at 6:30 p.m.

Pink Martini

 

 

SHENG DONG: MUSIC FROM TAIWAN

https://fac.umass.edu/online/shengdong

Wednesday, September 17, 7:30 p.m., Bowker Auditorium
General Admission: $15; Five College, GCC, Seniors and 17 & under $10

The world music of Sheng Dong (A Moving Sound) makes use of both Western and Chinese instruments to create songs inspired by traditional Chinese music, Taiwanese aboriginal and folk songs, and the music of Central Asia. Catching the attention of World Music critics around the globe, the modern sound is at once authentic, beautiful, and intense.

Sheng Dong a performance company based in Taipei, Taiwan and creates a new musical expression using traditional Chinese instruments such as the bowed fiddle Erhu , the Chinese guitar Zhong ruan, as well as a blend of Western instruments. Transcendent vocals and dance by lead singer Mia Hsieh, transport listeners to and beyond the Far East. Sheng Dong has attracted international attention for opening a door to this unexplored territory with a music that is both ethnic and intensely passionate and creative.

Spotlight Taiwan events are funded in part by the Ministry of Culture, Republic of China (Taiwan) and Special patron Dr. Samuel Yin, with additional support from Five Colleges, Incorporated.