Interview: Yumi Torimaru talks taiko, fue, shamisen, and music culture in Japan

I had a fun time talking with Yumi for this interview. I think we have a mutual understanding especially because of our strong connection to both Japanese and North American arts and culture. When I first moved to Portland, Yumi kindly bought me lunch and welcomed me to the area with warm enthusiasm. It’s always nice to have a friendly greeting because going to a new location can be somewhat challenging. Since then, we’ve become friends and colleagues who also share an appreciation for high-quality natto along with other food and drinks.

Yumi’s group Takohachi is always fun to watch. As I mention in the interview, my favorite part is their distinctly unique style where energetic original pieces are mixed with a minyo (Japanese folk arts) feel. In this way, I would love to see more taiko groups that simultaneously embrace their own voice and appreciate a deeper connection to the roots of the instruments and music which came from Japan. Yumi is also very active with other projects where she collaborates with various musicians and other artists.

We covered a lot in our conversation including her early musical experience, finding taiko by chance in the US, the pros and cons of getting a natori (stage name), quitting her day job to be a full time musician, her recent trip to Japan, her many great teachers, and much more. There is a lot of material on her websites and social media so please check out the links below. Yumi sent me four audio excerpts which are interspersed throughout the interview:

Sakura in Spanish Wind by Toshi Onizuka (guitar/percussions/arrangement), Yumi Torimaru (shamisen/shinobue), Otsuki (vocal)

Tawaratsumi Uta from Nanbu (Aomori)
This was made with my tsugaru shamisen teacher (Ryuhiro Oyama), his sister (Chigusa Takehana, vocal), and her two daughters (Marino/ Minori Kajiwara, taiko/Narimono) with my shinobue.

Portland Raincolors by Yumi Torimaru

Sora no Tori by Yumi Torimaru

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Kotori Japanese Music
www.KotoriJapaneseMusic.com

Takohachi
www.takohachi.org

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Yumi Torimaru founded her music ensemble, Takohachi, in 2006 in Portland, Oregon. Takohachi became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2007 to preserve traditional Japanese music and dance and create innovative taiko drum performances using Japan's strongly moving music and rhythm element. She has created hundreds of Takohachi shows to educate and entertain throughout Oregon at schools, libraries, festivals, and cultural events.

In recent years she established a smaller ensemble, Takohachi’s Q-Ensemble, to perform flexibly with high demand. She also has undertaken a solo project Kotori Japanese Music focusing more on cultural content. With all the newer projects, she freely expresses her originality in music using Taiko drums, Shinobue (bamboo flutes), and Tsugaru Shamisen (Japanese lute). The smaller ensembles and Solo projects allow her to do more collaborations with other musicians and artists in different genres. Duo units, Maido Mind (shinobue and piano/voice), and Takohachi X (multi-Japanese instrumental) are actively performing. She enjoys being an ambassador to introduce Japanese culture through music to American communities and exporting new work with a fusion of American Experience back to Japan. With Takohachi, she wants to build a special two-way relationship with Japan to bridge the two cultures.

In 2016, she became an apprentice of Ryuhiro Oyama, the distinguished Tsugaru Shamisen (Japanese lute) master of one of the biggest Tsugaru Shamisen Associations (Oyama-Kai) in Japan. He is well known for his deep knowledge of the Tsugaru style Minyo (folk songs). In 2020, Yumi started to take online professional shinobue training by a world-renowned musician, Yasukazu Kano.

Interview: Hanz Araki talks shakuhachi, Irish flute, and evading false typecasting

It was a real pleasure to interview Hanz, who is someone I have wanted to feature here for quite a while. We first met seven years ago at one of his Irish music gigs when I moved to Portland, and I could sense our like-mindedness as we chatted during the breaks. Hanz is a wonderful musician and equally accomplished as a shakuhachi artist and Irish flutist. We haven’t had the chance to work together yet but I hope this opportunity will arise in the near future.

In this conversation, Hanz talks about his introduction to the shakuhachi at age 17 and his accelerated training under his father resulting in a performance debut only a few months into his study. He describes some parallels between his Japanese music and Irish music experiences, where some people would try to force their faulty stereotypes into the story. It’s something I can relate to, and while both of us have learned to deal with it, it’s nevertheless unfortunate that such ignorant voices are still common. Hanz also discusses his family’s legacy and his position as the sixth generation Araki Kodo as well as what the future holds for this school.

Hanz kindly sent me his two latest albums - Hankyo & at our next meeting - and I have included excerpts from several pieces in the interview. I hope you will visit his websites (linked below) and consider checking out all of his terrific albums. I had a really fun time talking with Hanz and I’m truly grateful for his time and the thoughtulness he brought to our conversation.

https://hanzaraki.com

https://www.arakikodo.com

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Considered one of the most talented Irish musicians in America today, flautist, whistle player, singer, and Juno Award-winner Hanz Araki has been lauded by publications and audiences alike.  Three decades of musical exploration into Irish, Scottish, Japanese, and American traditions has yielded his distinct style described by Fatea Magazine as “achingly beautiful.”

As the sixth generation of his family to bear the title Araki Kodo, Hanz (short for Hanzaburo, his great-great grandfather’s name) spent his formative years mastering the Japanese end-blown bamboo flute.  Discovering and relishing the melodic and mechanical similarities between shakuhachi and Irish whistle, Hanz applied his natural capacity and boundless curiosity to his Irish heritage.  Taking advantage of the rich Irish music scene in Seattle, where he spent his youth, Hanz quickly became known for his exquisite instrumental work on both Irish whistle and flute and a haunting singing voice that was born to tell tales.

Over the years, Hanz has released 12 albums, including 2019’s critically acclaimed At Our Next Meeting, recorded with Donogh Hennessy in Dingle, Co. Kerry. Festival appearances include the Austin Celtic Festival, the Maine Celtic Celebration, the Missoula Celtic Festival, KVMR Grass Valley Celtic Festival, Milwaukee Irish Festival, Bumbershoot, Celtic Connections, and over 20 years of performances at the Northwest Folklife Festival. Hanz has also been invited to perform with the Seattle Symphony, at the Gates Estate, and for the Japanese Consul General.

Interview: Bruce Huebner talks shakuhachi, Japanese music, and the multicultural life

Bruce Huebner on shakuhachi 

Since the very beginning of my blog's interview series, Bruce Huebner was high on my list of people I wanted to feature. I'm happy that we finally coordinated our busy schedules and time difference to record this conversation. Bruce and I first met in Vancouver, BC in 2014 to work on a project with the Vancouver Intercultural Orchestra, and I felt an immediate musical connection and an ease of communication as if we had known each other for years. I think this comes through clearly in our conversation.

Shortly after, we played a duo concert on Christmas day at a Tokyo live house called Tsukiji Mugenryu. It was a full program of originals, jazz and rock covers, Japanese folk melodies, and a few winter holiday tunes mixed in - all arranged for shakuhachi and vibraphone. We had a fun gig and received an enthusiastic audience response, and we decided to bring our music to the US. In 2015, we put together a concert tour of Oregon and California, playing in a wide range of venues and culminating in two appearances at the San Francisco World Percussion Arts Festival.

In the interview, we discuss Bruce's musical background, his first experiences with the shakuhachi, attending GeiDai (Tokyo Geijutsu Daigaku, or University of the Arts), making the transition from flute and saxophone to shakuhachi, creating music with influences from around the world, and much more. The music tracks included are:

Kiss Me Now (Bruce Huebner, Tomoya Hara, Mark Tourian, Sendo Saori)
Falling Leaves (Bruce Huebner, Gunnar Linder)
Fond Memories (Bruce Huebner, Curtis Patterson)
Spanish Wind (Bruce Huebner, Koufuu Suwa)
Kashmir (Bruce & Eien)

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Bruce Huebner on shakuhachi

Yokohama-based Californian Bruce Huebner received his MA in traditional Kinko style shakuhachi from Tokyo University of Fine Arts in 1993 where he studied under Yamaguchi Goro (National Treasure) as a Monbusho Scholar.  After a seminal six-year professorship in Fukushima Prefecture,  he returned to Tokyo in 2000 and founded the jazz-world group Candela with pianist/composer Jonathan Katz.  The critically acclaimed group featured the shakuhachi in Japan, American and European tours and on numerous recordings.  In 2007 he began the popular "Cherry Blossom Tours" with koto player Curtis Patterson. In 2011 his "Zabu Tone Music" label released their eighth CD, "ZUI" produced with jazz guitarist Tomoya Hara.  He is a also a musical spokesman who has appeared on NHK BS TV, Tedx, Nihon TV, and he has conducted numerous lecture concerts in schools, community centres, clubs, temples, and colleges, including Rome University, Kent State, St Lawrence University, New York, and the University of British Columbia. He has performed over 80 concerts in Tohoku since 3/11.

Website
http://shakuhachibruce.net

Bruce & Eien project
https://www.eienhunterishikawa.com/bruce-eien/