New website

Please check out my new website for KWTC (taiko school) at taikonyc.com

March Concerts

March 4th,5th w/Chieko Kojima(KODO)/Maze Daiko@Rhythmix-Alameda, CAMarch 6th Organic Orchestra@Electric Lodge (LA) March 12th On Ensemble@Cerritos Center (LA)

details below:

March 4th and 5th with Maze Daiko Principal dancer of the internationally renowned Japanese drumming ensemble Kodo, Chieko Kojima, and premier fue (bamboo flute) player and solo artist, Kaoru Watanabe (formerly Kodo performer and artistic director) have worked together extensively on Kodo’s stage to develop a visual and musical style of that transverse time and cultural boundaries. Chieko is known for her innovative interpretations of Japanese folk dance. Kaoru is a rare musician trained in both traditional and contemporary forms of eastern and western music. Together they reinvent tradition in our modern world with clarity and relevance. Rhythmix Cultural Works 2513 Blanding Avenue Alameda, CA 94501 t: 510.865.5060 e: info_at_rhythmix_dot_org http://www.rhythmix.org/content/11events/110305.html

March 6th Organic Orchestra https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/141528 Adam Rudolph leads his musicians in a structured improvisation. The score and conducting serve to generate as much aesthetic and functional focus as possible in the music while at the same time providing context and inspiration for the greatest expressive freedom possible of the performers. http://www.myspace.com/goorganicorchestra

March 12th On Ensemble with Russel Baba, Jeanne Mercer, Kaoru Watanabe and Patrick Graham at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts is coming Saturday March 12th at 8pm! Russel, Jeanne, Kaoru and Patrick are four of our favorite artists to work with. We’ve been working on new material and it’s going to be one of best concerts to date! Tickets are on sale now and are available through the Cerritos Center box office.

Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts 12700 Center Court Drive Cerritos, CA 90703 Tickets $61/$49/$37 Box Office: (800) 300-4345 http://onensemble.org/

February Performances

February 1st, 9pm with Chris Dingman, Tim Keiper, Matt KilmerFebruary 8th 7:30 Mana Hashimoto's "Yumema/The Dream Between" February 13th 7:30 Joe Beaty's Morning Musuko@Tenri February 15th Alicia Hall Moran's "Motown Project"@Regatta Bar in Boston February 16th with Ishigure Masayo, Yale University February 26th adam Rudolph's Go:Organic Orchestra, Columbia University

details below:

February 1st (tues) 9 pm An encore performance of a new group consisting of Chris Dingman, Tim Keiper and Matt Kilmer at Zebulon in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Zebulon 258 Wythe Avenue NY 11211-3914 (718) 218-6934 FREE

February 8th (tues), 7:30pm "Yumema/The Dream Between" choreographed and performed by Mana Hashimoto

Music by Kaoru Watanabe and Gregory Reynolds Film collaboration with Yuko Takebe Visual collaboration and stage Lighting by Fred Hatt

This piece was inspired by a Japanese story about a prince who has been dead a long time. His spirit wanders the earth and falls in love with a princess . Although the piece is based on The book of the dead by Shinobu Origuchi, the story is just a motif of the Yumema/Dream Between. When I dream, there are people I only see in my dreams. I often experience confusion between my dreams and reality. Between dream and reality, between life and death, between man and woman, between inside and outside, our reality exists in the delicate boundary of two opposite sides. I wanted to create a twilight evening of one woman's experiences through those boundaries. The style of dance is related to Butoh, a Japanese contemporary dance form. This piece runs 30 minutes.

Dixon place 161A Chrystie Street (Btwn Rivington & Delancey) New York, NY 10002 Ticket, $15, students_seniors $12 Ticket reservation and contact, 212-219-0736 Link to buy tickets: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/799805 Web, www.manahashimoto.com

February 13th Morning Musume "The Only and Only Original J-Pop Big Band" $10 Tenri Cultural Institute 43A W13th street New York, NY 10011

Jan and February Activities

I've been making almost weekly commutes between Waterville, ME and New York- a seven hour drive. Why not fly? Two reasons: 1) I need a car in both Waterville and New York and 2) I am using my large Ojime Daiko in both places. The drives are for the most part not unpleasant. The radio, my ipod and the 7 hour long audiobook of Malcolm Gladwells Outliers have been wonderful driving companions. In Waterville, I am teaching a semester's worth of taiko and fue within a month at Colby College's "Jan Plan" program. I have taught a group of 16 students all sorts of performance tehniques but also have devoted a lot of time with readings and viewings of Gagaku, Noh, Kabuki, various Matsuri, contemporary taiko groups Osuwa Daiko, Oedosukeroku, Ondekoza, Kodo, as well as North American taiko groups. Their final exam is coming up on the 26th of January at 7 pm at the Colby College Rose Chapel. Please come if you happen to be in the neighborhood!

Also starting Jan 21st I am teaching taiko at Wesleyan University. 67 students auditioned for the intro taiko class and we had to whittle it down to only 20. I very sincerely stated that I would've liked to accept everyone, but of course that would've been unmanageable for a two hour class with a limited number of drums. I'm very impressed with the advanced students' dedication and look forward to offering what I can to their understanding of the music and culture of taiko. I'm NOT however, to be perfectly honest, looking forward to the 2 and 1/2 drive each way back and forth to Middletown, CT each week. Any suggestions for good audio books?

Performance with Alicia Hall Moran

Hello from Colby College in Waterville, ME. It's cold up here. I just finished three days of teaching taiko to first time students here as well as giving them an introduction to Gagaku, Noh, Kabuki and various Matsuri traditions in Japan. I've also been spending a good deal of time practicing and being creative with the music. Meanwhile, this is a clip from Alicia Hall Moran's Motown Project at Le Poisson Rouge featuring Adan Vasquez on harp and myself on taiko. The piece is an aria by Henry Purcell called "Ah! Belinda!" as undercurrent to Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On?". The performance was in October of 2010.

What's Going On from Danielle Harleman on Vimeo.

Happy New Year!!

2010 was a pretty amazing year for me in many ways. Many wonderful performances and tours with Kenny Endo, On Ensemble, Adam Rudolph, Tamango, Semba Kiyohiko, Kodo, Alicia Hall Moran, Chris Dingman, Yumi Kurosawa and many more in Honduras, Panama, Trinidad, Costa Rica, France and all across Japan and the US (including twice in Hawaii!). I taught a course at Princeton University as well workshops and private lessons across the globe as well as my Taiko Center in Brooklyn. Last but certainly not least, I married the singular Mari Nakano, a wonderful person who has brought clarity and even more joy to my joyous life! I hope 2010 has been a blessed and important year for all of you as well.

With all my love,

Kaoru

Friday Dec 7th, Solo performance, NYC

I'll be doing an opening performance for Billy Fox's Amanogawa at the New York Center for Art and Media Studies.

44 W. 28th St. 7th floor $10

Mon, Dec 13th@Zebulon

I'll be playing with Tim Keiper (ngoni), Chris Dingman (vibraphone) and Matt Kilmer (percussion) at Zebulon Monday night at 9 pm-ish. I love the music we play- beautiful melodies, a very organic blend of "World" sounds- Mali, Japan, the US and beyond.

Gohan Society Benefit

Check out at a great and pretty funny report on a recent performance I did... http://ozersky.tv/2010/11/the-gohan-societys-2010-benefit-dinner/

Monday, Nov 29th GO:ORGANIC ORCHESTRA

Last NYC appearance in 2010 34 musicians In concert GO:ORGANIC ORCHESTRA An Orchestral concept of world / improvisational music

“OSTINATOS OF CIRCULARITY”

MUSIC COMPOSED AND CONDUCTED BY ADAM RUDOLPH

Monday November 29, 2010 @ Roulette 20 Greene St. (between Canal and Grand) 2 blocks west of Broadway

8:30 PM $15 at the Door DTW members students, seniors: $10 Reservations: 212.219.8242 Roulette & Location One, members free www.roulette.org www.location1.org

Performing artists: Sylvain Leroux –Tambin Fulani Flute, C Flute Michel Gentile – C and Alto Flute, Bamboo Flute Kaoru Watanabe – Noh Kan, Fue, C Flute Ze Luis - C and Alto Flute, Bamboo Flute Peter Apfelbaum - C Flute, Bamboo Flutes, Melodica

Sara Schoenbeck – Bassoon Ivan Barenboim - B flat Clarinet Ned Rothenberg - Bass Clarinet

Graham Haynes – Cornet, Flugelhorn, Bamboo Horn Stephen Haynes – Trumpet, Bamboo Horn, Didjiridoo Peck Almond – Trumpet, Kalimbas, Bamboo Horn Peter Zummo – Trombone, Didjiridoo

Sarah Bernstein – Violin Trina Basu – Violin Mark Chung– Violin Jason Kao Hwang – Violin Charles Burnham – Violin Elektra Kurtis – Violin Curtis Stewart – Violin Midori Yamamoto – Violin Skye Steele – Violin Rosemarie Hertlein – Violin Stephanie Griffin – Viola Daniel Levin – Cello Marika Hughes - Cello Janie Cowan - Contrabass

Kenny Wessel – Electric Guitar, Banjo Marco Cappelli – Acoustic Guitar

Matt Kilmer – Frame Drums, Percussion James Hurt – Sogo, Kidi, Percussion Keita Ogawa – Percussion Tripp Dudley – Percussion

Stuart Popejoy - Acoustic Bass Guitar Alex Marcelo – Acoustic Piano

Web page: http://www.metarecords.com/go.html

Go: Organic Orchestra @ my space: http://www.myspace.com/goorganicorchestra

Videos: http://www.youtube.com/adamtabl

CONCERT REVIEWS:

" I caught a performance Go: Organic Orchestra down in SoHo last spring and was swept away by what they were doing. It was fascinating and ahead of its time, in the best possible way. I loved every minute of it. " - Marc Meyers, jazzwax.com

" I was fortunate to have attended two nights with Adam Rudolph's Go: Organic Orchestra at Roulette a few months back and was blown away by Adam's distinctive blend of jazz and world music as well as his conducting." - Bruce Lee Gallanter - Downtown Music Gallery

"The music, performed by a large ensemble of wind and percussion players, rose like vines from hand drummer Adam Rudolph's written instructions and hand signals. And it truly is organic -- a blend of gentle sustained dissonance, heaven-crashing rhythm jams, and individual improvisations. No joke: a startling and involving development in roots music, with more to follow." - Greg Burk, LA Weekly

“This mixture of planning and spontaneity is brought to life with such a high level of musicality that the “organic” part of the group’s name is always honored.” - Steve Holtje, The Big Takeover

“Extraordinary.... the audience was absolutely absorbed.” - Howard Mandel, Jazz beyond Jazz

FUE INTENSIVE DEC 4th and 5th

FUE comprehensive intensive workshop- see detailed schedule below- open to all levels! Please e-mail me by the morning of November 11 - limited space left

Schedule: Dec 4th (sat) MORNING session: opening session, an introduction to fue types, styles, demonstration, listening and video session. AFTERNOON session: fingering, breathing exercises, warm up routines repertoire - Sakura, Takeda No Komoriuta, Kaigara Bushi, etc- deal with ornamentation, phrasing, vibrato, etc EVENING SESSION: composition - discussion of Japanese scales, taiko with fue combination, etc

Dec 5th (sun) MORNING session: improvisation, extended techniques, review AFTERNOON session: fue with taiko practices- dealing with rhythm, ensemble and BEING HEARD

fee: $250 full session, $200 for the saturday session only / $100 for the Sunday session only (includes meals)

free accommodation available on a limited basis (first come, first serve).

A MESSAGE from a student

Since becoming a student of Kaoru, my fue playing has improved in every way. From basic breathing exercises and fingering techniques to learning songs and improvising, Kaoru has a way of explaining fue playing that is clear and understandable, and also a lot of fun. With his background in music and extensive wealth of knowledge of both fue and taiko, a one hour lesson is never long enough. I've been waiting for a fue intensive weekend! I'm looking forward to many hours of learning and making music.

Nov 15th Kenny&Kaoru in Princeton

taiko_nov15a_rvsd4

Oct/Nov '10 Performance Schedule

Oct 24th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, HAWAIIOct 27th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Atlanta, GA Oct 30th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Sewanee, TN Nov 2nd Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Oberlin OH Nov 4th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Kalamazoo MI Nov 6th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Pittsburgh, PA Nov 8th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Westminster, MD Nov 10th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Fredericksberg, VA Nov 14th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Stony Brook, NY

Nov 15th "Conversations in Japanese Taiko: lecture/demonstration -Princeton University Nov 16th Alicia Hall Moran "The Motown Project", Les Poissant Rouge, NY

Nov 19th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Philadelphia, PA Nov 20th Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, New York, NY

Nov 22nd Adam Rudolph's Go:Organic Orchestra, Roulette, NY Nov 29th Adam Rudolph's Go:Organic Orchestra, Roulette, NY

Kenny Endo's Gateway Tour INFO

Sunday, October 24, 2010 4 pm Kenny Endo “Gateway” Concert Tour KICK OFF performance Pearl City Cultural Center 2100 Hookiekie Street, Pearl City featuring Kenny Endo (master taiko Artist) Kaoru Watanabe (former principal flutist with KODO) Hitoshi Hamada (Japan’s top Jazz vibraphonist) Tadayoshi Yasuda (nagauta shamisen Artist) Special guest TAIMANE GARDNER (amazing ukulele artist) and The Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble $15 Suggested Donation

October 27th, 7:30 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Atlanta, GA Atlanta Center for Asian Studies Kennesaw State University Social Science Building Room 1021 1000 Chastain Road Kennesaw GA 30144-5591

October 30th, 7:30 pm Tennessee Williams Performing Arts Center TECH: Michael Redman, Abram Jones Presenter: University of the South 735 University Ave. Sewanee TN 37383

November 2nd, 8 pm Finney Chapel Oberlin College Oberlin, OH

Nov 4th, 8:15 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Kalamazoo MI Dalton Recital Hall Western Michigan University Haenicke Institute for Global Education

Nov 6th, 8 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Pittsburgh, PA Manchester Craftsman's Guild of Pittsburgh 1815 Metropolitan St Pittsburgh PA 15233-2233

Nov 8th, 7:30 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Westminster, MD McDaniel College 2 College Hill Westminster MD 21157

Nov 10th, 7:30 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Fredericksberg, VA Dodd Auditorium Mary Washington University

Nov 14th, 8 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Stony Brook, NY Charles B. Wang Center Stony Brook University

Nov 19th, 8 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, Philadelphia, PA Irvine Auditorium University of Pennsylvania-Philadelphia

Nov 20th, 8 pm Kenny Endo "Gateway" Concert Tour, New York, NY Skirball Center for the Performing Arts NYU

Nov 16th Alicia Hall Moran The Motown Project

Tue., November 16, 2010 / 10:00 PMLe Poisson Rouge $15

Alicia Hall Moran , the motown project featuring Steven Herring, baritone, Thomas Flippin, guitar , Adán Vásquez, harp , Tarus Mateen, bass and Kaoru Watanabe, taiko + fué

10:30 PM

The brainchild of Alicia Hall Moran, the motown project, with its unique chamber ensemble, engineers alchemy of Opera and Motown. And it achieves an utterly fresh take on the layered complexity of African-American music and American cultural identity vis-à-vis the world.

The motown project yields suprise for opera lovers as Dido laments “Papa Was A Rolling Stone” and Mimí’s last breaths intone “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” The R&B aficionado will enjoy the grave plaints of Marvin Gaye and philosophical wisdom of Stevie Wonder released from pop’s rhythmic seduction and into the stoic classical heft that the lyrics fully support.

Where a resplendent and ravished diva is the ultimate icon, and where social/class politics dominate the subtext, Opera and Motown reveal their deepest symmetries. Indeed, the motown project’s heroine seeks Love, Respect and Understanding, and travels the eras to find it.

Bringing the concept to life is the voice of Alicia Hall Moran; a voluptuous voice with its American roots anchored in the twin legacy of her maternal great great uncle, Hall Johnson, preserver of the Negro Spiritual, and her paternal great uncle, pop/jazz balladeer Al Hibbler.

Seattle DRUM! concert report

Seattle Town Hall DRUM! Friday, October 8th, 2010

Produced by Spider Kedelsky, this concert featured musics from Senegal, India, the United States and Japan.

First in the program was a group led by Thiom, his father Mbate and brother Gora and two dancers whose names I am remiss in not remembering. The performance was Senegalese sabar drumming at it's finest- full of call and response, subtle elusive cues that lead to metric and rhythmic shifts and complicated polyrhythmic improvisations, all so effortlessly executed that they seemed simple and profoundly grooving. The listener's body is compelled to dance while for those bothering to try to analyze the stuff, the brain is absolutely confounded.

The second part of the performance was a thirty minute tabla solo that was a virtuoso display of tonal variety, rhythmic complexity, odd meters and complicated forms, all executed with lyrical musicality and emotion by Samir Chatterjee. Samir is a masterful performer and teacher of great warmth and humility and these features shown during his surprisingly melodic performance.

Following the intermission was a performance of Steve Reichs Clapping, a piece featuring two musicians doing exactly that for about four minutes. One performer continuously repeated a certain rhythm the entire time, while the other clapped the same rhythm while incrementally displacing it one beat at a time. A rhythmic exercise as much as a piece of music, amusing and entrancing to the audience while imagine quite a feat of concentration and counting for the performers.

The "Japan" protion of the program was last. Kenny and I opened with his duet, Symmetrical Soundscapes. Ringtaro and his wife Asako then joined us for Ringtaro's piece Umi wo Koete (Over the Sea), featuring shamisen, taiko and fue. Ringtaro then played an Odaiko solo with Asako, followed by another Kenny/Kaoru duo, Kenny on Odaiko and myself doing a Miyake style solo. We finished with Kenny's piece Jugoya.

For the grand finale, we had a typical world music jam session blowout with the Senegalese drummers, Samir and the taiko people all on stage grooving out and trading solos - a crowd pleaser that, while perhaps not the most profound musical statement, was a fun and amicable way to indeed show that rhythm is universal.

After signing autographs and chatting with old and new friends in the lobby, taiko proved once again that among the musical instruments of the world load out time was the longest by far. Samir packed up his two tabla in a case and disappeared into the rain, the Senegalese drummers threw their drums into cloth bags or just slung them as they were over their shoulders and were out. The Japan team were there until all of the staff of the theater were gone except one, carefully packing the shime, okedo, nagado, uchiwa daiko, dismantling the various stands, sticks, flutes, the shamisen and other small percussion and then cramming it all, tetris-like into two cars while a soft Seattle rain fell.

Upcoming shows fall 2010

Oct 4th@ performance at Rutgers UniversityOct 25~Nov 20th US tour with Kenny Endo www.kennyendo.com Nov 15 lecture/demonstration with Kenny Endo at Princeton University info Nov 16 with Alicia Hall Moran, The Motown Project@LPR Nov 22, 29 with Adam Rudolph's Go:Organic Orchestra@Roulette

Oct 8th Global Rhythms: DRUMMING! in Seattle

Ten master musicians come together for the first time as an all-star ensemble to present “DRUMMING!” the “palooza of percussion” that opens the 10th anniversary season of Town Hall’s Global Rhythms series. Featured artists are virtuoso Indian tabla player Samir Chatterjee and legendary taiko drummer and percussionist Kenny Endo. Joining them is Kaoru Watanabe, formerly of Japan’s famed taiko group KODO, and husband/wife team Ringtaro and Asako Tateishi. The bravura and spellbinding rhythms of West Africa are offered by Senegal’s Thione Diop and Family, griots whose lineage descends from the royal court musicians and praise singers of the 13th century Mandinke Empire. Completing the program is Steve Reich’s Clapping Music, performed by Jacob Brady and Gregg Belisle-Chi. Tickets are $22/$19 Town Hall members, students & seniors at www.brownpapertickets.com or 800/838-3006. $24/$21 at the door. LEARN MORE www.kennyendo.com www.thionediop.com www.tabla.org Chatterjee on YouTube. Friday, October 8, 2010, 8:00 PM – 10:00 PM. Great Hall, enter on Great Hall.

My interview in the Miyamoto Website

Also for you Japanese readers out there- please check out my interview that's posted on the Miyamoto website. Miyamoto Unosuke Shoten is one of the most respected taiko makers in Japan, with a history that goes back to 1861. http://www.miyamoto-unosuke.co.jp/taiko/artist/03/1.html

Japanese online review of RESONANCE 2010

For those of you who read Japanese, please check out this article about myself and RESONANCE in Tokyo. http://www.47news.jp/EN/201009/EN2010093001000220.html