Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Greetings

I will be artist-in-residence at Duke University in Durham/Raleigh North Carolina Oct. 22-27 giving performances, workshops and lectures. If anyone on the Forum is in the area, please come and say hello. All the events are free. Here's the schedule.
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Duke’s Asian/Pacific Studies Institute is sponsoring a one-week artist residency by Japanese Shakuhachi Grand Master James Nyoraku Schlefer from October 22 – October 27, 2007. During his residency, there will be several opportunities for members of the Duke and Triangle community to engage with the artist. All events are offered free of charge and are open to the general public.

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Shakuhachi and Strings – Performance and Talk @ the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Mon, Oct 22, 2007  6:15-8:00pm
Auditorium, John Friedrick Educational and Technology Complex, NC School of Science & Mathematics

James Nyoraku Schlefer will perform pieces for strings and shakuhachi with members of the NCSSM orchestra. Between pieces, he will introduce basic information about the history, cultural relevance and significance of Japanese Zen Buddhism to the shakuhachi bamboo flute. Members of the wind ensemble will participate in a hands-on lesson at the end of the program.

For information on finding the School of Science and Mathematics, please visit: http://www.ncssm.edu/visitors/ The entrance to the JF Educational and Technology Complex faces Club Boulevard. Parking is available in the large lot that borders Club Boulevard.

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Zen in the Garden – Japanese Shakuhachi Performance
Wed, Oct 24, 2007,    3:30-4:30pm
Japanese Tea Pavilion, Sarah P Duke Gardens

“Zen in the Garden” is a performance of traditional music for shakuhachi, Japanese bamboo flute. This deeply moving music originated in the gardens and courtyards of Zen temples, where Zen Buddhist monks played it exclusively for meditation and spiritual practice. American Shakuhachi Grand Master James Nyoraku Schlefer will recreate this experience in the recently dedicated Japanese Tea Pavilion in the Duke Gardens.

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Globalization and the Artist Lunch Series – The Evolving Shakuhachi
Thursday, October 25, 2007    12:00-1:00pm
John Hope Franklin Center – Room 240

**Japanese obento lunchboxes will be provided. Please rsvp to cindy.carlson@duke.edu to reserve your lunchbox. Please indicate food restrictions.**

“The Evolving Shakuhachi” explores the arc of a 1,000 year-old tradition. From its origins as a Zen Buddhist tool for meditation and spiritual practice, through the courts of Imperial Japan, to today’s contemporary concert scene, the deep and penetrating sounds of this bamboo flute have captured the imagination of listeners and composers throughout the world. Composer, performer and shakuhachi Grand Master James Nyoraku Schlefer will introduce and perform examples of traditional and modern music for the Japanese bamboo flute, tracing the trajectory of its history within the context of ancient and contemporary society.

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Shakuhachi Performance and Tea Tasting
Friday, October 26, 2007   12:30-1:30pm
Fuqua School of Business, Kirby Winter Garden

James Nyoraku Schlefer will perform shakuhachi music ranging from the traditional to the contemporary in the airy space of Fuqua’s Kirby Winter Garden. While he plays, members of Triangle Cha No Yu will treat guests to freshly whisked Japanese matcha tea and sweets at tasting tables.

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Shakuhachi Flute Workshop – Introduction to the Shakuhachi
10am-12pm, Saturday, October 27, 2007
Nasher Museum of Art, University Room

(This workshop is currently FULL, but we are accepting waitlist applications. Contact cindy.carlson@duke.edu to be put on the waitlist.)

“Introduction to the Shakuhachi” is a hands-on workshop for people with or without musical experience, offering them the opportunity to try their hand at one of the world’s most beautiful and challenging musical instruments: the Shakuhachi. Workshop attendees will learn about the instrument’s 1,000 year-old history, hear a small performance of both traditional and modern music, and learn to read and sing basic shakuhachi notation. There will also be an opportunity to play beginner instruments.