Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

This will not be your usual shakuhachi camp was great, but it was!       Just wanted to state I got my 400 bucks worth of shakuhachi improvement in my sound by watching Chikuzen Sensei very intently every day as he was warming up and imitating his actions.          I can distinctly hear it in my everyday practice.         Maybe he didn't teach me directly, yet from prior experience with Japanese sensei's, you learn most from imitation, not direct transmission.       Also , he allowed auditing of all smaller group lessons, from beginner to very advanced, and I extracted useful technique from all teacher student interaction.   His senior student, the famous Brian P., has an extremely close and intimate relationship with Chikuzen Sensei,  so by listening in to their many frank conversations about music, technique, quality of flutes, etc.,  much was learned there from a DaiShihan perspective to an advanced student inquisitiveness.    Also, at times, Chikuzen played songs? I am not familiar with, so to have 3 days of mini personal concerts five feet away from a renowned Dai Shihan gives you much technique to copy and absorb.      Chikuzen Sensei is very, very approachable and can be asked any kind of question without fear of reproach and gives  answers that are impartial with honesty.       My biggest regret is not to have videotaped all this free knowledge extremely close up , so next camp I will be well armed with a digital burst camera.     Sempai, as Brian P. should be known as,  ( big brother student who takes care of the lower level students )  ,  gave his all to make us comfortable, keep us informed as to schedule, and arranged classrooms in an constantly changing environment.          Even deciding where to eat was an everyday challenge when ten or more people are involved.         Brian and his extremely loving and beautiful wife, Tanya,  drove me to and from the airport for a total of three hours plus!  so I owe them big time!         And not to forget I enjoyed being Buddy Number Two to their bundle of fun, Mason P.!    ( Buddy Number One was well earned by student Sara Renata Strothers. )      I am committed to the next camp unless work kills me, so if I can make it to at least one or two camps  a year the knowledge and improvement gained is well worth the time and effort spent.             Last but not least, the making of friends with new shakuhachi brothers and sisters from all over the country is heartwarming.  Gambatte!,  ( perservere!),  and remember, the hardest things to learn are the most rewarding.        It seems to me that, being a slow-ass learner and old, like it took me two years recently to learn to swim comfortably,  that now the two year shakuhachi lesson hump has been accomplished,  I have a whole new perspective on learning shakuhachi and think it may be possible for me to play honkyoku with some familiarity someday in the upcoming years.