Unlike rhythm-oriented Western music, Komuso shakuhachi music seems to encapsulate the unique music of Japan, with its variations in timbre. This music is dying out as a result of Westernization.
The Myoan Shinpo school is considered the oldest, and forms the root of Komuso music. However there are currently only two people able to pass it on.
Shakuhachi performer Akikazu Nakamura personally consulted these last inheritors of tradition and revived these honkyoku (pieces from the classical shakuhachi repertoire), presented here on stage for the first time. The performance will also welcome Komuso monks affiliated with Echigo Myoanji temple, the center of komuso shakuhachi culture, who will reenact a traditional Neri ritual.
A shakuhachi performance will also trace the evolution of the piece Sanya after it spread to other regions from its origins in Echigo.

Performer: Akikazu Nakamura
Guests: Members of the Echigo Myoan School of Shakuhachi Preservation Society