2013年12月31日
Buskers Festival
Takamatsu City hosts an array of cultural events and festivals that spill out into the streets. A recent addition to this scene is the Buskers Festival, which takes place over a weekend in the fall.
This year it was held on the first weekend in October and I dropped by to see what was happening. I was blown away by the caliber of performances. Featured were top class professional musicians, artists, and circus performers. Many of the acts were not just entertaining, but artful and breathtaking craft. They transformed Sun Port plaza and the shopping arcade into one continuous stage.
Local singer/songwriter Judy
I started off at Sun Port with HIBI*Chazz-K, a 5-member jazz ensemble, for a half-hour of music that had the crowd swaying and clapping along (a great feat in the land of the reserved Japanese!).
Close by a flea market of toys and children’s clothes was underway. A birdman on stilts spouting steam from his head wove his way among delighted, and sometimes terrified, customers.
Nani-sole and his handcrafted costume
Also close by was Kanako Matsumoto, a Takamatsu native who produced stunning sidewalk art with chalk using skills honed in Florence, Italy.
Kanako’s art
Next on the program was Utsushiomi, a team composed of Kagawa-born aerialist Aimi Hasegawa and juggler Yosuke Meguro. The duo wove a silent whimsical tale punctuated by some heart-stopping acrobatics.
From here, I moved down to the Marugame-machi shopping district to see special guest, French aerial performer Julot who had brought 100 kilograms worth of equipment. I’m glad I saved this for last, because Julot’s performance was spectacular. He really knows how to thrill and captivate a crowd. Beginning with a floor routine of hoops, he managed, like a circus clown, to convince us that he was a just a wee bit clumsy.
Consequently, when he swung himself and his hoops atop a tiny platform perched on an 8-meter pole and tottered about with no lifeline attached, our hearts were in our throats.
Being right below him, I failed utterly to get any good photos but the link below might help you get the picture.
http://www.luganobuskers.ch/2012/julot-fr/
There were 18 acts in all, each one of excellent quality. Hats off to Takamatsu City for putting on such a great show! Definitely watch out for this event next year.
In the meantime, check out the site below for a fascinating discussion of the history and significance of street performing in Japan. http://www.performingarts.jp/E/pre_interview/1006/1.html
Takamatsu Access:
Takamatsu can be reached by direct flights from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, by express bus from Kansai International Airport (3 hr), and by direct flights from China and Korea. It can also be reached by taking the bullet train to Okayama and changing to the Marine Liner bound for Takamatsu (runs every 1/2 hour; takes 1 hour). For more info see http://wikitravel.org/en/Takamatsu
This year it was held on the first weekend in October and I dropped by to see what was happening. I was blown away by the caliber of performances. Featured were top class professional musicians, artists, and circus performers. Many of the acts were not just entertaining, but artful and breathtaking craft. They transformed Sun Port plaza and the shopping arcade into one continuous stage.
Local singer/songwriter Judy
I started off at Sun Port with HIBI*Chazz-K, a 5-member jazz ensemble, for a half-hour of music that had the crowd swaying and clapping along (a great feat in the land of the reserved Japanese!).
Close by a flea market of toys and children’s clothes was underway. A birdman on stilts spouting steam from his head wove his way among delighted, and sometimes terrified, customers.
Nani-sole and his handcrafted costume
Also close by was Kanako Matsumoto, a Takamatsu native who produced stunning sidewalk art with chalk using skills honed in Florence, Italy.
Kanako’s art
Next on the program was Utsushiomi, a team composed of Kagawa-born aerialist Aimi Hasegawa and juggler Yosuke Meguro. The duo wove a silent whimsical tale punctuated by some heart-stopping acrobatics.
From here, I moved down to the Marugame-machi shopping district to see special guest, French aerial performer Julot who had brought 100 kilograms worth of equipment. I’m glad I saved this for last, because Julot’s performance was spectacular. He really knows how to thrill and captivate a crowd. Beginning with a floor routine of hoops, he managed, like a circus clown, to convince us that he was a just a wee bit clumsy.
Consequently, when he swung himself and his hoops atop a tiny platform perched on an 8-meter pole and tottered about with no lifeline attached, our hearts were in our throats.
Being right below him, I failed utterly to get any good photos but the link below might help you get the picture.
http://www.luganobuskers.ch/2012/julot-fr/
There were 18 acts in all, each one of excellent quality. Hats off to Takamatsu City for putting on such a great show! Definitely watch out for this event next year.
In the meantime, check out the site below for a fascinating discussion of the history and significance of street performing in Japan. http://www.performingarts.jp/E/pre_interview/1006/1.html
Takamatsu Access:
Takamatsu can be reached by direct flights from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, by express bus from Kansai International Airport (3 hr), and by direct flights from China and Korea. It can also be reached by taking the bullet train to Okayama and changing to the Marine Liner bound for Takamatsu (runs every 1/2 hour; takes 1 hour). For more info see http://wikitravel.org/en/Takamatsu
My Profile
Cathy Hirano キャシー ヒラノ
I've lived in Japan since 1978. After graduating from a Japanese university with a BA in cultural anthropology in 1983, I worked as a translator in a Japanese consulting engineering firm in Tokyo for several years. My Japanese husband and I moved to Takamatsu in 1987 to raise our two children in a slower-paced environment away from the big city pressures. We've never regretted it. I work as a freelance translator and interpreter and am involved in a lot of community work, including volunteering for Second Hand, a local NGO that supports educational and vocational training initiatives in Cambodia, and for the Takamatsu International Association. I love living in Takamatsu.
Cathy Hirano キャシー ヒラノ
I've lived in Japan since 1978. After graduating from a Japanese university with a BA in cultural anthropology in 1983, I worked as a translator in a Japanese consulting engineering firm in Tokyo for several years. My Japanese husband and I moved to Takamatsu in 1987 to raise our two children in a slower-paced environment away from the big city pressures. We've never regretted it. I work as a freelance translator and interpreter and am involved in a lot of community work, including volunteering for Second Hand, a local NGO that supports educational and vocational training initiatives in Cambodia, and for the Takamatsu International Association. I love living in Takamatsu.
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