Welcome
Are you interested in Japan? Its people? Its culture? Its language?
If so, come and join us!
Japan Society North West holds regular Japan-related events in the Manchester / Liverpool / Cheshire / Lancashire region.
What’s On
Upcoming JSNW Events
Taiko Drumming Workshop
Saturday
23 March 2019 2.00 to 4.15 pm
Learn the basics of taiko drumming in this workshop led by Jared Hardwick of the Tengu School of Taiko.
Jared is a founding member of Kaminari UK Taiko Drummers. His passion for Taiko led Jared to start the school with an aim to provide access to this exciting Japanese performing art to adults and children alike, to experience something different, fun and enriching.
Since starting Taiko in 2007, Jared has gained substantial experience in performing, as well as teaching and leading classes and workshops both in schools and with adults. During his training, he has traveled to Japan to train with Yoshikazu Fujimoto of world renowned Japanese Taiko group 'Kodo'.
The cost is £9 for JSNW members, and £18 for non-members. If you would like to join this workshop please contact our Events Co-ordinator.
Venue: Whittle Hall Community Centre, Lonsdale Close, Great Sankey, Warrington WA5 3UA
Japanese Folk Song Workshop
Saturday
13 April 2019 11.00 am to 4.00 pm
Are you interested in learning Japanese Folk Songs (Minyo)? Learn the basics of Japanese Folk Music in this workshop led by Jacqueline Grant of the SOAS Min'yo Group.
You are invited to a taster session where you will learn how to sing and play Japanese folk songs. No previous knowledge or experience needed! You do not need to be able to speak Japanese! You do not need to have an instrument! But if you do have a shamisen or shakuhachi please bring it.
The cost is £5 for JSNW members and non-members. If you would like to join this workshop please contact our Events Co-ordinator.
Venue: International Society, William Kay House, 327 Oxford Rd, Manchester M13 9PG
What's On
Monty Don's Japanese Gardens
Monty
Don travels to Japan in spring. Amidst the cherry blossoms, he begins his
journey through the iconic gardens of Japan. He visits one of 'the three
great gardens of Japan' and the earliest surviving boating garden of the
Heian period. He looks at the rolling green moss of a Buddhist garden and
learns the secrets of creating a Zen landscape before visiting an
unconventional garden created by a modern garden design legend.
Episode 1 on iPlayer
Monty Don returns to Japan during the fiery blaze of autumn. He begins as he did in spring, at one of 'the three great gardens of Japan' to learn how they protect the garden from the coming winter. Episode 2 on iPlayer
He follows the history of the Japanese garden through the military strongholds of leaders past to the many styles, new and old, of the iconic stroll garden, and discovers a slice of Victorian England in the heart of Tokyo. He learns how the Japanese are weaving nature into their concrete urban jungle.
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme
The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme returns in February 2019,
touring to 19 cities nationwide with a theme of “Love”. From contemporary
dramas to anime and classics, it is the largest of its kind focusing on
Japanese cinema in the UK.
20 FEBRUARY Good Stripes, 8.20pm
21 FEBRUARY Where Chimneys Are Seen, 6.10pm
22 FEBRUARY Of Love & Law, 6.00pm
23 FEBRUARY Yurigokoro, 5.40pm
24 FEBRUARY Tremble All You Want, 1.00pm
27 FEBRUARY Dear Etranger, 8.20pm
Venue: HOME, 2 Tony Wilson Place, Manchester M15 4FN
Audio Book: Genji Monogatari (The Tale of Genji)
The
Tale of Genji (Genji Monogatari) is a classic work of Japanese literature
attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early eleventh
century, around the peak of the Heian Period. It is sometimes called the
world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first romance novel, or the
first novel to still be considered a classic.
The Genji was written for the women of the aristocracy (the yokibito) and has many elements found in a modern novel: a central character and a very large number of major and minor characters, well-developed characterization of all the major players, a sequence of events happening over a period of time covering the central character's lifetime and beyond. The work does not make use of a plot; instead, much as in real life, events just happen and characters evolve simply by growing older.
NOTE: this is a highly condensed version of the text, running to just under 200 pages, whereas the original is nearly 1000 pages long! librivox.org
In Our Time: Hokusai
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849), the
Japanese artist whose views of Mt Fuji such as The Great Wave off Kanagawa
(pictured) are some of the most iconic in world art. He worked as Japan was
slowly moving towards greater contact with the outside world, trading with
China and allowing two Dutch ships to dock each year. From these ships he
picked up new synthetic colours and illustrations with Western compositions,
which he incorporated in his traditional wood block prints. The quality of
his images helped drive demand for prints among the highly literate Japanese
public, particularly those required to travel to Edo under feudal
obligations and who wanted to collect all his prints. As well as the quality
of his work, Hokusai's success stems partly from his long life and career.
He completed some of his most memorable works in his 70s and 80s and claimed
he would not reach his best until he was 110. BBC
iPlayer Radio
Japan Society Events
The
Japan Society in London organises a wide range of events. Visit their
web site for a full
list of upcoming events.
In Our Time: Japan's Sakoku Period
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss Japan's Sakoku period, two centuries when the country deliberately isolated itself from the outside world. Sakoku began with a series of edicts in the 1630s which restricted the rights of Japanese to leave their country and expelled Europeans living there. It was not until 1858 and the "gunboat diplomacy" of the American Commodore Matthew Perry that Japan's international isolation finally ended.
BBC iPlayer Radio
Study Tours to Japan
Visit Akemi's web site for more information.
Japanese Food in Lymm
Japanese Food Specialists TK Trading set up shop in Lymm High School every other Saturday - see their
web site for the schedule.
Venue: Lymm High School, Oughtrington Lane, Lymm, Cheshire WA13 0RB
Japan Photos
Explore JapanPhotos.org.uk for a high resolution tour of Japan.
