• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 

	TOP PAGE >> Programs >> Japan

<As of July 2007> N.B. The program below is subject to additions and alterations.

Fine arts NPO Wakayama Arts and Culture Support Society(wacss) The 6th workshop of “Doki-Doki” Youth Photo Crew in Nakahechi Date Program February 4 Wakayama International Exchange Festival Vol.1 “WAKUWAKU MURA” (Waka no ura Art Cube / Wakayama-city) March 16 Performance and after-talk by Kawasemi-za “Where Spirits and Fairies Dwell” (Wakayama Prefecture Culture Hall/Wakayama-city) April 1-5 ROGUES’ GALLERY : Gasoline Music & Cruising(Wakayama city) August 4-5 The 6th workshop of “Doki-Doki” Youth Photo Crew in Nakahechi (around KUMANOKODO NAKAHECHI MUSEUM / Tanabe-city, Wakayama pref.) August 19 - October 10 The 6th workshop of “Doki-Doki” Youth Photo Crew in Nakahechi: Exhibition of the works of ”Story of Forest only for oneself” (KUMANOKODO NAKAHECHI MUSEUM / Tanabe-city, Wakayama pref.) November 3 Classic Guitar Live by Jan Depreter @ Kouyasan (Yochiin / Koyasan Koyacho, Wakayama Pref.) November 4 The 7th workshop of “Doki-Doki” Youth Photo Crew in Koyasan (Koyasan elementary school / Koyasan Koyacho, Wakayama Pref.) December 22 Wakayama International Exchange Festival Vol.2 “WAKUWAKU MURA” (Wakayama Big Ai Building/Wayama-city) ※The website of NPO Wakayama Arts and Culture Support Society(wacss)is here! The non-profit organization Wakayama Arts and Culture Support Society (wacss) has been working for six years with the aim of creating human ties and interaction through art and stimulating communities on the basis of the concept that "art helps people and communities thrive". The organization works with artists to create opportunities for greater familiarity and more amusing encounters with art in such programs as exhibit-related workshops held with the Wakayama Museum of Modern Art, Discover Wakayama photography workshops, performing arts programs, community exchange music programs and collaborations with community organizations. The EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports the annual activities of wacss with hopes for the further development of its activities.

Fine Art Cosmo Yume Butai Members of Cosumo Yume Butai Date Program March 11 Event marking publication of Kentaro Sato's "Letter from Greece" September 17 Outdoor concert Stone carving session with ancient and contemporary flutes October 15 to November 15 4th Satoyama Art Exhibition November 3-4 Symposium on "Regenerating the Dynamism of the Individual in Japan" Theme I： "Promoting Rural Dynamism During Depopulation" Theme II： "Agriculture and Diet" Cosmo Yume Butai location： Toyomi, Agamachi, Higashi Kanbara-gun, Niigata, Japan ※The Kentaro Sato and Cosmo Yume Butai website is here. ※For related program, see here. ※For information on Kentaro Sato's earlier participation, see here. Dreaming of a modern-day fairyland of art, Kentaro Sato and the friends who have rallied to his side have now spent ten years building the Cosmo Yume Butai. Using existing land and buildings, they engage in a variety of artistic endeavors, deploying their own hand-built equipment, a Jomon Hall to relate Jomon history, for example, in museums and galleries. And through their agricultural work, they devise ways to enjoy living in the midst of nature. We are confident that the places of nature, livelihood, living art contextualized among them, and human encounters in Cosmo Yume Butai will provide opportunities to reconsider what abundance consists of in our hectic contemporary world flush with information. Hoping for the further development of their activities, the EU-Japan Japan Fest Committee supports the activities of Cosmo Yume Butai throughout the year.

Performing Arts Dance programs by Session House ※The detail of the program (April 2007 - March 2008) is here！ Date： April 2007 - March 2008 Performers： Fredelic Blondy, Tetsu Saitoh, Yoko Higashino, Yuji Kobayashi, mime group <CAVA>, Mademoiselle Cinema, Kumiko Yagishita, Tant-tanz, Kentaro, Haruka Ueda, Jean Sasportes, Ryohei Kondo, Shuntoku Takagi, the performance of group <Maru>, the performance of group <Jugon>, Junko Kikuchi, Jacki Job, etc. ※Session House website is here！ Session House is the theater which supports the activities of young dancers bearing the responsibility for the coming age and aims at a popularization of dance to society. This place is producing various dance program energetically, for example publishing the piece created by workshop, carrying out the performance of resident company and etc. Many dancers have stepped up from these dance program and acting actively on stage in the world not only in Japan. Our committee is supporting the activity of the current year of Session House for more filling up the place of cultivation for young dancers.

Performing Arts EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee + The Saison Foundation International Exchanges in the Performing Arts and Joint Support Programs Artist: Ko Murobushi "quick silver" ©：Junichi Yamauchi “Hiblang Abo” by Rinkogun From left: Kenjiro Kawanaka, Tsunekazu Inokuma, Tenshi Kamogawa, Mari Nakayama Dates： 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008 Artists Program Rinkogun Philippine - Japan International Collaboration Production The School of Hard Knocks Japan (Beagle) A Page Out of Order Ko & Edge Co. Ko Murobushi, Bernard Montet, Josef Nadj R PRODUCTION 21Century Japan & China Performing Arts Exchange project ※The website of the Saison Foundation is here! The Saison Foundation has a 20-year record of support for Japanese artists and groups involved in contemporary theater and contemporary dance and their international activities. Now the EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee is to collaborate with The Saison Foundation in a new set of support programs taking a medium- and long-term perspective. This year the two organizations will be providing joint support to the four groups of artists chosen for Saison's Continuing Project Support grant program. In addition to funding the full range of activities from research and workshops directed towards the formation of their productions through the actual creative process and the performance of their pieces, the grants will also provide access as needed to Saison's Morishita Studio as a venue for rehearsals and collaboration. Prospects going forward include joint projects involving artists from other Asian countries as well as Europe and Japan, support for artists covering multiple years and the development of residence programs. We look forward to working with The Saison Foundation to develop new, unprecedented support programs.

Literature Hear Poets unamplified！ A Poetry Voice Circuit Reading by Mutuo Takahashi A reading tour by poets initiated by poet Tendo Taijin, aspiring to big city Tokyo where anyone can anytime hear poets reading their own compositions in their own voices. Ongoing since October last year, the Round Poetry Readings had been held 56 times by end-March 2007 with appearances by 31 leading Japanese poets. In April the project was reborn as A Poetry Voice Circuit. Tendo broadens his work with the goal of further developing a space for poetry and the voice. ※Details on scheduling, locations, poets appearing and reservations are here. Dates： April 2 - March 31 2008 ＜As of 24 Jan. 2008＞ Places： Gallery Art Point (Ginza)(2 Apr.-29 Aug.) Galerie Tokyo Humanite(Kyobashi) Striped House Gallery (Roppongi) Galerie-EM (Shinjuku)＜From January 2008＞ Gallery Hana (Hiro) ＜from February 2008＞ Star Poets Gallery (Shibuya)＜From March 2008＞ Poets (As of 24 Jan.)： Kazuko Shiraishi ,Fumio Satou,Yasuo Fujitomi, Chuei Yagi,Mutsuo Takahashi,Tetsuo Nakagami, Makoto Takayanagi,Hideharu Ogawa,Toeko Izaki, Teruko Kunimine,Hiromi Itou,Tendo Taijin, Noriko Sunaga,Syunkichi Baba, Megumi Nakamura,Masao Sekiguchi, Yoshihiko Washio,Megumi Komoda,Nobuko Sakai, Tousuke Tanaka,Mariko Yamaguchi, Kikuo Tagawa,Junzaburou Suzuki,Rie Edagawa, Mikiro Sasaki,Takeshi Ishihara,Youko Mitsui, Ryu Oshima,Ryoko Minegishi,Touko Kimura, Teruo Inoue,Mitsuko Kasahara,Toshiko Mikumo, Junko Hiraoka,Kentarou Tanaka, Tatsundo Hayashi,Hinako Abe, Ban'ya Natsuishi, Shinobu Hasegawa,Saburou Akagi, Akira Nemoto,Mayumi Inaba,Junko Kitaoka, Reiko Koyanagi,Hiroya Takagai,Noriko Osada, Heita Anzu, Machiko Kishimoto,Yuji Kanai, Takaaki Yamada,Yuuko Shima,Sayumi Kamakura, Kyoko Nogi,Toma Ibu,Kaori Muto,Junko Fukuda Shinya Shiratori,Kaoru Udo ※Taijin Tendo Website is here. ※The programs which Taijin Tendo participated in are following. ・Hear Poets Recite Unamplified! A Circuit of Poetry Readings 　(Oct.2006 - Mar.2007) ・12th International Genoa Poetry Festival

People-to-People Exchange Cultural Capital of Europe Liverpool 2008 Program Director Visits Japan At the opening reception of NEW TRENDS of ARCHITECTURE in EUROPE and ASIA-PACIFIC 2006-2007 Ms. Rei Maeda (Art Front Gallery), Ms. Sorcha Carey and Mr. Ben Parry Dates Director May 8 - 13 Sorcha Carey 　 International projects coordinator,Liverpool Biennial May 8 - 15 Ben Parry   Artistic director,Jump Ship Rat October 2-5 Mike Stubbs 　 Director,FACT 2008 Feb 9 - 15 Ben Parry   Artistic director,Jump Ship Rat Myriam Tahir   Jump Ship Rat ※Cultural Capital of Europe Liverpool 2008's Website is here. The program director from Liverpool, England, one of the Cultural Capitals of Europe for 2008, is to visit Japan for discussions on next year's official program and to gain familiarity with the contemporary art scene in Japan. The visit will take in discussions with a range of Japanese artists, organizations involved in culture and the arts and creators, and explore possibilities for next year's joint program. Program directors Sorcha Carey and Ben Parry themselves visited Japan in May and held enthusiastic meetings with a number of people. They conducted mutual exchanges of information and developed new contacts with a number of contemporary artists and curators about their own projects. Returning to Liverpool with these accomplishments, they are currently exploring what sort of program will come together for next year. And also Mike Stubbs,Director of the local new media art foundation FACT visited Japan on October 2-5. He had many meetings with Japanese artists and curators during his short stay. Ben Perry came to Japan again with his staff, Myriam Tahir. As well as the Cultural Capital of Europe, we look forward to their visit contributing to the future development of joint projects between Japan and Europe.

Architecture NEW TRENDS of ARCHITECTURE in EUROPE and ASIA-PACIFIC 2006-2007 Tokyo Exhibition Opening Reception Exhibition Room Dates： May 11-27 Place： Hillside Forum (Tokyo) Commissioners： Winy Mass Riken Yamamoto Theme： Agenda Related Program： Symposium "Agenda of Architects" (May 12/Hillside Plaza) Lectures by Overseas Architects (May 8-14/Universities in Japan) Architects： R & Sie (n) (France) , B.I.G. Bjarke Ingels Group (Denmark), NL architects (the Netherlands), Enric Ruiz-Geli/Cloud 9 (Spain), Andreas Angelidakis (Greece), Polaris architects (Luxembourg), DOGMA｜OFFICE (Italy), Zizi & Yoyo arhitektid (Estonia), Taira Nishizawa Architects (Japan), MADA s.p.a.m. (China), Edge Design Institute Ltd. (Hong Kong), Mass Studies (Korea), Duangrit Bunnag (Thailand), Sean Godsell Architects (Australia), Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects (Australia) Traveling exhibition： Exhibition in Melbourne June 20-July 28 Exhibition in Perth August 17-September 30 Exhibition in Luxembourg November 9-29 ※NEW TRENDS of ARCHITECTURE in EUROPE and ASIA-PACIFIC 2006-2007 website is here. ※The exhibition in Patras 2006 is here. The "New Trends of Architecture in Europe and Asia-Pacific 2006-2007" exhibition that enjoyed such success at the Cultural Capital of Europe Patras in 2006 also visited Tokyo. Launched in 2001, this project each year identifies a number of young architects from various countries and features them in exhibitions, symposia and lectures held in different countries, including at the Cultural Capital of Europe. Large numbers gathered for the opening of the Tokyo exhibition and enjoyed the work shown by the up-and-coming architects. The symposia and university lectures also drew large audiences. Heated debates generated excited the audiences and proved stimulating for the students coming into contact with the cutting edge of the world of architecture.

Youth & Music Art program for Youth Lectures & Concerts by Jazz Pianist Yutaka Shiina Dates： May 11 to November 21 (as of July 24) Places： Kitami-shi (Hokkaido), Kushiro-shi (Hokkaido), Fujieda-shi (Shizuoka), Chikugo-shi (Fukuoka), Shibushi-shi (Kagoshima) ※Yutaka Shiina's Website is here. ※Lectures & Concerts by Jazz Pianist Yutaka Shiina (May 11 to November 21) are here. ※Joint Concert：Yutaka Shiina Trio + Tim Armacost and Meiji University Mandolin Club is here. ※Details on the International Youth Music Festival and Art Program for Youth are here. Besides his own musical work, the jazz pianist Yutaka Shiina, highly regarded both in Japan and overseas, pours his energy into workshops for children and joint concerts with them. Since 1998 he has visited primary schools, middle schools and high schools all over Japan, from Kyushu to Hokkaido, speaking to wind instrument clubs and even to children with no experience with musical instruments and relating to them the joy of self-expression. Musicians from Japan and overseas also join in on Shiina's educational activities. Swiss musicians joined for the lectures and concerts held in Jun, and have many other activities planned as well. These are wonderful opportunities for children to experience authentic performance and make personal contact with the joy of music.

Performing Arts Pantomime: Nozomi Satomi Date Program and Venue May 13 Setagaya Street Theater Festival "Kokowa dokono hosomichija" (Karasuyama Kumin Center/Tokyo) September 30 11：00-12：30 Tohoku Conference of Occupational Therapist lecture (Oroshicho center/Fukushima) October Workshop “body expression and communication” (Seirei Christopher Colege/Shizuoka) November "Who am I?"(CAVE/Shizuoka) 2008 February Agora theater winter summit “Who am I?” (Agora theater/Tokyo) ※Performances in Europe and Other places are here. ※The program which she participated in before is here. Satomi works as a solo mime performer. Activities are creating performance pieces and presentation, involving street theater program, body express workshop for theater worker or social worker and participating international theater festival for expanding work field. Satomi has performed on an open space like a street. She does not often perform in theater as a closed place. In this year, she will perform at the theater in Hamamatsu, Tokyo and the Kansai region. The EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports her work throughout the year rather than transiently, with the hope that the work of this artist itself will undergo further development.

Fine Art Exhibition of Stone Sculpture by Kentaro Sato Lecture meeting Date： 16-22 May Venue： Fine Arts Salon, 6th floor, Nihonbashi Takashimaya Related program： "Art and Community Revival" lecture meeting ※Kentaro Sato's website is here. ※The program which Kentaro Sato participated in before is here. A participant in last year's symposium on stone sculpture in Amariaada, Greece, Kentaro Sato won local accolades. This year in Tokyo he showed 50 new works in stone. His mermaid, a work on the same motif as that shown in Greece, and the other richly expressive, warm work were well received by large numbers of people. On the 19th he spoke on the theme "Art and Community Revival" and held a colloquy with Prof. Shinji Aoki of Toyo University, who also serves as executive director of the Green Tourism Network Center. An audience of 60 more than filled the space available and listened eagerly as Sato touched on such topics as the activities of the Cosmo Yume Butai project that he conducts with colleagues.

Youth & Music "The Ambassador and Children in Conversation" (Kagoshima) Belgian Acting Ambassador spoke about Belgium. The Acting Ambassador was presented with a portrait of Jan Depreter. Date： May 25 Place： Shibushi Municipal Matsuyama Middle School ※Details on the International Youth Music Festival are here. ※Related Program are following. 　・The 3rd International Music Festival for Youth: Jan Depreter(guitarist / Belgium) In advance of the July visit by the Cantate Domino children's choir to participate in this year's International Music Festival for Youth in Shibushi, Belgian Acting Ambassador to Japan Van de Voorde visited Matsuyama Middle School in Shibushi, Kagoshima prefecture, for an event titled "The Ambassador and Children in Conversation". The Ambassador spoke about Belgium, answered the children's questions and also enjoyed a mini-concert by the school's wind instrument club. The children of Shibushi had an opportunity to gain a deeper interest in and understanding of Belgium. The Ambassador was also presented with a portrait of the Belgian classical guitarist Jan Depreter drawn by Shuichiro Sakamoto of the local group Yacchiku Matsuyama Han. Depreter has appeared at the music festival in Shibushi every year since 2005 and plans to visit Japan again this year. It is planned to feature the portrait on the jacket of a Depreter CD.

Performing Arts Kanazawa Butoh Kan Date,Time Program May 25,17:00 “Postmortem on Tatsumi Hijikata” Video presentation “Front Costume” (Keio University, Hiyoshi Campus in Tokyo) October 7 Butoh Festival (Takatsumi Shrine, Osaka) ※Kanazawa Butoh Kan’s Website is here. ※The programs which Kanazawa Butoh Kan participated in are following. ・Performance"HENSHIN" at Sibiu International Theater Festival (2006) ・Choreography:Choreodrama “Matsukaze” in Croatia In 2007 Kanazawa Butoh Kan have two main projects. One is a 2-month European tour including new productions in Zadar, and Graz. The other is activities relating to KBK’s first performance“Front Costume”which was performed in 1976 and directed/choreographed by Moe Yamamoto’s(Kanazawa Butoh kan) master Tatsumi Hijikata. A video presentation, video recording of Butoh-fu, and workshops are being planned by Keio University’s Hijikata Archive.

Seminar Japan-Europe Cultural Exchange Day 2007 Date： May 27 Venue： International House, Osaka Speakers： Johan Geentjens(Coordinator of ERASMUS/ Belgium) Daniele Alexandre(President of the "Maison Universitaire France-Japon"/France) Irene Jansen(Director of the German Academic Exchange Service in Tokyo/ Germany) Richard Harrison(Associate Professor at Kobe University / England) Katsumi Kakazu(Managing Director of the Japanese-Language Department, The Japan Foundation/ Japan) ※Japan-Europe Cultural Exchange Day 2007's Website is here. ※ Japan-Europe Cultural Exchange Day 2006(EU-Japan Symposium 2006)is here European cultural exchange bodies operating in Osaka jointly hold an annual seminar and symposium to promote mutual understanding between the EU and Japan. This sixth such event featured a panel discussion among national experts on transnational inter-university networks in Europe and exchange between Japanese and European universities. Speakers described a variety of the education systems operative in Europe, including a framework in which academic credits are mutually transferable among universities. Learning about education systems in other parts of the world gave visitors an opportunity to revisit the Japanese education system.

Youth & Music Cantate Domino at the 4th International Youth Music Festival The 2nd International Youth Music Festival Dates： July 5-10 Place： Shibushi-shi, Kagoshima-shi (Kagoshima Prefecture) Local Organizers： The 4th International Youth Music Festival Executive Committee, Osumi no Kuni Yacchiku Matsuyama Han, Shibushi city, Shibushi Education Commission ※Cantate Domino's Website is here. ※The program which Cantate Domino participated in before is here. ※ Details on the International Youth Music Festival are here. The Cantate Domino choir from Belgium, which participated in the 2nd International Youth Music Festival in 2005 and astonished audiences with their superb voices, visited Japan once more at the passionate wish of both Japanese and European fans. Members of Cantate Domino expeienced homestays and school exchange events as well as concert performances in various cities. By sharing experiences and impressions in this way the children of Japan and Europe strengthened the valuable network among them leading into the future.

Performing Arts Contemporary Dance by Hiroaki Umeda Photo：Julieta Cervantes Dates Time Program,Venue Jun 27 - 28 19:30 CORPI-ALTRI(BODY-OTHER) Kitazawa town hall ※Hiroaki Umeda's Website is here. ※Performances in Europe and Other places are here. Contemporary dance performer Hiroaki Umeda has had brilliant success both in Japan and overseas. Involving himself in all aspects from lighting to acoustics and video, Umeda has earned accolades for his creative and sensitive performances both overseas and in Japan. This year he again plans performances in Europe and elsewhere around the world. The EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports his work throughout the year rather than transiently, with the hope that the work of this artist itself will undergo further development. We look forward to more performances by Umeda.

Performing Arts Contemporary Dance： Co. Yamada Un ©Russell Young The dance company Co. Yamada Un were well received in their appearance at the Sibiu International Theater Festival as part of the Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007. As well as this performance in Sibiu, the EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports the work of Yamada Un throughout the year. This year too Yamada Un is working energetically as a dancer and choreographer, giving workshops and presenting new performances at various locations in Japan and overseas. In addition to workshops for professional dancers, she also holds numerous classes for the general public. Actual experience is one way for contemporary dance to gain a presence in the daily lives of people unfamiliar with it, while they also gain a sense of the joy of self-expression. Date Program and Venue Jun 30-Jul 1 Workshop Kanazawa Citizen's Art Center/Ishikawa-pref. August Workshop Chigasaki Cultural Hall/Kanagawa-pref. September 15-16 Workshop Kanazawa Citizen's Art Center/Ishikawa-pref. October 10-14 Workshop Ezuko Hall/Miyagi-pref. December 1-2 Workshop Kanazawa Citizen's Art Center/Ishikawa-pref. December 10-16 Workshop and Performance Sekiou Cultural Hall/Shimane-pref. 2008 February 16-17 Workshop Kanazawa Citizen's Art Center/Ishikawa-pref. February 26-March 3 Workshop and Performance Cultural Park JoyoTheater/Kyoto-pref. March 19-21 Performance "Document"(the titile is unfixed)Kichijoji Theater/Tokyo ※ Co. Yamada Un's Website is here. ※The performance at Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007 is here. ※The performance at Cultural Capital of Europe Patras 2006 is here.

Performing Arts DONDORO Theatre Date Program and Venue August 2,3 Iida Puppet festa 8 kind of performances (Nagano) Octover 21,22 Osu Daido-chonin-matsuri “Tinimouryo-emaki”(Nagoya) November 22,23 Inasa Puppet festival “ Miroku-densho” (Hamamatsu) December Workshop in Shinshu Studio ※DONDORO’s Website is here. The performance of DONDORO Theatre uses unique style by using life-sized puppets and masks. This was founded by Hoichi Okamoto who is a solo puppetier and it is based on Japanese traditional theater. It is different from any genre. This year, in April, performed under cherry blossoms from south to north in Shinshu, Nagano. Concerning foringn countries, in May, Turky and mexico, in June Portugal, in July Germany and Italy. In Augast Iida puppet festival, in Oct. Osu street performance festival (Nagoya) and in Nov. Inasa Puppet festival. These are fixed schedule for now. EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports their work throughout the year rather than transiently, with the hope that the work of this artist itself will undergo further development.

Performing Arts Theater：Chiten Chiten was well received in their appearance at the Sibiu International Theater Festival as part of the Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007. Chiten is working energetically in Japan, too. They will mainly create its repertoire as “Chekhov Series” in this year. Following “Uncle Vanya” premiered in February 2007, Chiten presents “the Seagull” in August and “The Cherry Orchard” in November. “Experimental Series” is also launched in order to search various texts, in which Chiten will compose a fragment from multiple texts. EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports their work throughout the year rather than transiently, with the hope that the work of this artist itself will undergo further development. Date Time Program and Venue August 4 19:00 Biwako Hall Summer Festival 2007 “The Seagull” (Biwako Hall/Shiga) August 5 15:00 Biwako Hall Summer Festival 2007 “The Seagull” (Biwako Hall/Shiga) November 8 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 9 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 10 15:00 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 11 15:00 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 14 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 15 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 16 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 17 15:00 19:30 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) November 18 15:00 “The Cherry Orchard” (Atelier Gekken/Kyoto) January undecided January Experimental Series “Hanaseba Wakaru(If we can talk we will understand)” (undecided/ Kyoto) Motoi Miura will direct an opera as invited director. Mar 14 undecided Tokyo Chamber Orchestra “In the Penel Colony” (New National Theatre Tokyo, the Pit/Tokyo) Mar 15 undecided Tokyo Chamber Orchestra “In the Penel Colony” (New National Theatre Tokyo, the Pit/Tokyo) Mar 16 undecided Tokyo Chamber Orchestra “In the Penel Colony” (New National Theatre Tokyo, the Pit/Tokyo) ※Chiten’s Website is here. ※The performance at Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007 is here.

Music & Youth The 4th International Music Festival for Youth Joint Concert：Yutaka Shiina Trio + Tim Armacost and Meiji University Mandolin Club Tim Armacost Yutaka Shiina Meiji University Mandolin Club ※Ticket information is here. Date： August 5 Place： Tsuda Hall Start： 19：00 Featuring： Yutaka Shiina (piano), Tim Armacost (sax), Tomohiro　Ota (drums), Yuhei Honkawa (bass), Meiji University Mandolin Club ※Yutaka Shiina's website is here. ※For lectures and concerts by jazz pianist Yutaka Shiina, click here. ※Lectures & Concerts by Jazz Pianist Yutaka Shiina (May 11 to November 21) are here. ※The Meiji University Mandolin Club's website is here. ※Details on the International Youth Music Festival and Art Program for Youth are here. ※4th International Youth Music Festival program is here. American saxophonist Tim Armacost joined the familiar trio led by jazz pianist Yutaka Shiina for a joint performance at Tsuda Hall. Also performing with them was the Meiji University Mandolin Club, with a long performing tradition stretching back 85 years. The audience enjoyed the contrast between the kaleidoscopic qualities of jazz and the rich harmonies of mandolin. This joint performance with professional jazz musicians proved a valuable experience for these student musicians.

Performing Arts Contemporary Dance：Leni-Basso Date Time Prgram and Venue August 13 21:00 Sziget Festoval "Finks" (Budapest/Hungary) 2008 March 14 19:00 "Paradiselogue"-World premiere- (Park Tower Hall/Tokyo) March 15 19:00 "Paradiselogue" (Park Tower Hall/Tokyo) March 16 16:00 "Paradiselogue" (Park Tower Hall/Tokyo) March 29 19:00 "Ghostly Round" (Park Tower Hall/Tokyo) March 30 16:00 "Ghostly Round" (Park Tower Hall/Tokyo) ※Leni-Basso’s Website is here. ※The performance at Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007 is here. ※The performance at Cultural Capital of Europe Patras 2006 is here. Leni-Basso was well received in their appearance at the Sibiu International Theater Festival as part of the Cultural Capital of Europe Sibiu 2007 and Cultural Capital of Europe Patras 2006. In the current year, Leni-Basso is going to premiere a new production and present again "Ghostly Round", a repertory touring internationally now, in Tokyo. The company have performed "Finks" in Sibiu international theater festival 2007 and is going to perform it again in Sziget Festival, Budapest (Hungary). Akiko Kitamura, Leni-Basso's artistic director, and her video artist is going to create a short piece for ACE dance and music in Birmingham. EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports their work throughout the year rather than transiently, with the hope that the work of this artist itself will undergo further development.

Fine Art Media artist, Takumi Endo Title : TypeTrace Form : Interactive Installation Year : 2007 Venue : Theatre National de Chaillot/Paris, France Date Program September 1 14:30-1700 Symposium [Earthcoding - Implement the Eatrh] (Miraikan/Tokyo) September 1-17 Installation [Phonethica - VoiceCosmos+Rondo-D] (Miraikan/Tokyo) Octover 31- November 4 Installation [TypeTrace] (DesignTide/National Studium/Tokyo) December 15- February 17 Installation [TypeTrace] (Bungaku no Shokkaku/Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography) ※Takumi Endo's website is here. ※The programs in Luxembourg are here. ※The programs in Europe and other places are here. In 2007, Paris-based media artist Takumi Endo had been working in Prague (Czech Rep.) for 6 month in the framework of “MapXXL-Pepinieres Europeennes pour Jeunes Artistes” and He will exhibit “TypeTrace”, a interactive installation at “Neumuenster Abbey” in “European forum for emerging creation”, Luxembourg2007. “TypeTrace” also will be exhibited at DesignTide 2007 (Tokyo) and Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography through the late October to February 2008. Hoping for the further development of his activities, the EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee supports the activities of Takumi Endo throughout the year.

Literature World Haiku Association Convention The World Haiku Association (WHA) was formed in Slovenia in 2000 with Ban’ya Natsuishi　as director with the objectives of promoting the recognition of the international standard of superior work in the haiku form by anyone familiar with that form without forfeiting an appreciation of the literary values of their various countries and regions. Haiku composers of different nationalities and historical and economic backgrounds gathered at this WHA convention to discuss haiku without preconceptions on the theme "Haiku beyond Differences". ※Schedule and venue details are here. Date： September 14-16 Venue： Suigetsu Hotel Ohgaisou, Meiji University Participants： Anil Engin (Turkey),Andres Ehin (Estonia), Jean Antonini (France), Mohammed Fakhruddin (India), Vasile Moldovan (Romania), Kornelijus Platelis (Lithuania), Tianxin Cai (China),Jim Kacian (USA), Aleksandar Prokopiev (Macedonia), Casimiro de Brito (Portugal), Ban’ya Natsuishi (Japan)and Other Organizer： World Haiku Association Director： Ban’ya Natsuishi ※Ban’ya Natsuishi's Website is here. ※The program which Ban’ya Natsuishi participated in before is here. Related events： Haiga Contest 2007 Deadline for submissions：July 1 Haiga submissions are welcome from anyone, regardless of nationality, who actively composes haiku or draws haiga. Prize entries will be shown at the 4th WHA convention on September 15 ※Submission details are here. Announcement：August 10 on the WHA website. WHA Junior Haiku Contest Deadline：August 1 Haiku submissions are welcome from young people of age up to 18 on the theme of Love, Peace or Friendship, without regard to season. ※Submission details are here.

Literature Serial Lectures by Kornelijus Platelis Date： September 20,21 18：00-20：00 Venue： September 20： 1143 Room, Meiji University Liberty Tower September 21： 1145 Room, Meiji University Liberty Tower Speaker： Kornelijus Platelis Organizer： Office of International Programs, Meiji University Coordinator： Ban'ya Natsuishi (Masayuki Inui) Related program： The 4th World Haiku Association Conference ※Ban'ya Natsuishi's Website is here. ※The 4th World Haiku Association's Website is here. ※The program which Ban'ya Natsuishi participated in before is here. These 2 lectures with title “Reasons for Poetry” will be given by a representative Lithuanian poet and former minister, Kornelijus Platelis who promoted independence of Lithuania. He will talk of several origins of poetry in Europe as well as relation between poetry and society.

Photography Publication of "European Eyes on Japan / Japan Today vol. 9" photography collection Photographer Stephen Gill Date： October 5 Photographers： Stephen Gill(United Kingdom) Nicu Ilfoveanu(Romania) Cuny Janssen(The Netherlands) Artistic Director： Mikiko Kikuta ※For notes on the photography of "European Eyes on Japan vol. 9" go here. ※For details on the European Eyes on Japan/Japan Today project, go here. This October the EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee publishes a photography collection featuring the work of three European photographers working in Kagoshima prefecture localities from October of last year to March of this year. This collection is the ninth volume in the "European Eyes on Japan/Japan Today" project. This collection is to be published with a new binding that differentiates it from the previous volumes in this series. Each of these photographers produces highly individualistic work, and we are confident that it will prove an opportunity for people in these communities to revisit from a fresh perspective scenes that have become familiar to them.

Fine arts & Design Swedish Style Tokyo UNG - YOUNG SWEDISH DESIGN 06/07 Product：Diagram Design：Karin Andersson & Clara Lindencrona Date： 31 Oct. - 4 Nov. Venue： MARUCUBE（Tokyo） Related program： ●Talk Show:Today’s design of Tokyo and Sweden   Date/Venue: 18:00-19:00, 2 Nov. / MARUCUBE<Marunouchi-Building 1F> ●Opening Party   Date/Venue: 19:30-22:00, 2 Nov. /(marunouchi)HOUSE<Shin-Marunouchi-Building 7F> ※Swedish Style Tokyo Website is here! ※The Catalogue of Swedish Style Tokyo is here! Since 1999, Swedish Style in Tokyo started as a wide cultural project, covering topics such as fashion, food, dance, music, art, design and lifestyle. Since then Swedish Style have mainly developed on the design arena, where the main interest was found. UNG - YOUNG SWEDISH DESIGN 06/07 showcases and highlights young and not yet established designers. YOUNG SWEDISH DESIGN 06/07 is a juried travelling exhibition. This year's exhibition features an energy and desire to find new ways of self-expression. The boundaries between art, design and architecture are opened up. From a total of 280 entries the jury selected 32 to be included in the exhibition. YOUNG SWEDISH DESIGN 06/07 is a joint project of the Form/Design Center in Malmo, Swedish Travelling Exhibitions, Stockholm Furniture Fair and Svensk Form (the Swedish Society of Crafts and Design). The exhibition has been shown in 10 Swedish cities and London, United Kingdom. We hope that the encounter of these design works will provide the students and young designers in Japan with much rich stimulus and suggestion.

Youth & Music Classic guitarist Jan Depreter at the 4th Intenational Music Festival for Youth Jan Depreter（Performance at Yacchiku Fureai Center, Shibushi-city, in Dec.2006） ※Detailed schedule is here! Date： November 3-12 Place： Koyasan (Wakayama pref.), Osaka-city(Osaka-fu), Shibushi-city (Kagoshima pref.) Organized by： NPO Wakayama Arts and Culture Support Society(wacss), Shibushi-city, Shibushi-city Education Board, Hiranogo Shopping Street Music Festival Operating Committee, Kami International Music Festival Operating Committee Co-organized by： Flanders Center ※The flyer of the concert in Koyasan is here! ※The flyer of the concert in Shibushi-city is here! ※The program which Jan Depreter participated in before is here. ※Details on International Music Festival for Youth is here. ※Jan Depreter’s website is here. As a part of the 4th International Music Festival for Youth, classic guitarist Jan Depreter will have performances in Wakayama, Kagoshima, and Osaka. This is 3rd times of participation in this festival for him. The operating committees of each area are planning various programs with him. We hope that the children of each area will have fruitful music and exchange programs and it will be their valuable experience.

Fine Arts The 15th Senza Frontiere　-　TOKYO Date： November 17-26 Venue： Session House Garden Organizer： Senza Frontiere Executive Committee Participants： Antonio Maria PECCHINI、Antje GUMMELS、Azelio CORNI、Chikako HASEGAWA、Francesco MARELLI、Fumio NISHIMURA、Hirofumi BEPPU、Junko NAKAMURA、Kenji HOSHINO、Koh-emon HATTORI、Massimo CONCONI、Megumi ISHIBASHI、Michihisa SAKAI 、Minoru KOMATSU、Salvatore LOVAGLIO、Riccardo RIGHINI、Saeko HOJYO、Seiichi INOUE、Shigeru SUGIMOTO、Shuichi SUZUKI、Teo DE PALMA、Yoshitaka UENO、Yumiko TANNO Related program： Gallery Talk Date： November 17 Venue： Session House Garden Since 1991, Senza Frontiere has been holding exhibitions, mainly of sculptures, in various locations both in Italy and Japan. This year's show in Tokyo is the 15th exhibition. Although the exhibits are mostly of smaller art works including 2D, the exhibition space is created so that there would be vibrant communication between visitors and the art works. The exhibition is also planned to hold a discussion session on "Art and Contemporary Life/Society" with visitors.

Youth & Music Art Program for Youth Workshop with Mezzo-soprano Sonya Keogh May 2006 workshop at Kagoshima Municipal Murasakibaru Primary School ※ For schedule details of the workshops and mini-concerts, go here. Date： November 24-30 2007 Locations： Mishima-cho (Fukushima prefecture); Tokyo; Shibushi-shi, Kagoshima-shi, Kawanabe-cho (Kagoshima prefecture) Date： March 14-19 2008 Locations： Tokyo; Shibushi-shi, Kawanabe-cho（Kagoshima prefecture）; Kushima-shi（Miyazaki prefecture） ※The Cork Children's Chorus website is here. ※Details for the International Music Festival for Youth and Art Program for Youth are here. ※For past program participation by the Cork Children's Chorus, go here. Mezzo-sporano Sonya Keogh, director of Cork Children's Chorus that participated in the 3rd International Music Festival for Youth, is to hold choral workshops at locations around Japan. In addition to her own activities as a vocalist, Ms Keogh has founded children's orchestras and choirs, most notably the Cork Children's Chorus, in Cork, Ireland, and works actively to promote the sustainable musical involvement of children and their development rooted in local communities. First visiting Japan in July 2005, Ms Keogh conducted choral workshops in several cities in Kagoshima prefecture. Her spirited and unique style of instruction was highly acclaimed. In March 2008, her four series of workshops was held. We hope that these encounters with her proved valuable opportunities for children and teachers around Japan to experience the joys of choral music anew.

People-to-People Exchange Japan visit for research and discussions by Linz 2009 Cultural Capital of Europe program director and Ars Electronica directors Mr.Gerfried Stocker (left) and Mr. Michael Haider,attache of cultural affairs of Austrian Embassy(right) Mr. Ulrich Fuchs (left) and Mr. Shuji Kogi, Secretary General of EU-Japan Fest Japan Committee Dates： December 16-22 Visitors： Ulrich Fuchs （Deputy Artistic Director, Linz 2009 Cultural Capital of Europe） Gerfried Stocker （Director, Ars Electronica） Manuela Pfaffenberger （Head of External Exhibition, Ars Electronica）