Nomura Ryü Dentö Ongaku Kyökai Okinawa to Join Hawai‘i Concert
Jodie Chiemi Ching
Special to the Hawai‘i Herald
More than 20 years ago, Bokuzen Kaneshiro presented his precious sanshin to his yonsei granddaughter, Allison Ya-
nagi. It marked the beginning of her lifelong commitment to Okinawan performing arts. Today, Allison Yanagi — now Allison Yanagi-Sensei — is president of Nomura Ryü Dentö Ongaku Kyökai (in short, “Den-On”) Hawaii Shibu, a new school of Ryükyüan classical music in Hawai‘i.
The school will hold its debut performance, “ALOHA Den-On,” on Sunday, Nov. 19, at the Hawaii Okinawa Center. Proceeds from the 2 p.m. music and dance concert will benefit the Hawaii Okinawa Center and the Hawaii Okinawa Plaza, the Hawaii United Okinawa Association’s new for-profit venture currently under construction across the street from the HOC.
The concert also marks Nomura Ryü Dentö Ongaku Kyökai Okinawa’s 35th anniversary, which the organization will celebrate with its new “cousin” branch in Hawai‘i by bringing about 120 members from Okinawa. The delegation will include the kyökai’s president, Ichio Nakamura-Sensei; vice president and key organizer of the event, Toshikazu Tamaki-Sensei and Junichi Tomita, president of Okinawa’s Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper.
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Tickets for “ALOHA Den-On” are $30 and can be reserved by calling the Hawaii Okinawa Center at (808) 676-5400. Anyone interested in studying either music and/or dance with Allison Yanagi-Sensei can contact her directly at 295-3828.
Jodie Ching is a freelance writer and blogger who also works for her family’s accounting firm in Kaimukï. She has a bachelor’s degree in Japanese from the University of Hawai‘i at Mänoa and is a past recipient of the Okinawa Prefectural Government Foundation scholarship.