Zach awry in Japan

« Previous | Next »

13 January 2008 Shakuhachi Performance

 

Today I went and played shakuhachi at an old-age home about half an hour away. I know the accountant for this home from this place I go drinking occasionally, and he was nice enough to introduce me.

I’ve been so busy with work and kids that I haven’t had much time to play recently, so I was a little bit tentative going in. I managed to practice in the cold outside about half an hour yesterday after the kids went to bed, then about an hour today, but that’s all I’ve played for a few weeks.

I played mostly folk songs, lullabies, and tunes that would have been popular when my audience (in their 70s, 80s, and 90s, mostly) was young, as well as some more traditional pilgrim’s hymns.

They were very appreciative, clapping their hands and sometimes humming or singing along to songs they probably hadn’t heard for decades but which they remembered anyway. It takes a lot to get a 90-year old excited, but watching them be involved for the whole 40 minutes I played was very rewarding. It reminds me of why I like to play to begin with.

That being said, I still wasn’t very happy with my performance. It was fine, but that’s about the most you can say for it. I recorded it, and listening objectively after the fact I could pinpoint very few actual mistakes, but the fact that I’m rusty was apparent to my ear, anyway. Who knows whether or not it would have made a difference to my audience if I had played my best.

Here’s a picture I snapped while everyone was still congregating. This was about two-thirds of those who came, which ended up being about 60-70 people, or about half the population of the home. A good turn-out, I guess. Hopefully I can get myself invited back and then go play again when I’m better prepared.