Obaku zen Buddhism shomyo collaboration Tour

25-01-2012
Duo Ueda Offermans is preparing a concert tour in Japan in May 2012 in collaboration with shomyo of Obaku zen Buddhism monks, touring ten Obaku Temples.

Festival de Poésie de Valleraugue, France

25-01-2012
On 20th May 2012, Junko Ueda performs her solo concert at the Temple de Villeraugue in the 10th Festival de Poésie de Valleraugue, a village in the south France.

Semana Cultural del Japón, Salamanca, Spain

25-01-2012
Duo Ueda Offermans performs in the yearly festival “Semana Cultural del Japón’ in Salamanca, Spain on the 20th March 2012. The program includes:
- Tsuru-no-Sugomori, flute solo
- Heike-Monogatari, biwa & flute arrangement
- Amenimo-makezu, poem by Kenji Miyazawa, biwa & voice
- Inner Voices, voice & Thumpy flute
- Murasaki-no-Ue, Genji Monogatari, biwa/voice & flute

On the 21st March, Ueda gives “Gion-Shoja singing workshop” (traditional biwa singing) at the University of Salamanca.

Dag in de Branding - Festival New Music Den Haag

25-01-2012
Junko Ueda performs her solo concert in the Festival New Music “Dag in de Branding” at Theater de Regentes, Den Haag, Holland on 10th March 2012. The concert starts at 19:00. The theme of the festival is “100 year John Cage”. The program is:
- Shomyo chanting, voice solo
- Yoshitsune, traditional biwa & song
- Voyage by Toru Takemitsu (1973), biwa & tape

YouTube video, Japan Xmas Tour 2011

24-12-2011
YouTube video of Heike Monogatari by Duo Ueda Offermans recorded at Copis Miyoshi Concert Hall, Saitama, Japan on 24th December 2011. You can see the video in the Video Gallery page.
videoimages-heike-L-miyoshi

Christmas Concert 2011 in Saitama, Japan

04-11-2011
Duo Ueda/Offermans gives three Christmas Concert in Saitama prefecture. The flute ensemble Piachere (led by Kotato Flute company) joins with the concert. The duo performs Japanese traditional biwa music Dan-no-Ura & Gion-Shoja, which is arranged for biwa, voice and flute by the duo.
• December 22, 2011 at Health & Welfare Centre, Kuki-shi, Saitama, Japan
• December 23, 2011 at Kuki Culture Centre, Kuki-shi, Saitama, Japan
• December 24, 2011 at Miyoshi Culture Centre, Miyoshi-machi, Saitama, Japan

Duo Ueda/Offermans concert at Schunk* in Heerlen, Holland

26-10-2011
On October 26 2011, the Duo Ueda/Offermans performed at Schunk* in Heerlen, Holland in the series of Newsical Experience, with coorganized by November Music in Den Bosch, Holland. The program included: Tsuru-no-Sugomori (Wil Offermans flute solo), Voyage (Junko Ueda for biwa & tape by Tôru Takemitsu) and How to Survive in Paradise II (Junko Ueda voice & Wil Offermans flutes, live-electronics). Of the last piece you can see a video below (original length about 29 minutes).


"How to Survive in Paradise II (composed in 1990 in Singapore by Wil Offermans) images a science-fictional paradise, where a pleasant, lush and peaceful life in harmony with nature is gradually eroded by mankind, its actions, restlessness and curiosity.”

Troubadours Caravan Project 2011

24-09-2011
As an annual participation, Junko Ueda again joins a special project combining occidental and oriental troubadour art-styles in both music and poetry: Troubadours Caravane. The ensemble is created around the Troubadours Art Ensemble directed by Gérard Zuchetto. The project is organised by Trob'Art Productions.
- September 24, 2011 at the Culture Centre in Bagnols-sur-Ceze, France
- January 20, 2011 at Le Théâtre, Narbonne, France
The video below of “Ginyû” has been recorded at the concert at Le Théâtre, Narbonne and is composed by Wil Offermans for the ensemble.

Duo Ueda/Offermans concert in Caunes Minervois, France

03-09-2011
On the 3rd September 2011, Duo Ueda/Offermans gives concert at Abbaye Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul in a beautiful medieval village of South France, Aude. The program includes:
- Ilios, Wil Offermans flute solo
- Dan-no-Ura, Junko Ueda biwa story telling
- Where Two Rivers Meet, duo piece for flute, contrabass-flute, voice & biwa

You can see a video below the performance of Where Two Rivers Meet.

Inner Voices (Encore)



Murasaki-no-Ue (from Genji Monogatari) (Encore)


Obaku-shu Zen Buddhism shomyo joint concert, Japan

23-05-2011
Overview Japan 2011 Spring tour
May 14, 2011:
Gion-Shoja singing workshop at Kôfuku-ji Temple, Nagasaki
May 15, 2011:
Obaku-shu concert Duo Ueda/Offermans with various monks of Obaku-shu sect, celebrating 350 years of Obaku-shu in Japan at Kyushu National Museum, Fukuoka. New composition: “Ingen’s Dream” for biwa, voice, flute, Obaku-shu shomyo & computer sound design.
May 19, 2011:
Obaku-shu concert by Ueda/Offermans with various monks of Obaku-shu sect, celebrating 350 years of Obaku-shu in Japan at Kofuku-ji temple in Nagasaki.

Music without Borders project, England

04-04-2011
Music without Borders
In May 2011 Junko Ueda performs two world premiers of compositions by the Canadian composer Daryl Jamieson and the Japanese composer Hideaki Haginomori in London and Cambridge, England, at the occasion of young composers project "Music without Borders". The program includes:
- Inter-Continent 2, for biwa & viol by Hideaki Haginomori
- Dawn Prayers, for biwa, koto & viol by Daryl Jamieson
- Dan-no-Ura, traditional biwa piece
- Voyage, for biwa & tape by Tôru Takemitsu

Concert schedule:
May 6 at 19:00 at St. Anne's Lutheran Church, London
May 7 at 19:00 at Robinson College Chapel, Cambridge
More information about program, venue and entrance, please visit the site of Music without Borders.

Collaboration at Planetarium, Kuki, Saitama, Japan

16-10-2010
On the 16 October 2010 at the Kuki-Planetarium, Saitama, Japan, the duo Ueda/Offermans collaborate with the projection program of the Kuki-Planetarium. Collaborating with programmer/narrator mr. Shinichiro Kikkawa of the Kuki-Planetarium, the Duo performs their new piece "Wings - a Contemplation towards Universe" together with the projection, as well as the solo pieces Tsuru-no-Sugomori, Akatombo, Kojo-no-Tsuki (all flute solo), Yoshitsune (biwa solo). Click here for information.

Gion-Shôja singing workshop at Kôfuku-ji Temple, Nagasaki

11-10-2010
Gion-shôja singing workshop at Kôfuku-ji temple, Nagasaki, Japan
At the Kôfuku-ji Temple, Nagasaki, Japan, Ueda gives her Gion-Shôja singing workshop on 11 October at 18:30. The maximum participants are ten persons. Gion-Shôja is well known ancient poem from Heike-Monogatari (The Story of Heike) and memorized in a Japanese language class in Japanese schools. In this workshop participants recite and sing this poem with the accompaniment of biwa.

BSXCaravan 2010 in Japan

10-10-2010
At Arcas Sasebo Music Hall, 10 October 2010, Ueda gives her "Gion-Shôja singing workshop" and duo performance Ueda/Offermans in the occasion of BSXCaravan.

Duo Ueda/Offermans at Nagasaki Music Festival

09-10-2010
Concertposter of the duo concert by Ueda/Offermans in Ikitsuki island, Hirado, Nagasaki, Japan
Duo Ueda/Offermans is invited to perform in the island of full of nature, Ikitsuki-island, Nagasaki, Japan in the occasion of annual Nagasaki Music Festival on 9 October 2010. The title of the concert is "We see the Universe in the sky of Ikitsuki". The location is Payala Music House. Beside each solo pieces - Tsuru-no-Sugomori, Akatombo, Kojo-no-Tsuki (flute solo), Yoshitsune (biwa solo), Ueda/Offermans performs their new duo composition "Wings - a Contemplation towards Universe" involving flutes, biwa, voice and live electronics.