Study Materials & Workshops

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-Libraries and Diverse Forms of Expression in a Multicultural Model City

– Sand Art Performance at a Literary Museum — A World-Class Artist Collective

-Video Editing Workshop: From Project Planning to DVD Export

etc.

Japanese Cultures

Organizer:City of Takasaki

Overview:

Under the guidance of certified experts, this program offers citizens and international residents a two‑hour, free, high‑quality introduction to the essence of traditional Japanese performing and cultural arts.

Although many of these traditions originated among the general populace, they soon became arts practiced mainly by the elite, and for a long time were not easily accessible to ordinary citizens.

This program designed by leading experts in each traditional art, who have adapted practices that typically require long years of disciplined training to the realities of contemporary lifelong learners.

The course condenses the essential principles of these arts into a short yet substantial format, enabling participants to acquire meaningful skills in a limited time and apply them to self-directed study or creative work in other fields.

Instructors:

One session each from the following four fields:

Nihon Buyō (日本舞踊, Classical Japanese Dance)

Ikebana (Flower Arrangement)

Traditional Japanese Instruments (Koto, Shakuhachi)

Sadō (Tea Ceremony)

Schedule:September 2025

Website:“Takasaki Traditional Culture Hall — Experience Japanese Traditional Culture”

Japanese Traditional Dance — Nihon Buyō (日本舞踊)

School:Nishikawa-ryū (西川流,The Nishikawa School)

One of the five major schools of Nihon Buyō, with a history of over 300 years.

Instructor:Mr. Senjirō Nishikawa (78)

Leader of Bunkashinkō Sōsei Club(文化振興扇生CLUB), an organization dedicated to training the next generation and teaching children in Takasaki.Head of the Gunma Prefecture Branch of the Japan Nihon Buyō Association.

Content:A dance workshop focusing primarily on the use of the folding fan (sensu).

Ikebana (Flower Arrangement)

School:Sōgetsu-ryū (草月流,Sogetsu School)

One of the three major schools of Japanese flower arrangement, known for its harmony of classical forms and creative freedom.

Traditional Japanese Instruments (Koto, Shakuhachi)

Koto:A stringed instrument.

Shakuhachi:An end-blown flute.

Organization:NPO Sankyoku Ensemble Research Group

Active mainly in Gunma Prefecture, specializing in ensemble performance of traditional Japanese instruments.

Lifelong Education

The stages and cultural–educational facilities inspected in Tokyo, the ancient capitals, and Japan’s leading industrial cities are omitted here.

In addition to the activities listed above, I also learned—through the “Centradas en DX y Recursos Comunitarios,Colaboración” project that I planned and managed during my teaching career—from leading figures in various fields.

Within the rapidly changing frameworks of contemporary society,

I gained perspectives and methods for continuing to learn independently throughout life by making use of accessible community resources,

while simultaneously carrying out the roles of public relations, project planning, and facilitation.

Here the School–Industry Collaboration initiative.

Tango Therapy at Senior Care Facilities in Tokyo

Organizers: Tango Therapy Association Japan (NPO), Hands On Tokyo (Certified NPO)

Date: September 2025

World-Renowned Jazz Pianist — Free Multigenerational Lecture-Concert

Pianist: Chihiro Yamanaka

Organizer: Gunma Prefecture

Content:

Interpretation methods in jazz, explanations of editing and performance techniques, collaborative rhythm exercises using hand and foot claps, and live performance demonstrations.

Date: March 2024 (90 minutes)

Venue: Haruna Cultural Hall

(Large hall with 505 seats; approximately 70% filled. Located in a mountainous area away from the city center.)

Amateur Theatre Group for Adults 50+ — Co-creation with Professional Artists

Content:

A dramatic work set in a jazz bar, depicting a story of renewal and rebirth.

Approximately 24 amateur performers participated.

The production also featured Sakumi Hagiwara, one of Japan’s leading visual and multidisciplinary artists.

Director: Yasumitsu Ubukata

A nationally recognized director based in a regional area, known for delivering new artistic value across Japan.

He has long served as director for the reading theatre productions organized by Sakumi Hagiwara, which reinterpret the poetry of Sakutaro Hagiwara, known as the “father of modern Japanese poetry,” presenting its contemporary significance in collaboration with prominent actors and Sakumi Hagiwara.

With a career of over 40 years, he has planned and managed numerous theatre productions sponsored by the prefecture, contributing greatly to regional cultural development by involving performers ranging from elementary school students to seniors.

Date: November 2024 Theatre Group: Theatre Creation Unit 百花繚乱(Hyakka Ryōran,“A Flourishing of Many Flowers”)

Libraries and Diverse Forms of Expression in a Multicultural Model City

Not only in Tokyo’s major libraries, literary museums, and bookstores,

but also in libraries located in regional cities with a long history of multicultural coexistence and nationally recognized innovative initiatives,

I have studied how to create spaces where people can encounter the world of language while integrating nonverbal forms of expression.

I visited libraries in the following areas of Gunma Prefecture: Ōta, Isesaki, Kiryū, and the Prefectural Library(Maebashi), among others.

Sand Art Performance at a Literary Museum — A World-Class Artist Collective

Content:

A visual performance in which sand placed on a glass surface is illuminated from below, and images are created in real time to music using hands, fingers, and arms.

The performance included a work themed on the air raid that struck the area just before the end of World War II, as well as pieces representing “Japan” that have been presented internationally.

Audience members were also given the opportunity to try the sand art techniques themselves.

Performers: SILT, a sand‑art collective

Activities in Japan and abroad include:

G7 and World Expo events, corporate ceremonies (including Ferrari), major temple festivals, collaborations with musicians in concerts and music videos, materials for junior high school English textbooks, picture books, and more.

Venue: Maebashi Literary Museum

A leading Japanese literary museum known for projects that integrate visual arts, theatre, music, and language, reexamining the role of words in contemporary society.

Located in the birthplace of Sakutaro Hagiwara, the “father of modern Japanese poetry,” the museum has long served as a base for innovative cultural activities.

Date: August 2025

Video Editing Workshop: From Project Planning to DVD Export

Title: “Easy and Simple Video Editing Workshop 2025”

Date: August 2025

Venue: Takasaki City Central Community Center

Instructors:

Mr. Hideyo Matsuoka, Representative Member of the Takasaki Audiovisual Education Technicians’ Association

Members of the Takasaki Video Club

Software: Windows (Live) Movie Maker

Organizers:

Takasaki Audiovisual Education Technicians’ Association Takasaki City Board of Education, Social Education Division