This is not going to be a formal or particularly thorough discussion of Western art forms here in Japan. In fact, it’ll be largely anecdotal but nevertheless I believe an accurate portrayal of the odd juxtaposition of the unambiguously Western art forms and styles on a culture with its own unique rich heritage, which not in the least resembles or had been influenced by Euro-America until Japan finally was “opened” to the West 165 years ago. Significant Westernization occurred in two peak periods: From 1868-1900 during the Meiji restoration, and from 1945 until the present following the Allied victory over Japan ending World War II. This resulted in modern Japan, where Kibuki Theater and geishas co-exist with American-style pro wrestling and Japanese hip-hop.
My wife, Masumi, perfectly embodies the contradiction, though unlike most contradictions there are no discernible incompatibilities or anomalies. ‘Contradiction’ is really the wrong term. Because all that is contradicted are my expectations. I’ll get to Masumi in Part 2, as she deserves an entire article of her own.
Long before I ever knew I’d be coming to and then settling in Japan, I received some early inklings about Japan’s love affair with the West, meaning not just its superficial courtship of dress and hair styling, but its thorough embrace of both formal and pop arts.
I was taking jazz dance classes at Debbie Reynolds Studios — yes, that Debbie Reynolds — in Los Angeles, and one summer a plane load of young Japanese jazz dancers (late teens, early twenties) packed the classes. To put it mildly, I was amazed, stunned, awed! Not only were they physically perfect as dancers — slender; strong, sinewy muscles; elegant posture; each individually radiating grace and vigor, coupled with a charming shyness — they could really dance!
I also wistfully recall one of my favorite dance teachers mentioning that he loved taking on guest teaching positions in Japan, because the students were so fiercely dedicated and disciplined. When he’d return from such an assignment, he’d jokingly count off our dance routines in Japanese: ichi, ni, san, yon! While we thought that was pretty darn cute, I never gave it all that much thought. Japan just wasn’t on my radar screen back then.
At the same time, it was no secret that Western performers, in particular pop and rock acts — everyone from the Beatles, Cindi Lauper, Santana, Carpenters, Michael Jackson, ABBA, Rolling Stones, and Avril Lavigne, to Ozzy Osborne and Bob Dylan — loved playing Japan. All reported that Japanese audiences were enthusiastic and they felt truly appreciated.
Get this: Even jazz artists like Chick Corea, Art Blakey, Oscar Peterson, Sonny Clark, Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, Bill Evans, and John Coltrane had and often still have impressive fan bases in Japan.
Much more popular and widespread than jazz is classical music. During my first full year in Japan, I was invited to attend a piano recital. I don’t know what that sounds like to you but I assumed it would be a bunch of cute kids fumbling their way through simple songs, their adoring parents taking videos for the grandparents. Right. Try concert-level Chopin, Mozart, Brahms, Beethoven. And these were just high school students! Turns out that studying piano from a very young age is pervasive here — piano lessons with a focus on eventually mastering the legends, for example, those just mentioned. Japan has, of course, already produced a number of widely-acclaimed, world-class musicians and composers, and believe it or not, Tokyo alone hosts “no fewer than eight full-size, full-time, fully professional orchestras, collectively providing more than 1,200 concerts a year.”
Getting back to dance . . .
I’ve been a longstanding fan. I saw my first ballet in high school. Not only did I take some jazz classes for ten years starting in 1985, I even dabbled in both modern and ballet over the years. The great ballet dancers like Baryshnikov, Nureyev, Fonteyn, Markova, have always fascinated me.
That being the case, about a year ago I became acquainted with a fellow who is not well known in the West, but in my opinion may be one of the best ballet dancers ever! His name is Kumakawa Tetsuya. Born in Hokkaido, Japan, he studied in England and became a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, before returning to Japan to form his own ballet company. Feast your eyes on a man who seems able to rewrite the laws of gravity . . .
. . . and make challenging moves breathtakingly beautiful and inhumanly effortless . . .
There are two Japanese ballerinas, who despite being in my opinion, among the best in the world, are not exactly household names in the West.
Kuranaga Misa . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gnEXTcBojk
. . . and Nakamura Shoko . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxiHzXM7yxQ
Pretty amazing, eh?
If there is an unspoken, but nonetheless dutifully-regarded and rigorously-observed rule in play governing just about every act, action, activity, ambition, and endeavor here, it’s this: Whatever the Japanese do, they do well. They are maddening perfectionists. Many would say this is why Japan was able to rebuild so quickly and totally after World War II, eventually becoming the world’s third largest economy. Others would attribute Japan’s high suicide rate to the extreme pressures of high performance and achievement.
Life In Japan: Western Arts – Pt 1
Japanese Lady Gaga fans are slightly insane!
This is not going to be a formal or particularly thorough discussion of Western art forms here in Japan. In fact, it’ll be largely anecdotal but nevertheless I believe an accurate portrayal of the odd juxtaposition of the unambiguously Western art forms and styles on a culture with its own unique rich heritage, which not in the least resembles or had been influenced by Euro-America until Japan finally was “opened” to the West 165 years ago. Significant Westernization occurred in two peak periods: From 1868-1900 during the Meiji restoration, and from 1945 until the present following the Allied victory over Japan ending World War II. This resulted in modern Japan, where Kibuki Theater and geishas co-exist with American-style pro wrestling and Japanese hip-hop.
My wife, Masumi, perfectly embodies the contradiction, though unlike most contradictions there are no discernible incompatibilities or anomalies. ‘Contradiction’ is really the wrong term. Because all that is contradicted are my expectations. I’ll get to Masumi in Part 2, as she deserves an entire article of her own.
I was taking jazz dance classes at Debbie Reynolds Studios — yes, that Debbie Reynolds — in Los Angeles, and one summer a plane load of young Japanese jazz dancers (late teens, early twenties) packed the classes. To put it mildly, I was amazed, stunned, awed! Not only were they physically perfect as dancers — slender; strong, sinewy
muscles; elegant posture; each individually radiating grace and vigor, coupled with a charming shyness — they could really dance!
I also wistfully recall one of my favorite dance teachers mentioning that he loved taking on guest teaching positions in Japan, because the students were so fiercely dedicated and disciplined. When he’d return from such an assignment, he’d jokingly count off our dance routines in Japanese: ichi, ni, san, yon! While we thought that was pretty darn cute, I never gave it all that much thought. Japan just wasn’t on my radar screen back then.
At the same time, it was no secret that Western performers, in particular pop and rock acts — everyone from the Beatles, Cindi Lauper, Santana, Carpenters, Michael Jackson, ABBA, Rolling Stones, and Avril Lavigne, to Ozzy Osborne and Bob Dylan — loved playing Japan. All reported that Japanese audiences were enthusiastic and they felt truly appreciated.
Much more popular and widespread than jazz is classical music. During my first full year in Japan, I was invited to attend a piano recital. I don’t know what that sounds like to you but I assumed it would be a bunch of cute kids fumbling their way through simple songs, their adoring parents taking videos for the grandparents. Right. Try concert-level Chopin, Mozart, Brahms, Beethoven. And these were just high school students! Turns out that studying piano from a very young age is pervasive here — piano lessons with a focus on eventually mastering the legends, for example, those just mentioned.
Japan has, of course, already produced a number of widely-acclaimed, world-class musicians and composers, and believe it or not, Tokyo alone hosts “no fewer than eight full-size, full-time, fully professional orchestras, collectively providing more than 1,200 concerts a year.”
Getting back to dance . . .
I’ve been a longstanding fan. I saw my first ballet in high school. Not only did I take some jazz classes for ten years starting in 1985, I even dabbled in both modern and ballet over the years. The great ballet dancers like Baryshnikov, Nureyev, Fonteyn, Markova, have always fascinated me.
That being the case, about a year ago I became acquainted with a fellow who is not well known in the West, but in my opinion may be one of the best ballet dancers ever! His name is Kumakawa Tetsuya. Born in Hokkaido, Japan, he studied in England and became a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, before returning to Japan to form his own ballet company. Feast your eyes on a man who seems able to rewrite the laws of gravity . . .
. . . and make challenging moves breathtakingly beautiful and inhumanly effortless . . .
There are two Japanese ballerinas, who despite being in my opinion, among the best in the world, are not exactly household names in the West.
Kuranaga Misa . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gnEXTcBojk
. . . and Nakamura Shoko . . .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxiHzXM7yxQ
Pretty amazing, eh?
If there is an unspoken, but nonetheless dutifully-regarded and rigorously-observed rule in play governing just about every act, action, activity, ambition, and endeavor here, it’s this: Whatever the Japanese do, they do well. They are maddening perfectionists. Many would say this is why Japan was able to rebuild so quickly and totally after World War II, eventually becoming the world’s third largest economy. Others would attribute Japan’s high suicide rate to the extreme pressures of high performance and achievement.
Both would be right.