日本語

Updated: Our group photo exhibition in Kyoto went very well. It was great meeting people and explaining about our pictures and work. Thank you to all who came to see us.

Photos of the exhibition here:
http://photoguide.jp/pix/thumbnails.php?album=833

Exhibition details:
I organized a group photo exhibition in Kyoto held on Nov. 16-20, 2011 at the Kyoto International Community House in Kyoto, near Keage Station (5 min. by Tozai Line subway from Yamashina Station). The exhibition room was open from noon to 7 pm (till 5:30 pm on the 20th). We had a gathering on Nov. 19 (Sat.) at 5 pm – 7 pm and on Nov. 20 (Sun.) at 4 pm – 5:30 pm when the public was invited to meet the artists. Free admission.

The theme was “Home Sweet Hometown.” Many of us foreigners in Japan have lived here for so long that Japan has become our second hometown. We love our hometowns in Japan so much that we often photograph it. We shall now share some images of our beloved hometown. I showed photos based on the Lake Biwa Rowing Song (Biwako Shuko no Uta). I have shown these pictures at various places in Shiga, but this was the first time for me to show them in Kyoto.

Also, Bruce Osborn showed Maibara Oyako (Parent-Child) Portraits. They come from the exhibition he is currently having at Maibara Station until March 2012.

Most of the other artists are based in Kyoto showed mainly Kyoto.

Featured Artists
Micah Gampel: “My Furukiyoki” self-portraits with friends in Kyoto. Very amusing collection of prints.
Peter Macintosh: Huge mural of Kyoto geisha photos taken over the past 10 years.
Motoyasu Matsutani: Pretty pictures of Kyoto.
Peter Miller: Copperplate photogravures of furusato scenes in Japan such as Shirakawa-go and Kamakura.
Philbert Ono: Introduction of Shiga’s hometown song, Lake Biwa Rowing Song. (Biwako Shuko no Uta) created by Kyoto University Rowing Club members in 1917.
Bruce Osborn: Maibara (Shiga Prefecture) Oyako (Parent-child) portraits taken in the four seasons.
John Wells: Mixed media (oil painting, sumie painting, etc.) of Kyoto scenes/objects.

The Japan Times inserted a nice announcement for our show in the Nov. 13, 2011 issue:

The Japan Times, Nov. 13, 2011, page 2 (National News)

Afterward, I went to see the Sports Recreation event at Kibogaoka Park in Yasu. They had the opening ceremony. Many people were there from all 47 prefectures and South Korea too. 

It’s a great event and Kibogaoka Park is a perfect place. Many food booths, health/sports booths, stage entertainment, and Caffee. There are new sports which you can try out too. Lots of things for the kids. I highly recommend visiting Kibogaoka Park during Oct. 19-21.

Photos: http://photoguide.jp/pix/displayimage.php?album=718

During this entertainment time, we will appear and sing “Lake Biwa Rowing Song”(Biwako Shuko no Uta in English) on this outdoor Yume stage at around 10:20 am. Jamie and Megan Thompson will sing the song. If you have time, please come down to see us. 

On the same day, the Spo-rec opening ceremony will start on the center stage at 12:30 pm. From JR Yasu Station, there will be free shuttle buses going to the park every 10-15 min. Note that if the weather is bad, the show will be canceled. Light rain will be no problem though. 

http://www.pref.shiga.jp/edu/sporec/koso.html 

スポレクの開会式の日、10月18日（土）に希望が丘文化公園内に「夢」ステージで色々な団体が9:30-11:20 amに出演します。 私たちは、10:20ごろに出演して「琵琶湖周航の歌」英語版を披露いたします。歌うのはジェイミーとメゲン・トンプソンの双子姉妹。 

「夢」ステージは、希望が丘文化公園の西口の近くにあります（池の前）。そして中央ステージで開会式が12:30ごろ始まります。野洲駅から無料バスあります。 

会場：　滋賀県立希望が丘文化公園内　スポレク滋賀２００８会場内　県民ステージ） 
主催：　エフエム滋賀 
Tel: ０７７−５２７−０８１４

I’m holding a photo exhibition now at Imazu Public Library near Omi-Imazu Station (West exit). It will be until July 30. 

I’m showing photos of the Imazu Jr. High School Rowing Club’s rowing trip on Biwako which I took last Aug. (also see the above note). I also have photos of Biwako Shuko no Uta. 

Imazu Library site: 
http://lib.city.takashima.shiga.jp/iliswing/we/tosho/shoukai/imadu/imadu.html 

Also, on Aug. 17 at Imazu, the 3rd Imazu Regatta will be held. This is a rowing race which anyone can participate, even non-experienced rowers. You can even go there alone, and they will put you together with other people to row on the same boat. The race course is only 500 meters. More details at their site: 
http://www.eonet.ne.jp/~t-imazurowing/

It is on the 1st floor of the museum. Hours: 9 am – 5 pm. Free admission. 

I also have my Lake Biwa Rowing Song pictures on display as well. I will be there on Sunday the 23rd (last day) from 3 pm to 5 pm. If you have time, please visit us. 

The museum is near Shimanoseki and Ishiba Stations on the Keihan Line. 

As you may know, the museum will close down at the end of this month. If you’ve never been to this museum, this is your last chance. It has a lot of Buddhist art, including National Treasures. The top floor also has nice views of the lake. This museum has been a landmark in Otsu for many years (since 1961). I think they will keep the building, but it will be closed to the public. 

Web site: http://www2.ocn.ne.jp/~biwa-bun/

なんと嘉田知事も飛び入りして英語版「琵琶湖周航の歌」を歌う！光栄でした。

On Oct. 20, 2007 (Sat.), an event called Umizukuri Boat Festa 湖づくりボートフェスタ was held. It was a dragon boat and canoe race between Otsu (near Ishiyama) and Ogoto.

After the race ended, a mini concert featuring cute kids playing the よし笛 reed flute (made from reeds in Biwako) was held in Ogoto (Opal) next to the lake shore. Jamie Thompson sang Biwako Shuko no Uta in English as they played the song with the flute. (Her twin sister could not attend and neither could I).

And then a surprise. Shiga Governor Kada Yukiko went on stage and began singing in English with Jamie!! (See photos above.)

Wow, what a great honor. She’s a real people’s governor.

Event flyer:

http://setarc.jp/2007/08/umizukuri/info.pdf

It will be all day long from 9 am to 4 pm. Many rowing teams will race down the river for 250 meters.

The 本部 (headquarters) will be on the east side of the river near Seta-Karahashi Bridge. Map: 
http://setarc.jp/2007resident/map.png 

They will also sell my Lake Biwa Rowing Song CD for 800 yen. I will also be there most of the time to help sell the CD. So if you have time on Sunday, please drop by and say hello. 

My CD will also be one of the prizes awarded to all the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners of the regatta in all race categories. (Total of 75 winners.) 

Web site: 
http://setarc.jp/2007resident/point/

I don’t know if there’s anybody from Maibara in this community, but I currently have my Lake Biwa Rowing Song photo exhibition again, this time in Maibara until Aug. 3. 

The place is Lucci Plaza near JR Omi-Nagaoka Station on the Tokaido Line. This place also has a public library where people can borrow the CD. There’s also a nice restaurant with a view of Mt. Ibuki. 
http://plaza.city.maibara.shiga.jp/access.htm 

It is open from 10 am to 10 pm, closed on Mon. Free admission of course. 

This is my third photo exhibition this year in Shiga, after Yokaichi and Imazu. Many of the photos are the same, but there are also new pictures as well. Captions in both Japanese and English.

待望の琵琶湖周航の歌 英語版CDが2007年6月16日に発売されました。定価800円。お陰さまで売れ行きが好調。

• 歌はジェイミーとメゲン・トンプソン姉妹（美しいハーモニー!!）
• 4曲収録：英語版（ピアノ伴奏、アカペラ）、日本語、ピアノ（カラオケ）
• 12ページのCDブックレットに英語版歌詞、日本語歌詞、歌の紹介（英語と日本語）、歌碑紹介、滋賀の英文概要
• 英語版の歌い方の手本や滋賀の物産として最高！海外の友人などにいいお土産。英語の勉強にも！
• CDジャケットのデザインは「のぼる狭霧や　さざなみの」というモチーフ
• 英語版作詞・CD制作：オノ・フィルバート

CDは、滋賀県高島市今津町中沼1-5-7の琵琶湖周航の歌資料館で販売中。同資料館で通信販売もやっています。電話でも注文できます：

英語版CD注文: Tel/Fax: (0740) 22-2108

(休館日: 月曜、祝日の翌日。支払い方法は現金書留か為替。)

• 定価800円（税込み、送料別）
• 銀行振込を希望する方は、メールください: bid@photojpn.org
• 大量(30部以上)の注文は1割以上の割引もあります。学校での大量注文も割引あります。問い合わせはbid@photojpn.orgへ。（琵琶湖周航の歌資料館では割引できません。）

詳細は：

http://photoguide.jp/txt/Biwako_Shuko_no_Uta

私が作成した「琵琶湖周航の歌」の英語版がまた公の場で歌われます。 歌の発祥地である滋賀県高島市今津町は、毎年の6月にこの歌の合唱コンクールを開催していて、今年はアメリカ人のJamie and Megan Thompson姉妹がゲストとして午後12:15に出場して英語版を歌う予定です。関西、近畿、北陸地方などの様々なコーラスが参加します。 

そして、会場内で英語版CDも発売されます。 

入場料は500円。コンクールは午前10時から始まるが、姉妹は何時ごろに出るかまだ分かりません。 分かりましたらまたお知らせします。 

高島市民会館　滋賀県高島市今津町中沼１丁目３番地１ 
（JR湖西線近江今津駅から徒歩5分。駅構内に観光案内あり）TEL: 0740-22-1764 

同時に今津町にある琵琶湖周航の歌資料館に英語版の写真展も開催されます。5月22日〜7月1日 
（このお知らせを自由にメール、ブログなど転送・転載してもOK.) 

The 11th Biwako Shuko no Uta Choir Contest will be held on June 17, 2007 at Takashima, Shiga. Various choirs from the Kansai, Kinki, and Hokuriku regions will participate to sing two songs: Biwako Shuko no Uta and one other song. 

Jamie and Megan Thompson have also been invited to sing my English version of the song. The contest starts at 10 am and lasts all day. The Thompsons will sing at 12:15 pm. Please come if you can. Imazu is a lovely place to visit as well. 

Place: Takashima Shimin Kaikan, near Omi-Imazu Station on the Kosei Line. Get out the East Exit. The station also has a tourist info booth.

Today’s (June 5, 2007) Chunichi Shimbun (Biwako-ban page) ran an article about my photo exhibition in Imazu.

http://photoguide.jp/pix/displayimage.php?album=587&pid=17362

http://www.chunichi.co.jp/article/shiga/20070605/CK2007060502021591.html

I have a Lake Biwa Rowing Song photo exhibition at Yokaichi Public Library (2nd floor gallery) until May 20. 

I will be at the gallery on Sat. the 12th from lunch time until maybe 2 pm or so. If you have time to visit, please come! 

There will be a CD player playing my CD. The gallery is also like a coffee shop where you can sit down and drink coffee and talk.

Nakamura Naoko singing "Lake Biwa Rowing Song."

The city of Okaya in Nagano-ken held a major int’l event on March 4:
http://www.oiea.jp/jpn/aboutus/other/15thanniversary.htm

I participated by having a small exhibition about Biwako Shuko no Uta. The twin sisters who sang the song in Shiga could not attend, so I was delighted that the Okaya people found someone to sing the song in English in Okaya.

So the English version was sung in public for the first time outside Shiga, and for the first time in public by a Japanese person.

The singer was a college student, and she was chosen by her choir director to sing the song. Even though her pronunciation was not perfect, she sang it quite well. She didn’t know much about the song’s background, so I explained about it before she sang. She had only 2 weeks to practice, and sang three verses (out of six).

The event itself was very successful. Pictures here:
http://photoguide.jp/pix/thumbnails.php?album=515

On Feb. 25, 2007, a Japanese speech contest for foreigners in Shiga was held at the Viva City Hall in Minami-Hikone. Thirteeen non-Japanese from eight countries gave 6-min. speeches in Japanese to a full-house audience.

One of the contestants was Jamie Thompson who is an ALT on the JET Program in Konan, Shiga. She happens to be one of the singers who sang my English version of Biwako Shuko no Uta (Lake Biwa Rowing Song). The title of her speech was “Biwako Shuko no Uta no Boken” 琵琶湖周航の歌の冒険 which can be translated as “Biwako Shuko no Uta Adventures.”

She started off by singing the first line of the song in Japanese (Ware wa umi no ko, sasuraino). Then talked about how she joined the local choir in Shiga and learned about the song and later meeting me online and agreeing to sing my English version of the song. She talked about when we announced the song to the public in June 2006 in Imazu, and how she and her sister Megan got on the NHK Nodo Jiman TV show (broadcast nationally) last Nov. (Details here. )

It was certainly one adventure after another. And now she can add one more adventure to the list because she WON this speech contest. Wow, I was dumbfounded.

Congratulations to Jamie. She received many prizes from sponsors like a case of Kirin beer, 5 boxes of curry mix, cruise tickets to Chikubushima, some money, a certificate, a plaque, and other stuff.

The speech contest was covered by the Feb. 26 morning edition of the Mainichi Shimbun and Kyoto Shimbun newspapers.

http://photoguide.jp/pix/displayimage.php?album=587&pid=17367
http://photoguide.jp/pix/displayimage.php?album=587&pid=17368
http://photoguide.jp/pix/displayimage.php?album=587&pid=17366

Her speech will be about the song. I will be attending this event, and there will also be a 交流会 afterward. So if you have time that afternoon, please come and we can have an オフ会 and I’ll introduce you to Jamie. Let me know if you can come so we can meet somewhere. 

The speech contest is organized by the びわこ日本語ネットワーク。 
http://www.biwa.ne.jp/~bnn/