Nejibana at Tsukuba U

You Screwy Flower!

The summer greenery is overpowering. Big-blossomed, brightly colored flowers abound. Summer fashions are often eye-catching (or almost get your eyes pop out of your head!) . That is why it takes a little extra effort to notice the little, sometimes wondrous, details which are often right at our very feet.
In June and July, check the patches of grass along sidewalks or bordering parking lots, office buildings, etc., and you might very well find the very small, yet enchanting NEJIBANA (screw-flower, as translated directly) which derives its name from its unique shape.

The spiral can be clock-wise or counter-clockwise- Isn't the world amazing! I took this picture just beside the police station at the TX Tsukuba Center Station.

Remember , while you're taking in the big picture, stop and check for the usually unnoticed details.

Avi Landau

The Tengooz

Michael warming up for recording

Sent from my iPhone

Avi Landau and Michael Frei of The TenGooz

Thomas in Studio on the acoustic

Rice Fields In Onozaki Tsukuba June 4

TenGooz Setting Up For A Big Night At Nalus Toybox

Revolving Door- a Song By the TenGooz

There are certainly few songs with such an impressive bass and drum intro.
This is another of our songs which generated out of Hase G`s bass creations. When I first heard him fooling around with what ended up being the opening riff to Revolving Door, I knew we had to turn this into a full song.
This way back, before michael joined us, at a practice session at the Song Cycle Studio in Tsukuba. Luckilly on that day I had my md player running so it was not lost for eternity as have been so many other magical Hase G Bassinalia.

The song took a long while to take its present shape, though the A pattern and B pattern were set pretty much at the first improv session. When michael Frei eventually joined us just after our second Australian tour, he suggested the key change into F, and with that
the shape of the song was finalized. The only trouble was my slowness in coming up with lyrics. When we used this song for the multi-media performance piece- Ki no Ballad, which we did at Capio Hall in Tsukuba, we used the instrumental version of this song as i led some kids around the stage imprivising on various sculpture instruments.
It was at this time that guitarist Thomas Mayers joined us and his special touch gave the song the full quality that it has now.

When recording the album G-Strings I finally stopped procrastinating and put down the lyrics under the influence of having read Joyce`s Finnegans Wake.

Here are the lyrics

Revolving Door

Big Bang clap roar cosmic soup pulls from the shore
Life sky land sea competition birds and bees
Riverrun shore to bend of bay earth revolves another day
Cities rise grow fall nothing new you know Ive seen it all

Its like a big revolving door
Takes you back where you were just were
To what it was like once before

Commodius vicus

Newton`s apple sudden squall
Stockcrash humpty-dumpty`s fall
Buddha Thor Prometheus Amaterasu Atman Zeus
Marzipan matzah dumpling noodles
Baked Alaska sushi strudel
Hunters gatherers city states
Theocracies and Shogunates and more

Its like that ol` revolving door
You up where you were before
And then you go through it once more

Commodius Vicus

Its like that Ol` revolving door
You know Ive seen it all before
We`re back to where we were once were

Avi Landau

Listen to Revolving Door at

www.jamendo.com/en/album/41155

Picture Perfect sakura in Hojo,Tsukuba

Willows and Cherry Trees Blooming in Tsukuba

Weeping Willows (Yanagi) In Japanese Culture

Greetings TenGoophiles! Lend me your ears!

The avenues and waterbanks of Chang`an, the great capital of Tang China (618-907) were often lined with willows (yanagi 柳, in Japanese), as these trees were believed to represent rejuvinative life forces and have the ability to repel evil and bad fortune. One reason for this is that their slender and elegant branches MOVE WITH THE BREEZE more actively than the branches of most other trees,thus connecting them with the bright and positive Yang (as oppossed to the dark and negative Ying). This notion was reinforced by the light color of the willows wood , its bearing leaves earlier than other trees in the spring, and the fact that it was believed to be an antidote for scorpion stings. For New Year`s, the residents of The Tang capital would hang a willow branch above their homes` entranceways to keep bad energies out. The wispy, misty green which seemed to float above the streets of the old capital in late March and early April as the willow`s leaves sprouted forth als!
o came to epitomize SPRING`S GREENERY, as exemplified by Su Tung-po`s poem-turned-adage - Naturally Willows Are Green (柳緑, in Chinese), and Flowers Are Red (花紅).

Since the Japanese Imperial Family and the aristocrats of the Nara and early Heian Period courts were enamoured with just about everything Tang, it is not surprising that the streets and watersides of the then new capital of the Yamato Realm, Heian-Kyo (today`s Kyoto), which took Chang`an as its model, were also lined with imported willows. In Japan, too, the wood of the willow was used to dispel bad energies and ALSO as an antenna to attract the Gods. This is best exemplified by the special chopsticks used during the New Years Holiday(yanagibashi 柳箸), which are made of the willows lightly hued wood and are narrowed at both ends (so that the gods can enjoy New Year`s dishes with you!).The Japanese, like the Tang Chinese, also decorated their homes with a willow branch, to attract the Toshigami-Sama- The God of the New Year.

The delicate green of the willows fresh leaves, were also thought to be the perfect match for the pink cherry blossoms which adorned the old capital in April. In the kokinshu anthology of ancient poems there is the tanka by Sosei （素性） which goes- MIWATASEBA YANAGI SAKURA O KOKIMAZETE MIYAKO ZO HARU NO NISHIKI NARIKERU- Looking out over the capital, the willows leaves and cherry blossoms blend to make a veritable spring brocade. The pairing of the two trees was also logical from a Ying Yang point of view, as the Yin blossoms are balanced out by the Yang of the willows.

As willows spread throughout the Japanese Archipelago (there are about 300 varieties including 15 in Ibaraki),they were not only utilzed as roadside trees, separating the stable part of the city from the fluid lanes of traffic, but can to be used to demarcate boundaries. Not only were they planted at the entrance ways to towns and villages, at the waterline along rivers and ponds (separating the terrestrial from the aquatic), around palace and castle moats( separating the common from the great) and at the gates to the old pleasure quarters (yu-kaku), but it was also believed that willows marked the boundary between the mortal world and the realm of spirits. Japanese Ghosts are said to often appear under weeping willows (no doubt because of the way they rustle and move in the breeze which can be extremely creepy at night!).

For me, it was surprising when I first learned that weeping willows have flowers (or more precisely catkins) which bloom in late March and early April. Willows are either male or female and the catkins of each sex are slightly different. If you get up close to a willow, usually to be found by ponds or rivers these days, have a look

Avi Landau 2009

For more of Avi Article go to

http://blog.alientimes.org/author/avi/

HANAMI IN UENO

Hanami at UENO PARK

Look at the Etymology of the Word SAKURA For a Deeper Understanding of Japan$B!G(Js UNIQUE Celebration of Cherry Blossoms: O-HANAMI ($B$*2V8+(J)

Hello tenGoophiles!

If you are in Japan during early April, you will certainly hear a lot about, and most probably even be invited to, HANAMI, which is usually translated as CHERRY BLOSSOM VIEWING. , Unfortunately, this English description does absolutely no justice to the UNIQUE way in which the Japanese celebrate the full flowering of the sakura (cherry) trees. For while you might well have seen people enjoy the VIEWING of flowers or blossoms in other countries, or even watched Japanese people admiring OTHER popular flowers in Japan itself, nothing will have prepared you for the crowds, solemnity, excitement, ribaldry, and the INTENSITY OF GAZE, that you will find at so-called cherry blossom viewing parties, especially at Japan's famous HANAMI spots.

Most of this is done by revellers who are not just strolling casually by, but who have spread their sheets under the blooming trees and have brought sufficient food and drink. There is singing and maybe dancing, which more often than not is fuelled by alcohol. The blossom viewing itself is not only done from a distance, but also from way up close, as some of the small blossoms are examined and photographed carefully and individually. Hanami is NOT the mere viewing and enjoyment of beautiful flora. It can neither be said to be just a celebration of spring (though it is that as well). It is something moving and spiritual, with deep and ancient connections not only to Japanese history, as is often written about in English, but even more importantly, to folk beliefs (a point which is hardly touched upon in non-Japanese language sources).

I think that we can more fully UNDERSTAND and appreciate the experience of HANAMI, if we look at the etymology (origin) of the Japanese word SAKURA. I have found several Japanese language sources explaining that the SA of sakura derives from SA NO KAMI (田の神) or SAGAMI (田神), which is the traditional God of the Rice Fields. The KURA that makes up the rest of the word is from KURA, meaning seat, storehouse or vessel. In other words, SAKURA originally meant SEAT OF THE GOD OF THE RICE FIELDS. This is understandable, since the cherry trees, which in ancient times grew wild throughout Japan, bloom just before the farmers would begin the annual cycle of rice production. This synchronicity linked the blossoms and the onset of cultivation in the minds of the people.

For the farmers, who believed that after the rice harvest in autumn the God Of the Rice Fields would retreat to the mountains only to return once again in spring, the blossoms of the cherry trees were a physical manifestation of the God. When full bloom was reached the farmers would entertain the God with feasting, singing, dancing, revelry, and drinking (even in contemporary Shinto, the Gods are often entertained by music and dances and offered food and drink. Lewd dancing is also an accepted way of enertaining the Gods, as the Sun Goddess herself, Amaterasu, was drawn out of hiding by such entertainment- see The Kojiki). Being that the blossoms were believed to be divine , the energies emitted by the blossoms at the full-bloom point were also considered to be an elixir.

The farmers would also DIVINE (predict) the result of the next harvest by carefully and closely examining the sakura blossoms` petals. This is STILL done in some areas. When the blossoms had fallen completely it was a signal for the farmers that it was time to get to work.

In these ancient practices we can find all the components of contemporary HANAMI: the (sometimes raucous) partying under the blossoming trees, the careful examination of the blossoms, and the sense of reverence. We can now also understand why, in a culture which has been so strongly connected by the agricultural cycle, the SAKURA trees would have a special place among all other flowers and trees.

English language sources often suggest that because certain Japanese Emperors, especially the Emperor Saga, held elaborate and memorable HANAMI events that such a custom eventually became established among the people. Well, the Japanese folk certainly do have a tendency to try and emulate the culture of the aristocracy and the ruling class. However, this explanation fails to explain why the Emperors would have held these huge hanami gatherings. For me it seems natural me that the Emperors of Japan, who are also the HEAD PRIESTS OF THE NATION whose role it is to pray for abundant harvests, were merely doing what Japanese rice farmers had done since time immemorial- they entertained the god which was manifest in the cherry blossom. i think in the case of HANAMI it was the Emperors taking on the customs of the common folk.

Some foreign language sources also attribute Chinese origins to HANAMI.It is often explained how in the Nara Period, when Japan was indiscriminantly adapting any aspect of Chinese culture, the Imperial Palace highlighted plum (ume) tree, the most prestigious blossoms of the Chinese Court. The oldest collection of Japanese poems (The Manyoshu), also had many more poems about plum blossoms than sakura. This was of course was due to Chinese influence. However, one point that is never mentioned in regard to this is that though the Chinese appreciate the beauty of nature, they never celebrated any of their favorite flowers the way the Japanese did the sakura. And though due to their prestige in China, plum blossoms were highly regarded as a ornament for the palace and a subject of poetry, they were never treated with the Hanami rituals.

These same sources explain how, later in the Heian Period, when the Japanese were more confident to assert their own roots, the sakura became the most respected tree at The Court because many cherry trees bloomed in the mountains around the new capital at Heian-Kyo (kyoto). I think that what really happened was, that for a period, when Chinese influence was at its strongest, in the Nara Period at the Heijo-kyo capital, the Japanese elite considered the sakura, which had always been and still was the tree closest to hearts of the people, was considered provincial and unsophisticated. Later, when the capital was moved and the Japanese began to gain more confidence in their own traditions, the sakura was returned to its place of prestige even at the Palace and in the poetry books.

I do not mean to assert here that The Japanese today are conscious the spiritual roots of Hanami which I have descibed above. I do believe though, that all the ancient forms, and an unspecified sense of spiritual significance have been passed down through the centuries and live on today.

It is also important to note that in Japan today, the cherry blossoms still signify new beginnings — the new school year, fiscal year, etc. — just as for the majority of the population throughout Japanese history, the cherry blossoms signaled the start of the work year, the work of producing rice.

Ueno Park- April 5, 2009

If you have a chance to do Hanami while you are in Japan- DO NOT HESITATE- it is a UNIQUE JAPANESE EXPERIENCE!

Take it all in!

For another article related to this season see-

http://blog.alientimes.org/2008/04/to-eat-the-leaf-or-not-to-eat-the-leaf-that-is-the-question/

Miracle- One of The TenGooz New Tracks

Many listeners have said that out of all the tracks on our new album, G-Strings, they liked the second track- MIRACLE - best.
Let me tell you a little bit about how it came to fruition.
Sometime last summer, a few weeks before our first beachside gig of the season, we toyed with the idea of creating a SURFING SONG for the occassion.
The next time we got together for practice Hase G (Nodoka Hasegawa)presented us with the song`s bass-line, in its entirety, almost exactly as we recorded it.

He said that he was inspired by U2 , of all things, and in fact, for a long while, we referred to this number as the U2 song. As usual with the TenGooz, when we find something that clicks, very quickly Michael (sax) thomas (guitars), A-Chan (drums) and I (vocals and lyricist)came up with what we eventually laid down at the studio.
The two points which took time to work out were the middle section, which ultimately became the fruit of one of michaels inspirations, and then the lyrics,, which somehow, veered away from being about ocean sports, and took up the topic of the 2008 presidential election (though referred to ambiguously).

In recording, it was Thomas` guitars which really give the some its special feeling and drive. The background vocals he laid down are also very tasty and he did them, improvised, in one take.

Here are the lyrics-

MIRACLE

You dropped in out of nowhere, and went on to save the day
I dont know what I would have done if you hadnt come this way

Radiant and full of life you helped make right from wrong
I cant tell what the future brings, but Im sure glad that you came along

Because it was high time that we got back to reality
Dropped the fantasy and myths and face actuallities

You helped fullfill a yearning brought out the dormant songs
You can hear them in the distance- with each minute they`re growing strong

You burst in just in time and helped us to find our way
Like DEUS EX MACHINA in those old Greek plays

Of course we cant let out of sight that all good things must pass
I cant tell what the future brings but let`s enjoy this thing while it lasts

And though you had to head back north I`ll still often think of you
And how you helped to set things straight and turn the old to new

I hope that you dont mind if im waxing lyrical
But your comming this way`s nothing short of a miracle

Avi Landau

I

The TenGooz in Studio

The TenGooz at Frog- Avi , A-Chan and Thomas

Jon in a movie !

The TenGooz very own Jon Hicks alive, very well, and still doing his thing- now on the silver screen!

Though born and raised in Nashville, the heart of the country music world,
The TenGooz original drummer and Tengoo For Life Jon Hicks is Rock and Roll
incarnate. While he was playing with us, he was not only invaluable for his song-writing and arranging contributions, but he
help us play some gigs that more than a few people might not ever forget, literally whipping crowds up into a frenzy with his singing and drumming.

Unfortunately, after our second Australian tour, Jon had to move to Tokyo, leaving an unhealed wound in the TenGooz soul.
We have been forging on, as you know, but many of our fans wonder what happened to Jon. In fact a Yahoo Japan search of Tengooz will ask you if you were searching for
tengooz jon!

Well... the other day I got an email from our old friend asking when he could drop by, and we arranged for a short meeting last Wednesday night, Seeing him brought back a flood of memories, old the gigs, recording sessions, road trips, and all the rehearsals we used to have at his
sound-proofed MANSION.

Anyway, Id like to tell all you TenGophiles Jon looks great and is still doing his thing-based in Tokyo with a band called The Dirty T`s who you can catch at various venues in Tokyo. This winter they were hired by the Hilton Hotel in Hokkaido to be the house band. Resort room, food , snow-boarding,
and rock n` roll everday- Jon Heaven!

Another exciting bit of news- Jon we be strutting his stuff on the silver screen in a soon to be released motion picture- more details when I get them!

Thats all for now

Dont forget to check out our new album- G-String

Avi Landau

In the GROOVE at FROG in Tsukuba!

Thomas had predicted a great gig, but at 9:30pm on the night of our scheduled LIVE at FROG in Tsukuba
it seemed as if our guitarists prophetic powers had failed him this time.
In fact, it seemed as if The Tengooz had hit ROCK BOTTOM. The problem was that Kawamura-San, the establishments proprietor,
had not yet shown up, and we were left out side the locked door is grubby basement corridor, with a mysterious large block of melting ice.

Other musicians might have felt that it was time to throw in the towel. But not the TenGooz! We know that to be GREAT you have to suffer like JOB,
and we took it in stride, or should I say we let it slide!

When the door was finally opened and we set up, Thomas earlier prediction actually came true.
The Five TenGooz become a single throbbing organic organism, in tune with the universe.

It goes without saying that we had a BLAST!

And, believe it or not, we have alot of new material just begging to be recorded!

Keep grounded in groove

Avi Landau

G-STRINGS

Too much Information !

Greeting TenGoophiles!
I am happy to announce that the new, long awaited TenGooz tracks are now
available on-line at Jamendo.

Let me tell you first about the first track. Well, like most of our latest songs, this one began which a Hase G (Nodoka Hasegawa) bass riff that we all liked.It was one of the batch we had come up with just after we came back from our second Australian tour.
I is, as usual for a G-riff, very funky. I decided to make the song about drowning in a flood of information, because that is what I have been experincing more and more as we head on into the age of computers and the internet.
Lyrically, I then decided to explore other ways that the expression-Too Much Information can be used in English.

To tell the truth,however, I was very slow coming up with the full lyrics and while at gigs and rehearsals the guys had worked out the great arrangemnets and solos that you can now hear. The full text was only finished in the studio while we were recording.

Here are the lyrics-

Too Much Information

Ive got books and magazines piled high up to the ceiling
but Im ordering some more with their covers so appealling
Got 900 channels Im surfing through on my sattellite TV

There are sites in cyberspace tell ya how to build a rocket
got a set o` `cyclopedias that fit inside my pocket
I spend half the day just clearing spam from my email inbox tray

Somebody help cause there`s too much information round me
Feels like Im gonna drown
My mind is frayed by all this overstimulation I say
We`ve got to simplify down!

Got an on-line cd store carries 20 million titles
I just ordered me some grunge and some classical recitals
It would take two years just to hear the disks that
Ive got up in my room

Besides the journalists now weve got the blogger minions
Ive been staying up all night scrolling through all their opinions
but there is just so much the human mind is able to consume

Somebody help cause there`s too much information round me
Feels like Im gonna drown
My mind is frayed by all this overstimulation I say
Weve got to simplify down!

Whatever happened to the ancient arts of conversation
now it`s talk of body functions and bedroom revelations
Everyones airing their dirty laundry out for the whole wide world to see

And the scientists explain all the chemical reactions that make us love and hate
give us fear and satisfaction
now weve got cold equations stead of WONDEROUS MYSTERY

Somebody help cause there`s too much information round me
Feels like Im gonna drown
My mind is frayed by all this overstimulation I say
Weve got to simplify down!

Avi Landau 2009

Thomas Mayers Harmonizing on TOO MUCH INFORMATION , a new TENGOOZ track

MICHAEL FREI LAYS DOWN KEY CYMBAL MOMENT IN THE TEGOOZ NEW SONG COMODIUS VICUS

Fujita Tsugeharu in Ueno

Leonard Foujita Exhibit Doesnt give Complete Picture!

I have always been more deeply struck by the artist Tsugeharu Fujita's LIFE STORY, or more specifically by the way he was successfully able to create and recreate HIMSELF, depending on the particular time or place he found himself in, than in his actual works. In fact, the more I think about the way he changed costumes and political positions — PERSONAS — I realize that probably, it was this LIFE AS PERFORMANCE ART which was his greatest creation.

Born in Tokyo in 1886, the son of an army doctor, after graduation from the school which would later become the Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music (Geidai), Fujita moved to Paris and went on to succeed there, spectacularly, where most of his fellow Japanese modern artists would fail, miserably. With flamboyant costumes (togas, dresses, large earrings…), his KAPPA hairstyle, and a hard core partying life style which he used to turn himself into an icon, he successfully exhibited and sold his works — nudes, cats… painted in an interesting mixture of Japanese and Western techniques — in the great capitals of Europe, and in New York. Among his acquaintances were Soutine, Modigliani, Diego Rivera, and Picasso.

Despite his unprecedented achievements in the West (while at the same time talented Japanese artists such as Saeki Yuzo were driven to despair, or even madness, by their failures to be recognized as true modern artists by Europeans who merely expected JAPONICA from them), some resentments or latent sense of racial pride must have been festering deep in his heart, as he returned to Japan in the 1930s, threw off his roaring 20s GAY PARISIAN facade, donned an assortment of military uniforms and started to paint for the cause of militarism and EMPIRE (it is ironic for me ,though, that the paintings that remain from this period are the most impressive of his works for me, especially his Last Stand At Attu, 1943).

When the war was over, Fujita did another costume change, designing Christmas cards for the GHQ, etc. His Japanese colleagues, however, could not forget his enthusiasm (which was very likely just another facade) for the WAR CAUSE and he was blacklisted by the Japanese Art Association.

Fujita escaped to New York (he was not granted a visa to France), where he had some success, but there too, local artists got together to denounce his wartime collusion. Finally securing his French visa (after one year in the US), he moved to an old farm-house deep in the countryside. He and his third wife converted to Catholicism and changed their first names — he to Leonard. He dedicated the rest of his long life (he died in 1968) to decorating a church with stained glass and frescoes, and to painting pictures of cats and children, all in a style quite different from that which made him famous in the 20s.

As someone who has also spent his life crossing back and forth between two or more worlds, I have always found Fujita to be a fascinating character. That is why when I saw the poster of the Kappa-haired, bespectacled, artist posing with a cat, announcing that there was a Fujita exhibition on, I dropped all plans, got on TX and headed for Ueno. I was excited, but also had a premonition that I would be disappointed. The poster gave no details of which of his works were being shown and I doubted that it would be what I wanted to see — a comprehensive retrospective.

It was not until I entered the Ueno No Mori Bijutsukan (why is this called the Royal Museum in English?), that I found out what the exhibition was about. It seems that in 1992, some large,forgotten works made by Fujita in the late 1920s, were discovered in some warehouses in the suburbs of Paris. Since Fujita was a recipient of the French Legion of Honor (and someone whose works will draw plenty of Japanese tourists) the local government had some of France's most skillful art restoration experts work on the canvasses which were in atrocious condition. These five works, along with his church decorations (as well as many pieces from his final period in the French countryside) and a recreation of his last atelier, are the central features of the exhibit.

Also included are some of his early works, in the style upon which his reputation was originally built (delicate lines, and a surprising use of white and gray, as opposed to other colors). For me these were the most interesting of those in this exhibition , as I found the restored works, as well as the later church works to be CAMPY (though that is only my opinion, as many Japanese visitors seemed to have been genuinely moved).

Unfortunately, the wartime works, so full of color, passion and historical interest, are not on display, and for me this this left a huge hole in the exhibit. I would also have liked to see more photos of the man in his various incarnations.

The exhibition will be on until Jan. 28th. If you are in Ueno and have an interest in the history of Japanese (western-style) art, or in how cultures can be blended in amazing ways by those of us who move back and forth through them, you might want to check it out.

More than the exhibit, I would recommend reading more about this unique character and checking out the works for ALL his different periods, in books or online. I also enjoyed the book Glory in a Line: a Life of Foujita, the Artist Caught between East and West by Phyllis Birnbaum.

See more of his works and get more info on the exhibition at http://leonardfoujita.jp/.

By coincidence, the day after I saw this exhibit, I saw a very impressive (more than anything in Ueno) early Fujita at the New Otani Art Museum. Sandwiched between the brightly colored works of his European contemporaries, the black and white nude is startling. This museum is small and there are no guards watching over you (don't you hate that?) so you can take your time and savor the small collection. Also, by strange chance, at the same exhibit were a few works by the Belgium painter Maurice de Vlaminck. It was he who told Saeki Yuzo (the tragic artist I mentioned above) to give up Western style painting, as a Japanese could only be derivative and academic when attempting to paint like Europeans. In the small room exhibiting Japanese works were two scrolls with Mt Tsukuba depicted in the background.

If you are in the Hakone area, or a Yuzo Saeki fanatic, there will be an exhibit of his works through early March at the Pola Museum.

Avi Landau

Sacred Shimenawa forNew Years

Happy New Year from the Tengooz

A Happy New Year to all you TenGoophiles out there ! Hase G and I were horribly sick for a couple of weeks
so the completion of our new recordings has been delayed. We should be ready to release them by the end of this month.

Since I recovered Ive been frantically at work, rescuing birds from the frozen lotus fields of Tsuchiura, reading lots (Ive just finished Ma Jian`s Beijing Coma and the Brief Woderous Life of Oscar Wao),
and taking in lots of exhibitions in Tokyo.

We hope that youve had a better holiday than I had. And once again we greatly appreciate your support.

Avi Landau

Michael Frei Whipping Up Some Original Fare For The TenGooz

View from Avi's window

View from Avi's window

Avi and Hase G Backstage

The TenGooz getting in tune

TenGooz setting up for tonights gig

Thomas doing guitar work on new TENGOOZ recordings

The Thrill of Being in Studio With The TenGooz

AMIDA-ZON

MIGAWARI AMIDA

"Miracle Working" Stone Near TenGooz Place of Practice

More than 400 years ago, during Japan's so-called Warring States Period (Sengoku Jidai) , a wooden fortress known as Hanamuro-Jo, stood a few hundred meters from where the TenGooz now practice . No one is certain exactly how many years this fortification stood, as there are no extant records bearing this information, however, there is documentation of Hanamuro-Jo still having still existed in 1569, as battles raged for control of this region. Even if it did actually survive the fighting of those years, it still would not have lasted long into the Edo Period (1600-1867) , during which a unified Japan was consolidated under the Tokugawa Family. This is because the One Domain-One Castle Law (Ikkoku Ichijo Rei , 一国一城令) of 1615, permitted only one fortification to survive in each HAN (domain) . The castle selected to be given a lease on life in this area was the Turtle Castle (Kijo , 亀城 ) of the Tsuchiya Clan, in Tsuchiura (Tsukuba was NOT as many believe, part of the Mito Domain) , while any other fortifications that still existed had to be completely dismantled.
No matter when or how Hanamuro-Jo met its fate, one thing is for sure — it has disappeared with hardly a trace. The hill upon which it once stood is covered by woods, with only a corroded, barely legible, old sign left to remind the rare person to wander by of what was once there.

A bit to the West however, past the traffic light near the Hanamasa Grocery Store, lies a grassy knoll, where memories of Hanamuro Castle are kept alive. On top of this little green island of a mound sits a small shrine which houses a large unengraved, stone slab, along with many smaller stones and pebbles. Offerings of sake, rice-cakes ,etc., and numerous strands of SENBA TSURU (one thousand cranes) can always be found placed in front of or inside the wooden structure, as worshipers come to beseech and give thanks to the MIGAWARI AMIDA (the Scapegoat Amida) , who has resided on this little hill since the days of Hanamuro-Jo.

Amida is the Buddha of Infinite Light, who rules the Pure Land, and is one of the most popular figures in Japanese Buddhism, and the central figure of the JODO and JODO SHIN Sects. His name is invoked by believers who seek his aid, or wish to enter his Western Paradise.
Migawari (身替り) can be directly translated as a surrogate, or taking the place of or standing in for another. I have translated this as SCAPEGOAT, since the devotees of this deity which resides near the ruins of Hanamuro Castle, believe that their pain, injuries, or other forms of suffering are transferred away from them and taken on by the stone on the hill, just as the sins of the ancient Israelites were cast away into a goat.
There are many stories extolling the powers of the stone. The most dramatic I have heard were years ago from old Mr. Ohtsu, a descendant of the family which kept the Hanamuro Castle as Vassals of Lord Oda. He recounted how he had accidentally fallen into a fire he had going (the same fires which still foul our Tsukuba air) and miraculously emerged completely unscathed. He later noticed that the stone slab had turned completely black. In disbelief, he went to call his family and neighbors. Everyone was amazed. The newspapers were called and some ran the story.
Mr. Ohtsu's wife tells of a similar experience. She knocked over a kerosene stove. To her great relief, no fire broke out. Chills went down her spine when she later found that the stone had once again turned black. Her husband actually took some pictures of the blackened stone and you can see what looks clearly like a hand print in them . A few hours later, they say, the black faded away.
The Migawari Amida is also renowned throughout the prefecture for helping get rid of ODEKI, which are tumors or pusy fistules. These days it is also believed to be efficacious for traffic safety. Devotees take a pebble from the shrine and keep it for one year before returning it.

There is an interesting legend related to the origin of this allegedly MIRACLE WORKING STONE. In the days when Hanamuro-Jo still stood, one the Lords of the Castle, Ohstu Nagato no Kami, was burning up with a high fever. His vassals were in a panic, and prayed fervently for the intersession of the Gods and Buddhas. Delirious, the Lord had a dream. A voice called to him. "I am the God which protects your family. I will take on all that ails you. Tomorrow, go to the well where the horses are washed on the drilling ground". When he revealed his dream to his retainers the next day, they rushed to the well.
When they peered down into it, they saw something glittering brightly below. They pulled out the stone, and enshrined it on the hill.

Behind the shrine is an old tree, a descendant of a tree which stood by the shrine before the Tokugawa Period. This tree is considered an Important Natural Heritage by Ibaraki Prefecture.

The TenGooz will be in the studio this coming weekend.

Avi Landau

Thomas Mayers and HASE G working on a new TenGooz song

Michael Frei at TenGooz rehearsal

Clear Skies!

There are dramatic and historic moments which have come to define each generation.
I remember my grandparents asking their contemporaries- Where were you when you first heard the news of Pearl Harbour? My parents would ask friends- where were you when Kennedy was shot?
It is common to ask- Where were you when the World Trade Center was hit? While most Americans probably learned of Obama`s victory at home, as it was late at night in the US, those of us in Japan yesterday first heard the dramatic news sometime in the afternoon (because of the time difference).
Thus, we can ask each other- Where were you when Obama won? Well, let me tell you where I was.
I was teaching a Tsukuba City sponsored class called Singing The Songs of The 1960`s. We study (and sing) the lyrics of the great protest songs- anti-vietnam war songs, songs of the civil rights and labor movements etc…

Yesterday, we had just finshed a rousing version of If I had a Hammer( its a hammer of justice, its a bell of FREEDOM….) and were studying the lyrics to Dylans Blowin in the wind(how many roads must a man walk down before you can call him a man?) It was then I got a call on my cell phone . I knew it was from Rick with news about the election , so I took the call during class. I announced the results to my students.
There were tears in many eyes, and we were all moved by the success of decades of struggle (and the fight still goes on) to create a society as free as possible from hate and discrimination.

When I woke up this morning it was as if I were awakening fro an eight year long nightmare.

Lets hope that all the great expectations bring about actual changes!

Listen to The TenGooz - Clear Skies at

www.jamendo.com/en/album/1876

The TenGooz at Nalu Toy Box, whipping up the surf!

We love playing at the toy box. Not only because of the great staff and good acoustics, but also for its location, which is right on the beach! Even in September Thomas and Mio could get in a little surfing before our gig.
Last weekend, cold and windy afternoon weather kept us from even wetting our feet and to the north and south, hardly a soul could be seen all the way out too the horizon.
We were worried that no-one would show up for our show, put while returning from beach walk-philosophical discussion with Thomas, already cars were pulling up for the gig.
A voice called out- ARE YOU THE TENGOOZ? We then realized that we would not be playing just for the staff that night.

We started a sound check which somehow turned into a first set. We ended up playing 3 sets in all before packing it up, and though this was far from our best show, in some songs, especially TIME FLOW and SAUDADE there was some magic.

Tonight we will be at GUM BALL in Tsukuba for a Halloween gig. We had a couple of rehearsals this week and have added a new song - based on a Thomas riff (highly Levitical), and revived some of our old stuuf (OFURO).

Hope to see you there tonight!

Avi

MANABU PERCUSSING WITH THE TENGOOZ

MICHAEL FREI BEFORE TENGOOZ GIG @ NALUS TOYBOX

HASE G and A-CHAN @ TENGOOZ PRACTICE

A Work BY THOMAS MAYERS

A Work BY THOMAS MAYERS

A WORK BY THOMAS MAYERS

Thomas Mayers Paintings at Saitoh Takashi Gallery

I'm prouder than ever to be a TenGoo.
From the very beginning, with physicist Ascelin Gordon(guitar), MD Kawakami Ryutaro(sax) and diplomat Tom Debor(bass), we were never your stereotypical type of rock band.
After rehearsals we would discuss art , philosophy, history, religion etc...

The present TenGooz line-up is no exception to this tradition. Right now multi-lingual sax player- agro-scientist extra-ordinnaire Michael Frei is in Germany picking up a prestigious award andour newest member, guitarist, artist, Thomas Mayers is having a solo showing of his latest works at the Takashi Saitoh Gallery in Ushiku.

Many of his newest creations build on photographs which he has recently shown at the same venue. These are ofreeds and other vegetation around Lake Ushiku which Thomas proceeded to alter, according to his vision, with his computer.

In the current exhibition, these reeds (plants which feature in various creation myths) can be found used as subtle foundations, seeds out of which burst surprising colors, textures and symbols.
Thomas has planted recognizable object(animals etc) in each work, which can be interpreted as referring to the natural world, history, art etc. Each work could be its own topic of serious dicussion.

You can see the exhibition until tomorrow at

www.saitoh-coffee.com

Thomas uses his artistic sense and experience to add tecture and color to the TenGooz music. You can hear him on our recording of Rain Falls... http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/157146
and we will soon release our new track- CHATTER - which has Thomas playing guitar like you have never heard before!

I am proud to be in the same band as Thomas and I hope you check out his works in color and in sound.

Avi Landau

THOMAS MAYERS TUNING UP

Noah keeps the Beat

The TenGooz at the beach!

We are back with an ocean-like roar!

Last night we did up one of the coolest venues in The Kanto Area-Nalu`s Toy Box a surfers hangout with an international crowd.
Emiko Sakai, a percussionist who has joined us before ( remember the Kasama Festival ) drove out to the beach to be with us and really let it rip!
Of course, Last nights kick-ass show would not have been possible without the talent and great efforts of guitarist Thomas Mayers who has been learning our songs ( and helping us make new ones ) at an astonishing pace.

Anyway, we were all really CONNECTED last night and Michael and I were very satisfied. Even Hase G was in good spirits! And that says something!

We were happy to have lots of friends ( and family! ) come out for the show!

We will be back at Nalu Toy Box on October 25!

stay GROUNDED IN GROOVE

Avi Landau

THE TENGOOZ @ NALU TOY BOX

TENGOOZ READY FOR BEACH GIG

DISTRESS CALL BOX

SHOOING STARLINGS IN TSUKUBA

A Tengu runs with Tsukuba`s Bird Chasers

The sun is going down leaving a slowly shifting pastel palette in its wake. And though along with their more prosaic colleagues, they have arrived at work at Tsukuba`s city office in the early morning, for these 2 dedicated civil servant`s the working day has in fact JUST BEGUN.
They are Tsukuba`s indefatiguable BIRD-CHASERS, who can be seen, shadowy figures in the twilight, wherever the STARLINGS happen to be nesting (usually somewhere around Tsukuba Center) . As the large flocks of birds start arriving, further darkening the already darkened skies, our heroes are there waiting.
The flocks, interweave and mingle, and then alight and test out the safety of potential places to spend the night. This sets the men into action. They rush towards the trees which the birds have come down to and then proceed to do their job - which is to SHOO THE BIRDS AWAY. To do this, they have for the past few years been using a contraption first developed and tested in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture, which emits a vey loud and terrifying sound-an amplified versionof the starlings very own DISTRESS CALL. Vigorous hand-clapping has also been used to good effect.

Recently, a new weapon has been added to the BIRD-CHASERS arsenal. Years of trial and error experimentation have shown that the plastic umbrella bags used for covering WET UMBRELLAS before entering the department store can create a highly disturbing sound. This is done by vigorously rubbing two ends of the bag together, in the manner of washing socks or underwear by hand. The effect of noise produced by this action on the human ear is not unlike that elicited by a hand slowly scrathing a chalkboard.
With the distress call, clapping and bag rubbing, the birds soon clear out of the trees they have settled in(plenty of people hurry to get away from the racket as well)and fly away- to NEARBY TREES! Undaunted and showing true Japanese Spirit, the bird-chasers dash off in pursuit. The same pattern is repeated again and again.
Trying to get an interview proved to be a tiring experience (and good excercize!) . I ran with one man, and then another. Constantly on the move, never giving up the chase until complete darkness has set in.
It's a never-ending battle and these guys are fighting it for us. The pavement around the plaza has been so dropping -free recently that you could walk on it bare-foot. Thanks.
You can find them again tonight, tomorrow or the next day in the elevated plaza between Seibu and the Okura Hotel. Be there at dusk. Ask the flocks come in you will hear the blaring distress calls. If you have the energy, you can help clapping, or even better-bring your own umbrella bag.

The TenGooz had a good practice the other night in preparation for their beach-side, surf competition gig.
We start at 8pm on Sept. 13 at Nalu Toy Box

We hope you`ll be there.

Avi Landau

KANAME ISHI

GOD OF KASHIMA RESTRAINING CATFISH

TOKYO BURNING AND MT TSUKUBA 1923

Ready for THE BIG ONE?

There used to be a cannon, located in the plaza in front of Tokyo's Imperial Palace, which since 1871 had been used to announce the arrival of 12 noon. On September 1, 1923 the usual DON (bang!) never sounded. A little more than a minute before midday, a tremendous earthquake, whose epicenter was in Sagami Bay, hit Tokyo with terrific force.
Tokyo University's seismograph, the only one in the vicinity to have survived the first violent spasm, recorded nearly 2000 more shock waves over the next 3-day period. Over that time, much of the Shita-Machi area of Tokyo had burned down, leaving more than 200,000 dead. Though Tsukuba lay beyond the reach of what came to be called The Great Kanto Earthquake (Kanto Daishinsai) many native Tsukubans and Ibarakians have heard from their grandparents how at that time the sky glowed red to the south at night, and was darkened in the day by drifting smoke .
Tokyo burning and Mt. Tsukuba since 1923, September First has been a day to commemorate that tragedy and also to remind all those residing in this disaster prone land of the need to be ready for any possible scenario. Thus, this day is both shinsai kinenbi (震災記念日, Great Kanto Earthquake Memorial Day), with its annual service at Yokoame Park in Sumida Ward (where the greatest number of victims perished), and Disaster Prevention Day (bosai no hi, 防災の日), on which you might see firemen leading schoolchildren in evacuation drills (though you are more likely to see this on Sept 2nd as the 1st is the first day back to school!), and plenty of safety tips offered on TV. You might want to take a look at Tsukuba City's advice for earthquakes. It is both informative and amusing. We are instructed to hide under a desk, secure an exit and turn off the gas and electricity among other things, all at the same time! We are also rightly warned not to listen to rumors, which is an important lesson learned from 1923 when rumors of Koreans poisoning the wells led to the slaughter of large numbers of Koreans by rioting mobs, and the subsequent suppression of Socialists (who were said to be egging on the Koreans!)

I don't mean in any way to make light of this subject. Though it's been a long time since 1923, the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995, which had Kobe burning helplessly for days, and more recently the Earthquake in Niigata Prefecture (a few years back) which has left people living in shelters TO THIS DAY, show us that there is still a long way to go in terms of preparedness and prevention of death and destruction. I don't want to seem pessimistic, but the BIG ONE WILL COME SOMEDAY. Sometimes it's as if you can FEEL the pressure building up on the tectonic plates. It probably would be a very good idea to read up on how to prepare.
As you know, earthquakes are not the only threat. In fact, this area has had much worse luck with flooding over the years. That is one reason why, to the astonishment of many foreigners, most Japanese don't complain about the concreting over of ALL THE RIVERBANKS. For centuries they have been living in fear of unpredictable rivers and flooding. For them, concrete means progress and security (and it seems to have worked this year!). Tsukuba City also offers some tips on dealing with typhoons, floods and fires.
Before the disciplines of geology and seismology were introduced to Japan, there was a very CURIOUS understanding of the cause of earthquakes, which has a STRONG CONNECTION to Ibaraki Prefecture.
The trembling of the earth was believed to be caused by the slashing about of a giant subterranean CATFISH (namazu). In order to keep this very dangerous fish restrained, the God of Kashima (Kashima Myojin) pressed down on its head with a heavy stone called the KANAME ISHI (要石), which can be found to this day within the precincts of Ibaraki's most important shrine, Kashima Jingu. This protective stone became especially popular after a terrible earthquake hit Edo in 1855. That disaster struck in the 10th month, during which it is believed that ALL THE 8,000,000 Gods of Japan leave their own shrines and go to Izumo (Shimane Prefecture). It thus became a firm conviction among most Edo-ites that the earthquake had occurred because the God of Kashima had been away and unable to keep the giant catfish under control. The people beseeched the God to be more vigilant after that and the catfish and kaname ishi became popular subjects of devotion.
God of Kashima Subduing Catfish
The stone, which now protrudes slightly out of the ground, is still considered by believers to keep Kanto safe from earthquakes.

The TenGooz are too busy getting ready for their BIG BEACHSIDE GIG next week
to prepare for disasters. We will have to think about crowd control considering the fenzy we are planning whip up with
our set!

Avi Landau

CICADA CASING NUKEGARA

CICADA SHELLS

CICADA

Catch a buzz-Tsukuba`s cicadas

Newcomers to Tsukuba are usually taken aback by the intense and inescapable chirping of cicadas (semi) in late summer. Though some find it thrilling and ALIVE, for many, the pulsating whir these insects whip up can be mind-numbing, or at the other extreme nerve-wracking. For many Japanese, however, who can often differentiate the particular sounds created by the most common varieties, the cicada is a cherished symbol of summer, which not only indicates the season, but also, depending on which type is singing or at what volume, the time of day. Also, along with the cherry blossom, these creatures, who spend but a few above-ground days LIVING THEIR LIVES AT FULL THROTTLE before quickly falling away, represent that most quintessential Japanese concept, MUJO (無常), the passing nature of all things.

Japan's greatest poets have used these fast-living, short (above-ground)-lived summer icons to evoke the season, as well as sadness or loneliness. A poem that most Japanese know by heart is the haiku by Basho which goes：　閑かさや岩にしみ入る蝉の声 (shizukasa ya iwa ni shimi iru semi no koe), which I translate as "In the stillness, the cry of cicadas permeates the stones". Besides this classic, there are dozens of other well-known poems which use the cicada or the empty shells of molted nymphs (out of which cicadas emerge) as key words. The empty shells are especially powerful symbols of transformation and rebirth.

There is a charming etiological myth explaining the semi's incessant crying which is related to the great Buddhist priest Kukai (Kobo Daishi 774-835). It is the story of Hime Haru Zemi, a princess who falls in love with the brilliant monk and wants to be by his side. Since it was impossible for them to stay together, he fashioned an image of himself out of a tree trunk. As he departed, she climbed to the top of this wood carving, clinging to it and straining to see him, crying all the while. She has been clinging to the tree trunks and crying every summer since.

Fascination with semi starts early and strikes deep roots. Japanese children love catching insects. A daytime stroll in any of Tsukuba's parks or along any of its pedestrian paths during summer vacation will give evidence to that fact. Armed with nets and green insect cages they excitedly search for beetles, dragonflies, or cicadas. Today I watched a security guard leave his post to help some kids snare some semi which were just out of reach.

Because cicada symbolism has become so natural for the Japanese, fans of Japanese film and animation should take special note, as often summer is evoked by inserting cicada sound effects into the sound-track. I have heard that when these films are dubbed into other languages, these sounds are cut, as they have no meaning for foreign viewers and can be misconstrued as static or white noise. Off hand I can name the film Ijintachi to no Natsu (a summer ghost story) or the recent Semi Shigure as examples of films which effectively employ the sound effect.

Today I asked some friends if they could tell the difference between the different cicada calls. All of them said that they could and enthusiastically talked of what cicadas meant to them. These are the types which I found out are most familiar:

MIN MIN ZEMI that go MIN MIN in the daytime and like to cling high up in the trees;

HIGURASHI ZEMI that go KANA KANA KANA, evoking a sad feeling in the early morning or evening;

ABURA ZEMI that go JI JI JI JI in the daytime;

TSUKUTSUKU BOSHI that go TSUKUTSUKUBOSHI, especially in temple trees;

and

NI NI ZEMI that go chi CHI chi CHI on the trunks of cherry trees in the daytime.

If like me , these explanation do nothing to help you identify the different types of cicadas ,you can probably make more progress if you check this site.

There is no avoiding the cries of the cicadas, but if you want to have a full SEMI experience, why don't you start from Doho Park and walk down to Tsukuba University using the pedestrian path.

The Tengooz will be making a buzz of their own at a beach concert on September 13th. You can catch us and your favorite surfers at the annual surfing competition.

Avi Landau

TSUKUBA GROUNDSCAPES

STARLINGS IN TSUKUBA

Tsukuba`s Changing SOUNDSCAPES and GROUNDSCAPES

Summers are noisy in Tsukuba. One evening last month (July) the cacophony around Tsukuba Center actually had me scared. I stepped out of the Okura Hotel's lobby and out onto the road. In front of me stood the soon to be completed Joyo Bank building. The cicadas (semi) were chirping and droning, making me feel that I had ringing in the ears. From up and towards the south appeared a black swarm, and then another and another. These were flocks of Grey Starlings (mukudori) coming to roost for the night around the Center. I was mesmerized by their interweaving which created visual effects more fascinating than any kaleidoscope or lava lamp.

As the starlings started to settled into the trees, the noise more than doubled its volume and you could feel the soundwaves vibrating against your body. Then, suddenly, another sound rose up above the rest of the din. It was extremely loud and could only be described as NIGHTMARISH. l imagined some huge beast being tortured.

What this was was the man from the city office trying to scare away the flocks of starlings. He was doing this by blasting the recorded sound of the starlings distress call. It was certainly distressing! The man doing it told me that it would take at least five evenings of doing this to get the birds to move somewhere else.

The reasons that the people at the Center would want to have the birds move are easy to understand.

Besides the horrible racket the birds make, their droppings are prodigious and the ground along the pedestrian square area between the hotel and Nova Hall and then stretching towards the library was becoming pasty and difficult to maneuver.

Anyway, this week I've still been able to enjoy watching the interweaving flocks. The birds have moved, but NOT VERY FAR! Now they are roosting in front of the Mitsui Building and behind the Lexus dealership. I'm sure that soon someone will call the city office to have the starlings chased away again. One more thing the boys at city hall might do is order the kind of tree-butchering which you have probably noticed (and cringed at) in Japan, which leaves only a miserable trunk. This is also an effective way of getting the starlings to roost somewhere else!

Why do the starlings like to roost in the center of the city? I guess it makes them feel safe. They must also prefer to be in trees neatly lined up in a row.

The cicadas and starlings will be keeping things noisy for a few more weeks. If you too would like to hear the buzz and watch the starlings interweave come to the bridge between Right-On and Days Town, at dusk.

Avi Landau

Tsuna Bon in Tsukuba

After 5pm the sun's cruel and deadening grip began to ease up, and Tsukuba's old neighborhoods started to come to life. By day, most adults had sought out the comforts of some air-conditioned refuge, while those with no such luxury sufficed with a shady place and a fan to laze away the day watching High School Baseball or the Olympics. It was even hard to spot any kids outside enjoying summer vacation. It seems that, they too, much prefer to be indoors with their beloved video games which have overwhelmingly supplanted hunting for insects and playing in the fields as the number one summer fun.
The evening of August 13th is always filled with excitement in these traditional enclaves. It is the first day of Bon, the three day period in which the souls of departed ancestors return to their hometowns to be with their descendants. Children and grandchildren have arrived. Preparations have been made. The house cleaned, the Buddhist altar (butsudan) set up with the proper decorations and offerings (these can conveniently be purchased at the special O-Bon corners in the supermarkets) and special lanterns and votive strips of paper placed at the front gate or entranceway to the house.
On this evening, the spirits of ancestors will come home, and their living descendants go to the cemetery to greet them and guide them home. This evening I saw Tsukuba's small graveyards teeming with color and activity as families brought flowers, water and incense, as well as a lantern with which to guide the spirits back to their homes. Many neighborhoods can be seen with streets fully lined with such lanterns so no spirits will lose their way. Homes in which someone has recently passed away usually put out a much larger lantern suspended high on a pole since this will be the first time that that particular soul makes the journey back. These families celebrating a first Bon, might even light a traditional Bon Greeting Fire (迎え火, mukaebi), which have have been almost completely replaced by lanterns, for guiding and welcoming returning ancestral spirits.
When the families arrive home, the spirits are symbolically purified with water and salt, and greeted with 長い道を御苦労さまでした (nagai michi o gokuro sama deshita), you must be tired after your long journey! Then tea is drunk and incense burned.
In Ibaraki, especially around Lake Kasumigaura, there are many villages which continue to keep alive a very interesting custom, which is especially fun for the kids. The spirits of ancestors don't have to walk from the graveyard. They are transported IN STYLE, on the backs of large dragons or snakes of straw, carried by the village children from the cemetery to EACH HOUSE IN THE VILLAGE where the appropriate ancestors are dropped off with much merriment.
Fortunately, there are also a few neighborhoods in Tsukuba which still keep the same custom, called Bon Tsuna (盆綱), or Tsuna Bon (綱盆). I joined two separate such events (in different parts of Tsukuba) this evening, and I would like to tell you about them.
Before the war, Bon Tsuna had been practiced in numerous hamlets in what is now Tsukuba City. It is now found in only a handful. Today I went around with the the straw dragon of Kami-Sasagi, near Tsukuba Hospital and the Space Center, and also that of Kurihara, farther north, near Tsukuba's heliport.
In both of these magnificent hamlets, the children make the straw dragons on the morning of the 13th, with the help of some adults. At the end of the day, this year's dragons are burned. In Sasagi, the dragon was more elaborately made, and well… more dragon-like, while its Kurihara counterpart seemed to be a thick pole made of straw.
The kids of Kurihara, however, certainly, showed lots of enthusiasm and stamina. They carried the heavy pole to more than 30 houses. They ran up to each house with a cry: "The spirits have arrived!" Then they proceeded to toss the dragon into the air about ten times before going on to the next house. In Sasaki, the same went on without the tossing and chanting.
Besides these straw dragons, both in Tsukuba and in some other area of Japan it is customary to decorate the Buddhist altar with a horse and an ox, made from a cucumber and an eggplant, respectively. These are also meant to represent rides for the spirits, and they are often cast off onto rivers or into the sea at the end of the festival. These decorations are fun for kids and utilize IN SEASON vegetables. A friend of mine in his 80s, Yoshida-san, told me something that I had never heard or read anywhere before. He said that the cucumber horse was meant for the arriving spirits, because horses are fast, the ox is for the departure, because it is slower, allowing for some last lingering moments with mortal loved-ones.

We were asked to do a big gig on the beach this weekend,but unfortunately we have no guitarist as Thomas is Holidaying in the UK.
Maybe we can play the same place(Nalu Toy Box) after he gets back.

Avi Landau