BREATHING PEACE VII
Thursday, September 30 from 7:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. EDT
Soapbox Gallery – 636 Dean Street, Brooklyn
Admission: $10 live/Pay What You Can online
The BREATHING PEACE series presents traditional music of the shakuhachi, a Japanese bamboo flute. With these performances, shakuhachi Grand Master James Schlefer hopes to create an environment of calmness and an opportunity to breathe deeply, contemplating our compassion.
Program
“Futaiken Reibo”
“Kumoijishi” (“Lions in the Clouds”) (arranged by Schlefer)
“Mushi Kuyo” (“Insect Memorial Service”)
“Shika no Tone” (“Distant Call of Deer”)
Guest Musicians
Victoria Yuraku Brand
Karl Yōraku Spicer
Robert Furaku Winn
Soapbox Gallery has a limited number of seats for a vaccinated and masked live audience. The gallery will also broadcast the concert live, and it will remain online for three days after the premiere.
To purchase tickets, please visit Soapbox Gallery’s website. Schlefer and Soapbox Gallery will donate 50% of box office revenue to Food Bank for NYC.
About the Shakuhachi
The shakuhachi is an end-blown Japanese bamboo flute. The Fuke School of Buddhism originally played it as a form of Zen meditation practice. This special music has been passed down from teacher to student for many centuries.
About James Nyoraku Schlefer
Lifelong Brooklyn resident James Nyoraku Schlefer is a Grand Master of the Japanese shakuhachi flute. He is a virtuoso performer of traditional and contemporary music, an esteemed teacher in the Kinko school, and a ground-breaking composer. Schlefer’s efforts promote and sustain traditional shakuhachi music through performances, lecture/demonstrations, residencies, and concert programming. His original compositions forge new ground with contemporary works for both Japanese and Western instruments and ensembles. In 2015, Musical America International honored him as one of the “30 Top Professionals and Influencers.”
About Soapbox Gallery
Soapbox Gallery is dedicated to presenting music, performance, and works of art that engage the issues of our time. The room itself is a beautiful, meditative environment designed with state-of-the art acoustics to showcase exceptional musicianship from around the world. The gallery was founded on the premise that art and culture are powerful reminders of our shared humanity, which can help to shape identity and promote social evolution. The soapbox’s inspiration is that a simple, humble box—on which one stands and delivers a speech—can start a movement and perhaps even help to change the world.
It’s Soapbox Gallery founders’ mission to create space for civil conversation between those with differing views. The intent of their programming is to create a dialogue where everyone has a seat at the table.
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