THE GREAT UNKNOWN AND THE UNKNOWN GREAT: Classical music behind barbed wires

(Editor’s Note: The following was co-written with Jonathan van Harmelen) In the tragic and difficult conditions faced by Japanese Americans confined in the War Relocation Authority camps during World War II, one imposing arena of achievement was in the arts. In recent years, a number of books and exhibits have highlighted not only the extraordinary […]

‘HIDDEN LEGACY’: Film showcases the preservation of Japanese arts in the wartime concentration camps

SAN JOSE — June 28 marked the premiere film screening of “Hidden Legacy: Japanese Traditional Performing Arts in the World War II Internment Camps” at San Jose’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library. The film explores the practice and preservation of Japanese cultural arts in the American concentration camps, and is the result of more […]

Shirley Muramoto’s ‘Hidden Legacy’ to explore arts in the wartime camps

Each year, more and more stories from the World War II American concentration camps are shared, broadening the public’s awareness about the long-term effects mass incarceration has had on the Japanese American community. Stories about people like Fred Korematsu, the Heart Mountain draft resisters and the “No-Nos” are esteemed within the community for their strong […]

THE SOUND OF THE SOUL: Self-expression through shakuhachi

Six musicians gather in a semi-circle in a cavernous East Bay performance space. The room is quiet until they lift their shakuhachi (Japanese bamboo flute). With the first notes, their heads rock from side to side, cheeks puffing, eyebrows darting upward along with particularly dramatic notes. The sounds reverberate against the walls, long wavering notes […]