Celia's Concert Announcement: Baroque Collegium Sapporo

This Thursday I'm playing in a concert with Baroque Collegium Sapporo! I will be playing in a Schenck duet for 2 viola da gambas, and basso continuo for a set of Marais pieces. The concert details are on the poster attached below, but in case you can't read it...

Baroque Music Evening
Thursday, May 31, 7:00 p.m.
Hokkaido University, Enyuugakusha (遠友学舎)
Kita 18 Jo, Nishi 7 Chome (see map below)

And it's free! Bring a friend if you like.

今週の木曜日にバロック・コレギウム札幌というグルップと演奏します。　私はSchenckとMaraisの曲をビオラ・ダ・ガンバで弾きます。　今一生懸命練習しています！　下のちらしを見て下さい。

 来て下さいね！


Also, Keith performed Beethoven's Missa Solemnis yesterday with the Sapporo Symphony Chorus. I have attached some pictures!

そして、昨日キースは札響合唱団とベートーベンのミサ・ソレムニスを演奏しました。　写真をポストしました。

Where's Keith?　キースはどこ？

There he is!　見つかった！

After the concert, we attended a party for the choir members.　コンサートの後で、合唱団の為のパーティーに出席しました。

Cultural Education Journal: Public Speaking

Last Friday, as part of our language school chapel time, I told the story of my faith. Emboldened by my recent kimono classes, I decided to use the occasion as an opportunity to put my kimono on by myself! Thankfully my teachers could check to make sure I did everything right.

Today's post is the text of my story in Japanese; sorry, no English translation. I've realized that it's hard to even translate my own Japanese, since Japanese and English are just not at all alike. Enjoy the pictures, anyway.

先週の金曜日に、学校の「チャペル・タイム」という礼拝の中で、信仰の物語を伝えました。　その為に、初めて自分で着物を着ました！　学校の先生がチェックしてくれて、よかったです。　写真と私の信仰の物語を楽しんで下さい。　まだまだ日本語が上手じゃないので、許して下さい！

信仰の物語
セリア・オルソン

「まことに、主は、正しい者の道を知っておられる。」　詩篇一篇六節

その道は長く険しい道ですが、そこを歩みたいです。

私は１９８１年アメリカのシアトル市に生まれて、　両親に愛されて育ちました。　そのおかげで色々な面白い事が経験できました。　両親はクリスチャンですから、とても小さい頃から神様の愛を知る事ができました。　私の子供の頃の信仰は本当の信仰でしたが、赤ちゃんの未熟な信仰でした。　私の人生をまだ神様にささげていませんでした。

小学校の５年生の時、色々な出来事がありました。　１つはチェロを弾き始めた事です。　それは私の人生に大きな影響を与えました。　それから、新しい家に引越ししました。

そして、新しい小学校に転校しました。　他の子供たちにいじめられて、「出る杭は打たれる」という感じでした。　両親と他の大人によく褒められていたので、私は自分が他の子供たちより価値がある子だと思ってしまいました。　いじめられた事がきっかけで寂しくなって、自信がなくなりました。

中学校に入ってすぐ、私は「出る杭」にならないように注意しました。　私はあまり人気がありませんでしたが、親友が数人いて、特に中学校のオーケストラ教室の仲間と仲がよかったです。　オーケストラ教室は私の居場所になりましたから、オーケストラの為に生きていたようなものでした。　

高校生の時、シアトル・ユース・シンフォニーという若者の為の交響楽団に入りました。　隣のチェリストの男性に昼御飯に誘われました。　それで、私が彼を高校のプロムというパーティーに誘いました。　私達はすぐに恋に落ちました。　恋人を通して、自分の居場所をやっと見つけたと思いました。

表面的には、いい子だったし、何の問題もなく、全てがうまく行っているように見えました。　家族に愛されていたし、いい子だと思われたかったので、大体両親の言う事を聞いていました。　毎週教会へ通っていました。　そして、一生懸命勉強して、チェロも練習して、コロラド大学の音楽科に入学しました。　それはチェリストの恋人と同じ大学でした。　しかし、心の中では、成功と自分の居場所を無くす事を恐れていました。

大学の二年生の頃、恋人の友達に嫉妬するようになってしまいました。　彼の心が離れていると感じましたから、いつも一緒にいたかったです。　すると、彼に振られてしまいました。

心の苦しみから逃れようと色々な事をしました。　そして、ドイツに留学しましたが、勉強より遊ぶ時間の方が多かったです。　それでも、私の空の心を満たすものが見つけられませんでした。

ドイツから帰国して、ジョシュア・ハリスが書いた「聖書が教える恋愛講座」という本を読みました。　その本で神様の完全な愛について習いました。　人間の心には暗さがありますから、人間関係はよく失敗に終わります。　表面的にはよくても、私の心には嫉妬や神様への信頼の欠如や神様以外のものを第一にする事などがありました。　しかし、神様は人間のそのような弱さが全部お分かりです。　神様は人間としてこの世へいらっしゃり、人間としてお暮らしになり、人間として喜びと苦労を経験され、人間として亡くなりました。　神様の愛は完全で、失敗する事があり得ません。

信仰をもう一度持って、神様を信頼し、神様の道を歩もうと決めました。　幸いな時も、困難な時も、神様の備えを信じて、私は大学三年生の時から神様の力によって歩むようになり、平安と喜びに満たされました。

読んでくださって、ありがとうございました。　：）

Cultural Education Journal: Shamisen Debut!

Here's an excerpt from my journal on April 22.

Today was my first shamisen performance. It was also my built-by-daddy shamisen’s debut.

I joined with a studio recital extravaganza put on by my teacher, Arai-sensei’s teacher, Tei-sensei. The performance started at 10:30 a.m. and went until 4:30 p.m. Since it’s Sunday, Arai-sensei and I came late. I arrived around 1:00, after which I had my shamisen fitted with a doukake (a cover for the body of the instrument) and a case.

A lot of people saw my extra-large, unusually coloured shamisen and stopped to look… and then they saw me with the shamisen. Somehow it’s fitting that the gaijin’s (foreigner's) shamisen looks different than all the others. Then when they learned that my dad built it, they were very impressed! I think people generally thought it sounds good too... although a bit too "pretty" compared to the other shamisen. :)

I took my kimono into a small room with 3 ladies who dressed me in my kimono and did my hair in 15 minutes flat. When there are three people putting a kimono on you, the best thing to do is to place your feet shoulder width apart and prepare to be jerked around. I learned a new word: “ぎゅう" (gyuu), an onomatopoeia for squeezing. The ladies asked what sort of musubi (bow) I would like for my obi (sash). I smiled and told them to do as they liked. So I got a fun musubi.

Fun musubi!

Nice to get some pictures with Keith too. :)

The venue was a traditional style Japanese theatre--tatami mats with low tables and zabuton (floor cushions) and pitchers of tea; all this is arranged in tiers so that everyone can see the front.

Tei-sensei (center) performing with Arai-sensei (right)

I watched the program for a while before it was my turn, giving me a chance to hear lots of songs I’ve never heard before and observe others’ technique... not to mention, learning the procedure for the performance, which was a bit confusing even when explained slowly in easy-to-understand Japanese.

I performed with a large group of singers and shamisen players--being the only gaijin and probably the only female under about 40, I was placed front and center in my bright blue kimono. The person next to me was the only male under about 55. In fact, he was 16. I think the performance went well. I don’t think I made any glaring errors.

Some friends came to see me perform, including Naoko-san. Also, a number of guests came from Tonden Church, where Arai-sensei is a member.

I realized that it’s not very comfortable to sit 正座 (seiza--sitting "correctly" in a kneeling position) on a wood floor as I did during the performance, even if there is a thin carpet on top. And although I practiced, sitting 正座 (seiza) for several hours during the rest of the performance and the party afterwards really started hurting my knees...

The party afterwards: wow, I never thought I would so quickly have an opportunity to be a part of an old-school Japanese party. I also never thought there could be so many ways to eat crab (the venue is was a crab restaurant, after all). My favourite was the nigirizushi (that's the kind of sushi where there's a little blob of rice with fish on top--unfortunately it was immediately devoured, so there's no picture).

For entertainment, there was karaoke, of course. Most of it was Enka, and since it was a room full of musicians specializing in traditional Japanese music, a lot of the karaoke was quite good. Dancing was also encouraged. I also sang (but did not dance). I think the words were different from the ones I knew. Oh well, everyone was still impressed that I could sing in Japanese. After I sang, Tei-sensei interviewed me in front of everyone... that was by far more difficult than singing.

I think the highlight of the evening for me was a performance of the story of Momotaro sung with shamisen accompaniment by Tei-sensei and danced by one of the students. Very, very cool.

At the close of the evening, there was a janken tournament (the Japanese version of rock-paper-scissors), which I somehow won, without knowing how janken works. Honestly, how do you play rock-paper-scissors in a group? (note: I asked my Japanese teacher to explain, so now I know.) My prize was a nose-hair trimmer.

With Arai-sensei

The lady in the black kimono danced the Momotaro dance; Tei-sensei is wearing the white kimono.

After I put on my haori (kimono coat) to go home, because of my "fun musubi," I ended up with a spectacular obi-hunchback. I think obi-hunchbacks are hilarious, but I think most Japanese are so used to seeing them that it's not funny any more. :)

When I got home and took off my kimono, I found that there were 11 things tied around my waist.

May Newsletter

Dear Friends and Family,

The winter is over, and we’ve woken up from hibernation! Actually, our life has been quite busy and exciting for the last several months, with a vacation to Hawaii with family, Keith joining the Sapporo Symphony Chorus, Celia joining Baroque Collegium Sapporo and continuing with her shamisen... and of course we press onward in our language studies. We’re excited to see how these musical opportunities will unfold, especially regarding the new friends we are meeting!
***

Missionaries Need Vacation

In case you were wondering, that's Keith, Celia, our sister-in-law, Jiayun, and Celia's brother, Colin, photographed with an underwater camera. And in a way, this photo represents our feelings about Japanese study before we went on vacation... we feel better now.

We went to Hawaii in March. Trust me (Celia), we would have gone on vacation much closer to home, had Keith’s cousins not lived there, and had my parents not met us there. But in any case, we needed a vacation, having not had an away-from-home vacation since we arrived in Japan.

OMF gives us 4 weeks of vacation each year, and we are required to use it. We’ve realized recently how important rest is to anyone living cross-culturally. Although we are very happy here, everyday life in Japan makes us quite a bit more tired than it does when we’re at home in the US. When we go to the grocery store or the tea shop or go out with friends, conversation, menus, package labels, and signs are all in Japanese. While this is great for language learning, it also makes us tired.

My brain is filled with Japanese. In fact, it is so full of Japanese, that a lot of other things get pushed out. I studied German for 5 years, but now I can’t speak German at all. I often forget things or lose things. In the US, I am very well organized, but in Japan I’m a bit of a mess.

We’ve found that our speaking and listening skills are several weeks behind what we are learning in the classroom. It takes awhile for our brains to digest what we are learning. Sometimes it feels like over-eating.

That’s where vacation comes in. When we came home from Hawaii, having not spoken Japanese or studied at all for a week and a half, we were actually speaking Japanese at a higher level than when we left. Having had time to rest and be with family, we had some time to slowly process what we’ve been learning.

Some of the highlights of the trip were cooking and eating with Keith’s cousin and his family, visiting the Pearl Harbor museum and memorial, worshipping (in English!) at a church where a friend from Regent is associate pastor, a boat trip with my mom on which we were able to see whales and other sea life, playing shamisen with my dad, and the traditional Wilson family frog search.

Cooking with Stacey (Keith's cousin's wife)

Eating with Eric and the kids

After church in Honolulu

Celia went on a boat trip with her mom.

Traditional Wilson family frog search (seriously, we've been doing this since I was 5)

Celia's family

I think our next vacation will be in Japan, and we’re looking forward to resting again and seeing more of this beautiful country!
***

Worshipping with non-Christians

I (Keith) happened to know somebody who knows somebody who is good friends with the conductor of the Sapporo Symphony Chorus. Therefore, after playing the Japanese version of the telephone game for three weeks, I was able to enter this choir despite having already missed half of the rehearsals and nearly bombing my audition (the twice removed relationship helped I think). I started in March, and every Tuesday night since then, I’ve had the privilege to join my voice with a hundred others to sing Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis,” a piece written for worship services in Latin.

I was going to say that it feels surreal to sing praises to God with so many Japanese people, most of whom wouldn’t even understand what they are singing even if it were in Japanese, but actually Tuesday nights feel very real and meaningful, which makes sense considering we are singing truths about the gospel. Whether the people in the room know it or not, they are giving glory to God, and it makes me smile and frown at the same time. I smile because I know the secret, which is that Beethoven has somehow tricked so many choirs through the years including this Sapporo Symphony Chorus into unknowingly worshipping God. It makes me frown that this worship is a secret and unknown to the many people who sound so passionate but are only passionate insofar as the music moves their own feelings. After rehearsals, I’m left feeling these two extremes, but both are spurring me on to the same thing, which is to see worship in Japan done knowingly and for the glory of God alone.
***

Celia’s Cultural Education Journal: Learning about the Japanese View of Art

Last November I started taking shamisen lessons. A shamisen is a 3-stringed traditional Japanese instrument which is played with a large plectrum called a Bachi. I’ve been making good progress, and last month I had my first performance!

With my teacher, Arai-sensei

Once during a lesson, my teacher asked me which “school” of cello playing I belonged to. I responded that I didn’t really belong to one; in fact, my teachers had encouraged me to develop my own style and not to listen to recordings of pieces I’m working on, so as not to be affected by the performer’s interpretation. My teacher looked surprised, and handed me a CD. “This is my teacher’s performance of the pieces we will play in the concert. Listen to them and learn her interpretation. You can also practice along with the CD.”

I realized just how different my concept of performance is from my teacher’s—and from that of many performers and artists in Japan. Their creativity and expression comes within the framework of a long tradition, as they seek to emulate and learn from past masters. Suddenly the way I had been taught to view performance seemed naïve and even oppressive—if my performance is not unique, different from the thousands of other cellists who perform the same piece, then it has no value. Realizing the value of learning from and emulating those who have gone before suddenly became an attractive and freeing proposition.

I’ve started writing a journal of my experiences in learning about Japanese culture. I will be including short updates in our newsletter, but please check our blog for more frequent updates.
***

Prayer Points:

• We are thankful to have so many musical opportunities: Celia with her viola da gamba and shamisen buddies and Keith with the Sapporo Symphony Chorus. Please pray for our preparation for concerts at the end of May and especially that we can have deeper relationships with our new musical friends.

Rehearsing for May 31 concert with new viola da gamba friend, Kumiko

• Our designation process continues; during this month’s field council (May 15-17) our placement after language school will be discussed and potentially decided. Please pray for those attending this council to prayerfully consider the church where we could best serve and learn, and please continue to pray for us to be attentive to God’s guiding for our ministry after language school.
• Every newsletter we mention in some form or another the need to find a good balance between studies, church, friends, and other responsibilities. Particularly, please pray that Keith would find a means of exercising now that it is warmer; pray for us to persevere in our Japanese study as it grows harder and harder while the grammar and vocabulary are becoming less and less applicable to everyday life; pray for us to continue to make time to be with friends.

Jingis Khan (lamb hot pot like dish which is a specialty in Hokkaido) after church!

 ***

Engrish of the Month
To celebrate spring, we’ve chosen this Engrish which we found on a bowl.

***

Next week on May 9 we celebrate the anniversary of receiving the green light to return to Japan! Thanks to all of you who prayed, invited us to your churches and homes, pledged to support us, and generally loved and encouraged us during our year in Seattle. We will never forget the ways the love of God was made tangible and present through each of you.

Love in Christ,
Keith and Celia

Celia's Cultural Education Journal

I have 3 cultural goals for my first four years in Japan… other than the obvious goal to “communicate well in spoken and written Japanese.” I have started a journal about my progress, so from time to time I'll be posting short updates here on our blog. But first, let me introduce my three goals.

My first goal is to play the shamisen and accompany myself singing. I’m now able to play easy songs on the shamisen, and I’ll probably start working on songs I can sing as well. Although the shamisen technique is in some ways quite similar to cello and viola da gamba technique, the style is quite different... and I still struggle with hitting the right string. Singing will be even more of a challenge. I’ve been trained to sing Bach, but Japanese music styles such as Minyo and Enka do not sound anything like Bach.

First time playing my made-by-daddy Shamisen (in Hawaii!)

Modeling my shamisen and yukata (casual summer kimono)

My second goal is to put on a kimono by myself. When I bought a yukata last summer, I did not leave the store until the shop owners were satisfied that I could properly put on the yukata and tie a chou-chou-musubi (butterfly bow) with a hanhaba (half width) obi. The basics of a kimono are similar, but more complicated. Also, the obi is stiffer and wider; a variety of musubi (bows) are possible, but it’s much, much more difficult. Right now I'm learning to tie a taiko musubi, the standard musubi which is always appropriate.

First shot at putting a yukata on someone else. This is a chou-chou-musubi.

Kimono wearing class

First successful taiko-musubi!

My third goal is to prepare matcha and perform the tea ceremony. I’ve had a couple of opportunities to participate as a guest in the tea ceremony, but as for preparing and serving the tea, I’ve not yet started. This goal requires the completion of goal 2—many tea classes require the participants to wear a kimono.

Guests for tea ceremony (2 years ago)

I have a number of reasons for choosing these particular goals. First, they are things that I like. I have loved tea for as long as I can remember. I also love hospitality, with which serving tea is intimately connected. I love kimono—I love seeing other people wear kimono, and I love the way I look in one. I also love that wearing kimono gives me good posture. And I love shamisen. It’s just so cool…

Second, learning Japanese traditional arts is a way to meet people. There are classes that anyone can join. I can meet up with fellow kimono enthusiasts to go out together wearing kimono. And older ladies love that I’m learning the things that their daughters aren’t interested in.

Third, learning Japanese traditional arts will give me opportunities to introduce Japanese culture to our friends and family when we are home in the US... and a great excuse to have tea parties! I envision myself inviting friends for tea, complete with kimono demonstration and shamisen performance. We can also do presentations at churches and prayer meetings and such. I can talk about some of the many things we like about Japan… and also about how to pray for the church and the people of Japan in general.

I'll be working hard to accomplish these goals and to learn more about Japanese culture! 頑張ります! Check back soon, since I'll be posting about my first shamisen performance. :)