For more info on Japanese Contemporary Dance Today: A Talk by Akiko Tachiki and other events visit The Japan Foundation.

Date: 16 December 2009 from 6.00pm
Venue: Founders' Studio, The Place
17 Duke's Road, London WC1H 9PY

This event is free to attend but booking is essential.

To reserve a place, please email event@jpf.org.uk, giving your name and those of any guests.

This event is co-organised with ResCen, Middlesex University and The Place.

'Interest in Japanese contemporary dance has boomed in the past few years but it is not always easy to grasp what is going on and who are the Japanese dance professionals on the verge of hitting the world stage. Akiko Tachiki, one of Japan's most active dance journalists and critics, will lead this special event and talk about the current trends in Japanese contemporary dance and what the future is likely to hold. This event offers a rare opportunity to find out about the most recent developments in Japanese contemporary dance and to take part in a discussion with one of Japan's most eminent dance experts.'

The event Music Beyond Labels - Exploring New Music from Japan is organised by the Japan Foundation in association with the London International Festival of Exploratory Music (LIFEM), takes place at 6.30pm on the 6th November. Contact The Japan Foundation for further info.

'In recent years, a growing number of Japanese musicians have appeared on the UK music scene. This recent popularity has been attributed to the uniqueness and versatility of Japanese music and musicians, appealing to the desire of music fans to experience something new and original. For this event, the Japan Foundation has invited UK-based Japanese artist, DJ Scotch Egg, who has gained a reputation for mixing music from techno-related genres, including gabber and chiptunes, to talk about his musical career and artistic philosophy.

He will be accompanied by Franck Stofer, of the artist agency, Sonore. Franck has been a passionate advocate of the creativity of contemporary Japanese music, and will share his views on the state and nature of the music scene in Japan. The evening's proceedings will be chaired by Alan Cummings, Freelance Writer for music magazine The Wire.'

DJ Scotch Egg will be part of this year's LIFEM lineup, together with two other Japanese musicians, Oorutaichi and Midori Hirano, on 7 November at Kings Place.

The Japan Local Government Centre, in partnership with the Local Government Association, is delighted to invite you to the 2009 Japan Day Seminar in London. The Japan Day Seminar is an annual event organised by the Japan Local Government Centre to raise awareness of Japan and Japanese local government and provide the opportunity to exchange information and ideas on local government policy and best practice concerning both the UK and Japan.

Date: Monday, 23rd November, 2009
Time: 1:30pm - 5pm
Place: Local Government House, Smith Square, London SW1P 3HZ

Marking the 20th anniversary of the Japan Local Government Centre in London, 2009's Japan Day Seminar will examine the different strategies that local authorities in Japan and the UK have adopted to deal with issues brought on by the recession. It will feature talks by Cllr Richard Kemp, Chairman of the LGA European and International Strategy Group, Leader of the LGA Liberal Democrats Group, and LGA Deputy Chair; Greg Clark, Advisor on City and Regional Development, UK Gov (CLG); Neil McInroy, Chief Executive of the Centre for Local Economic Strategies; and Michitaka Nakao, former Director of Business Development, Japan External Trade Organisation London Office. The talks will then be followed by an interactive panel discussion featuring the above speakers plus Akiyuki Hamagami, Director General of the European Representative Office of Hyogo Prefectural Government. It will then conclude with a drinks reception.

The Japan Day Seminar and reception are free to attend. Please register by Friday the 6th of November by emailing mailbox@jlgc.org.uk, indicating your name, address, organisation, affiliation, and whether you will attend the seminar, reception or both.

Interested in brushing up your Japanese?

What about teaching Japanese?

The Language Show will take place over three days from 30th October to 1st November 2009, at Olympia 2, near Hammersmith.

For free tickets to attend, visit The Language Show's website.

'The Language Show is the UK's biggest event for language learners, teachers, linguists and anyone with a love for languages. The show offers language enthusiasts all the help, advice and resources needed to learn or teach languages all under one roof. Plus, there's a dedicated Language Careers Fair for job seekers.'

The Japan Foundation will also be running a stand together with JP-Books at The Language Show 2009. Talk to them about Japanese language education in the UK and to browse an assortment of Japanese books. There will also be Japanese language tasters running over the course of the three days.

The President of Tondaya kimonos, Mrs. Tanaka Mineko returns to London this year to present a talk on kimono throughout the ages and will conclude the evening by performing a lovely fan dance. The talk will be in Japanese with English translation, and will be accompanied by a Powerpoint presentation.

Date: Tuesday, 10th November 2009
Time: 6.30pm, with an optional tour at 5.30pm
Cost: £10 for members of the Japan Society, £15 for non-members
Place: The Japan Room
Lodge Room No. 11
The Freemasons' Hall
60 Great Queen Street
London WC2B 5AZ

There will also be souvenirs from Tondaya for sale, so please bring cash. There is an optional tour of the The Freemasons' Hall so please assemble at 5.15pm if you plan to attend. The Japan Society will handle registration and no tickets will be issued.

To register your attendance, please contact the Japan Society on tel: 020 7828 6330 or email events@japansociety.org.uk with 'Kyoto Kimono Talk & Fan Dance ' in the subject, giving your name, email address and telephone number within the body of the message. Please state whether you wish to join the free tour of the hall.

The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation will host an afternoon seminar on Victorian Architecture in Meiji Japan on Friday, 2nd October 2009 from 2pm - 4pm, followed by a drinks reception.

Britain's foremost authority on the social and cultural history of the Victorian era, Lord Asa Briggs, will chair the lecture and Professor Hiroyuki Suzuki who is Professor of the School of Cultural & Creative Studies of Aoyama Gakuin University will also contribute.

This is a free event, but booking is essential on The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation's website - here.

'This lecture by the eminent architectural historian, Professor Hiroyuki Suzuki, will explore the Victorian face of Meiji Japan through the work of Josiah Conder (1852-1920), a British architect invited by the Japanese government to teach at the Imperial College of Engineering in Tokyo in 1877. Conder went on to design over fifty buildings during his career in Japan and trained a new generation of Japanese architects, transplanting Victorian taste into the changing urban landscape of Meiji Japan. The restoration of such buildings provides a contemporary context in which to consider Victorian architecture in a foreign setting.'

'Hooray for the Nagasaki Tramcar'

Exhibition of prints and drawings at the Daiwa Foundation Japan House, and a talk by Chris Orr RA. (14 September -11 December 2009). The talk is on 4th November, 2009.

'Chris Orr RA was Professor of Printmaking at the Royal College of Art (1998-2008) and is now Professor Emeritus. He has exhibited at the Whitechapel, Serpentine Galleries, Victoria and Albert Museum, British Museum and the Tate, as well as at the Jill George Gallery London, and the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. In 2008 he was awarded an MBE for services to the Arts.'

The exhibition is free to view. Visit the Daiwa Ango-Japanese Foundation's website for more details.

Concise Courses - a brand spanking new Japanese Language and Culture school is 'possibly the coolest Japanese language school in London!'

The next course starts this Saturday - the 25th - and Concise Courses are offering Isshoni London readers 10% off!

Why study with Concise Courses? Well, this school is completely passionate about teaching and promoting Japanese Culture and Japanese Language in London. There will be a fun and creative two hour language lesson followed by a guest speaker each week.

The classes are held in central London locations, with a class size maximum of fifteen students. Concise Course staff and teachers are actively involved in the Japanese-UK community and will be able to inspire you with their knowledge!

Visit Concise Course's funky and info-packed website or email info@concise-courses.co.uk for more information....

Photography in Nineteenth-Century Japan is the subject of 'A Special Issue of History of Photography' (released for Summer 2009, by Taylor & Francis).

This edition is guest edited by Luke Gartlan, with contributions by Sebastian Dobson, Karen Fraser, Luke Gartlan, Mikiko Hirayama, David Odo and Mio Wakita.

The Daiwa Anglo Foundation will host the launch of the book at the Daiwa Foundation Japan House on Tuesday 30 June 2009, 6.00pm - 8.00pm. If you wish to attend, you must book your place here.

There will be presentations by Dr Luke Gartlan and Sebastian Dobson from 6.00pm chaired by Professor Toshio Watanabe, followed by a drinks reception.

This issue of History of Photography will be available on the day at the special price of £15 (normally only available via subscription for £40 per issue).

'From the earliest accounts of its arrival in Japan, the camera has played a key role in the visual culture of Japanese society. In this provocative collection of essays, six renowned scholars have highlighted the historical diversity and significance of photography as a medium par excellence of Japanese visual modernity. Luke Gartlan and Sebastian Dobson will present their most recent research on the domestic enthusiasm and complex socio-political uses of photography in late Edo and early Meiji Japan. What role did photography play in negotiating the emergence of Japanese modernity? How do its diverse historical applications, in both everyday and official government contexts, challenge our understanding of the period? Avoiding the tendency to impose unifying historical narratives, these papers will present detailed case studies of key moments in the history of photography's arrival in Japan which raise broader issues central to current debates on the era's visual culture.'

Every year, JETAA London runs the Careers Information Day to help JETs returning to the UK this summer and those looking for a change in career. This year, the event will be in the afternoon on Friday, 25th of September on the HMS President.

They are currently looking for volunteers to join the CID rganising committee. Roles range from selling sponsorship and exhibitions, to recruiting speakers, helping out on the day, producing the brochure, managing registrations and more!

If you can offer you help in any way they are keen to here from you. Also, if you have some career advice to pass on to other JETs then why not speak at the event? JETAA are looking for people who would be prepared to give a short workshop (including Q&A) on their career field.

If you’d like to get involved, email Ed at cidregistration@jetaa.org.uk. Visit the JETAA London website for more information, or to sign up for the day.

Saké is quickly becoming the trendiest drink in London.

But do you know your Daiginjo from your Junmai Ginjo?

This workshop with a qualified saké lecturer and saké enthusiast in Fulham is a fine opportunity to find out about how it is made, and of course, sample many types!

'Sharing a brief history and look at Japanese sake drinking culture, we will take a look at what it is, how sake is made, its place in Japanese culture and growing popularity across the world.

Five premium sakes will be on tasting with a selection of Japanese food in a Japanese traditional and friendly atmosphere.'

To be held at Yumenoki Japanese Restaurant on Fulham Road, on Sunday 3rd May 2009 , the event starts at 6.30pm.

The tickets are £40 and include the saké guide, a tasting of 5 premium sakés, a Japanese dinner and more...

See the shiny new Saké Sommelier Association website for more information on this and other events.

To book call Anna 079888 99465 or Kumiko 079057 11457,

or email anna@sakesommelierassociation.com or kumiko@sakesommelierassociation.com.

'Marrying traditional Japanese theatre, Kabuki, with Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, celebrated Japanese director, Yukio Ninagawa creates a visionary new production.

Working for the first time with two of Kabuki’s greatest performers, Onoe Kikugoro VII and his son Onoe Kikunosuke V, Ninagawa relocates Shakespeare’s well-loved comedy to a fantastical and colourful world set in Japan’s historical past.

Through stylised gestures, speech and music; executed with precision timing, Kabuki brings a new energy to Shakespeare’s comedic moments. Ninagawa’s striking staging reflects a fanciful but nonetheless quintessential Japanese world producing a Twelfth Night of timeless beauty.'

Nightly at 7pm, the performances will be in Japanese with English surtitles.

On Saturday 28th March join the Shochiku Grand Kabuki Pre-Show Talk. Producer Thelma Holt discusses bringing Grand Kabuki to the Barbican. Free to same day ticket holders.

Listening to Akemi Solloway talk at Orbital Manga on a gloomy Saturday afternoon we were whisked away on a winding journey – one that led us out of the intimate central London shop and into the wide world of Japanese culture…

A teacher and lecturer in Japanese culture, Akemi seamlessly weaves illustrative anecdotes and factual information about traditional clothing, tea ceremony, religion, calligraphy, with more modern trends such as manga and anime.

Appealing to contemporary concerns, Akemi showed the benefits of kimono – the large sleeves make a natural pocket that could help cut back on plastic bag wastage. Likewise, the Japanese all-purpose carrying cloth is a beautiful and re-usable carry-all. Akemi also produced a fan from her obi (belt) and explained how this can be an effective weapon when made in iron.

Akemi digresses artfully in response to audience questions yet always remains on track. Diet, posture, prostitution, slurping, Harajuku girls – everything adds to the picture.

Interestingly, the talk highlighted the surprising commonalities between Japanese and British culture. For example, we both have Royal Families (Princess Akiko of Mikasa is currently studying at University of Oxford). The familiar sailor outfit of Japanese high school students came from the British Naval Officers. Tea is beloved in both countries, as are flowers (Japanese ladies idealise the typical English country garden; English ladies study Ikebana!).

If you'd like to hear Akemi talk, visit The Japanese Art Festival in Richmond on 28th February and the 1st of March...

I also managed to ask Akemi a few more questions about her own thoughts and motivations...

What first inspired you to bring Japanese culture to the UK?

When I first moved to the UK in 1995 people weren’t talking about Japan very much. I brought with me to the UK hundreds of kimono, and through them I began to share Japanese culture. I also took an MA in Japanese Religion so that I could explain more about it to people, through school visits and talks.

But now, Japanese culture is very popular in the UK. Why do you think that is?

I think that manga and anime brought Japanese culture to a wider audience. When I talk to young people taking Japanese GCSEs or A levels I find that they have often developed their interest in Japan through reading manga in English!

What the best way to access Japanese culture in London?

I think one the best ways is through manga and anime. Cosplay is also becoming more and more popular, with many events for people to get involved in.

What’s your favourite part of living in London?

Freedom. Here, as a woman, I can have a business. I am free to do what I want and am not restricted by the traditional role a woman must play in Japan.

Thanks to Akemi for a great afternoon. Check out her website to find out about events she’ll be holding. Akemi is the main organiser of The Japanese Art Festival in Richmond on 29th February and 1st March 2009.

gloomy - 薄暗い
winding - 曲線
intimate – literally 親友, but meaning 狭いところ
seamlessly – literally 継ぎ目無, but meaning 滑らかに
weaves - 編む
illustrative - 詳しい
anecdotes - 逸話
contemporary - 現代
concerns - 心配
wastage - 消耗
alternative - 代わり
digresses - 脇に逸れる
artfully - 巧妙に
commonalities - 同じ事
sailor outfit -セーラー服
idealise -理想的にしなさい

Enjoy a simple buffet supper and the opportunity for discussion with Ambassador Ebihara. The Ambassador will also speak to the group regarding a wide range of topics following the supper, but the emphasis is on informality.

Held in the Penderel's Oak on High Holborn, this is a great chance to chat and exchange views. There will be a pay bar; the evening costs £10 for members of the Japan Society and JETaa.

Register by calling the Japan Society on 020 7828 6330 or email events@japansociety.org.uk.

Everyone knows Hokusai’s iconic ‘Under the Wave off Kanagawa’ woodblock print – a motif which swept over the world in 1830. Known as ‘The Great Wave’ this ocean view was symbolic of Japan’s growing concern about the foreign worlds that lay across the seas.

The Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures presents a series of three lectures called ‘Hokusai’s Great Wave – The Making of a Global Icon’. Presented by Christine M.E. Guth, these lectures coincide with the British Museum’s recent acquisition of an excellent example of the print.

For more information about these free lectures on Japanese Art in London see the Sainsbury Institute's website.

‘Island Nations’ is a lecture series in English for adults celebrating the 150 years of fully-fledged diplomatic relations between two distinct island nations: the UK and Japan.

Noted experts and leading academics will explore how the island nations have shaped and influenced each other socially, culturally, scientifically and politically.

The series of lectures is held on Thursdays from 11am – 1pm at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. Register on-line at their website, or call the bookings office at 020 8312 8560.

fully-fledged - 本格的
diplomatic – 外交
distinct –明瞭