「Tufts University」カテゴリーアーカイブ

Ayub Nur: Shamisen

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This fall, my CIP was learning the shamisen. The Shamisen is a traditional Japanese stringed instrument: it’s almost built like a banjo and you’ll quite often see it in the hands of a Geisha.

I was lucky enough to learn under Iwasaki Chieko-sensei and Iwasaki Yumi-sensei, who are both in the attached video. Though I just as much have to thank the many others at the company who taught me too. By the time I was ready to perform, it felt much more like I joined a family than just a music group.

My greatest piece of advice that I can offer is, if you’re interested in playing traditional Japanese music, do so with Iwasaki-sensei and tell everyone I said hi. Jokes aside, the learning curve of always speaking a new language is harsh and I’m grateful that I could lean on playing music all throughout the semester. More than just that, I’m glad that I had a final performance that I was building up towards to make sure that I came to practice whether I was feeling able or not. Coming in every week is what truly made my Japanese and music better. The genuine best advice I can offer is, studying abroad is draining so have a project that you can feel your progress in to keep your spirits high.

Naomi Lam: (Classical) Guitar Club

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My CIP activity is the guitar club. I learned how to play the guitar, specifically the classical guitar. I was learning how to play the electric guitar, so I picked the guitar club, thinking learning the classical guitar wouldn’t be too different from the electric guitar. I was also exposed to new music genres like bossa nova and just classical guitar music.
Advice for beginners like me, I would start by learning simple songs and knowing the Solfege notation.

Anna Yan: Volunteering at 聖マリア幼稚園　 子ども食堂 (Kodomo Shokudō)

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At Kodomo Shokudō, I volunteer to help create a welcoming space where children and families can enjoy meals together. My main tasks include assisting with meal preparation and cleanup and interacting with children to build connections and learn more about Japanese culture.

This experience has taught me the importance of communication and adaptability in cross-cultural settings. Engaging with the children has been a highlight, helping me understand Japanese values like politeness and community through their actions. Plus, the food is really good – it’s always a treat to enjoy the delicious and balanced meals prepared here.

Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and engage with others, even if your Japanese isn’t perfect. Small efforts, like asking questions or sharing activities, go a long way in building meaningful connections. 

 

Julianna Golembeski: Weaving with Kawasaki-Sensei

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For my CIP I took weaving lessons with 河崎先生 and ゆり様. I usually attended lessons once or twice a week and made items such as a table center, wall piece, and scarves. Each lesson usually consisted of chatting for a little, getting to work on the loom and learning new techniques, tea time with a conversation between the three of us (I was the only student for this semester), more weaving, and then another tea before heading out. Seeing a piece and a vision slowly come together was really rewarding. I also really enjoyed talking with 河崎先生 and ゆり様 as well as showing them pictures of my dog (ゆり様 loved those pictures!) and talking about life in Japan and America. This was a nice and relaxing CIP where you get to slowly make textiles and have some nice conversations.

I really recommend this CIP and if you are even a little interested, please check it out. 先生 and ゆり様 are so welcoming and sweet and even though it was my first time using a loom, they taught it to me in easy Japanese and were really patient with me. You also get to make some snazzy textiles which is a big plus!

Noah Bell: Kyūdo Lessons

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A picture of me about to fire an arrow

For my CIP this semester, I had the opportunity to learn Kyūdo under Furuya Sensei at the Kyoto Budo center. For about 2 hours each week, we worked hard to learn the forms and etiquettes of Japanese traditional archery. Our lessons were conducted entirely in Japanese.

The experience was quite challenging at times, but super rewarding since you could see steady progress each week. On top of that, Furuya Sensei was super kind and had a good sense of humor. He was hard to understand at times, but he knew we were trying our best and would show how proud he was of our effort which made me feel super happy and grateful.

If you’re looking to learn Kyūdo, my advice would be to let yourself make mistakes because you are going to make a lot of them. There are so many practices that everyone around you will already know, so don’t feel embarrassed if you mess up or get corrected as it’s all part of the learning experience. Also, I would say to try not to worry too much about your success in hitting the target. KyÅ«do, like many Japanese traditional arts, is about form above all else. If you get the forms correct, accuracy will follow, not the other way around.

Max Luband: Shakuhachi

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For my CIP, I took Shakuhachi lessons at a Shakuhachi players house. I met once a week for two hours, learned a few basic songs and performed at the Otsu traditional performing arts center with my sensei as the culminating event.

The shakuhachi is a difficult instrument and you will most likely need to practice at least a little bit out of lessons. However many of the things that makes the shakuhachi difficult are what make a unique and interesting instrument. For example, the position of your head or how much you are covering a hole will change the pitch of a note, which both allows you to go between pitches seamlessly and demands a greater level of precision on your part to play specific pitches.

 

My biggest worry going into this was that pursuing an instrument in one-on-one setting means I won’t get to learn and experience Japanese culture as I would interacting with a larger group of people via volunteering, but that wasn’t the case. I learned a lot not just about Japanese music concepts , but also about Japanese ways of teaching and learning. The relationship between me and my sensei was much more personal and extended out of lessons in a way that was different from any music tutors I had learned before. I was very much blown away by his kindness

picture Sensei took of me when we visited a temple

 

Isaac Lopez: Taekwondo

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My activity was Taekwondo which is a kicking based martial art that originated in Korea. Here at my CIP I was able to take lessons/train alongside members of Mivlo Kyoto.

It was really fun! The people are all really nice and the instructors are understanding. All in all I can definitely say it helped improve my technique, with the volume of training we do per day you’re bound to make some improvement compared to when you start.

It helped a lot that I had prior experience, otherwise it definitely would’ve been a bit more difficult in the beginning. Also make sure you have lots of stamina if not sheer willpower, warm ups will leave you dazed and drenched in sweat if you’re not used to it.

Arianna Ruhoy: Volunteering at Mitsuba Youchien

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Every Tuesday I would walk to my CIP at Mitsuba kindergarten where I would say hello to the staff and play with the children there while they were waiting for their parents to pick them up. Mitsuba encouraged a very free and loose environment so other than scheduled breaks to eat and clean up, the children felt free to play whatever games they liked. I got to spend time with them and also help them out whenever they needed. It was eye-opening to see how a lot of the Japanese I studied did not overlap with the Japanese the children used, and it encouraged me to get better at conversational Japanese.

My advice to students who want to volunteer at Mitsuba is to be patient, and ask the other teachers for assistance when you are unsure about anything. Such as when a child may not playing fairly or may hurt another child, it can help to ask a teacher for assistance in handling the situation.

Mitsuba Youchien Playground

Mitsuba Youchien Playground

AJ Gallagher: Kyudo

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For my CIP activity this semester, I chose to do Kyudo, which is the traditional Japanese sport of archery. I call it a sport, which it is, but it’s more focused on the actions, form, and mindfulness than it is on actually hitting the target. Slowly feeling yourself improve and go from practicing with a rubber band, to a real bow, to a bow and arrow, to finally stepping out into the dojo and shooting at the target was an incredibly fun journey, Overall, I really enjoyed it, but it was pretty uncomfortable at first being the only foreigners in the dojo. It was also Tuesday from 6 to 7:30 or 8, which meant that for people who are living far away from the dojo you can be stuck on campus from noon until 6. Also, the sensei is INCREDIBLY kind and patient, but also talks quickly and in thick Kansai accent, so I’d steer clear of this as a CIP if you’re not confident in your listening ability.

Jasmine Chen: Weaving

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Weaving?

weaving weaving weaving

Unactivated fiber-optic headpiece

In my weaving lessons with Haruki and Yuri Kawasaki in Kyoto, Japan (filled with a rich textile art history) I practiced the use of a four-treadle floor loom, learning to measure and prepare threads, design intricate patterns, and weave consistently structured pieces. I made beautiful, vibrant scarves (they are my absolute favorite and often receive compliments), along with a glove, pouches, and a shining, fiber-optic headpiece designed to pair with my future ceramic sculptures.

As an advice, communication and comfort is a common concern in CIP activities: learn to observe. I gained a lot from watching Kawasaki sensei and fellow students, understanding their hand movements and thread handling techniques. The Kawasakis, with their generous, humorous, and patient nature, are fantastic to work with and are very open and supportive to artistic project ideas. Take your time to develop your own way of interacting with them.