AKIKAZU NAKAMURA -COMPOSER, JAPANESE BAMBOO FLUTE PLAYER

Michiyo Yagi studied koto under the late Tadao Sawai, Kazue Sawai and Satomi Kurauchi, and graduated from the NHK Professional Training School for Traditional Musicians. Between 1989 and 1990 she was Visiting Professor of Music at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, U.S.A. During her tenure she premiered numerous modern compositions for koto and came under the influence of maverick American composers such as John Cage, Conlon Nancarrow, and John Zorn. Her solo koto CD “Shizuku” was produced by Zorn and released on the Tzadik label in 1999. In 2001 she recorded “Yural” with her koto ensemble Paulownia Crush for the East Works label. Under the auspices of the Japan Foundation, Yagi toured Russia with Paulownia Crush in the fall of 2004.
An eclectic performer who continually challenges conventions, Yagi has made frequent appearances on Japanese TV and has performed at the Kongsberg Jazz, Moers Jazz, Musique Actuel Victoriaville, Archipel, Bang on a Can, Tokyo Summer, and Vision Festivals. Yagi’s koto has been featured in ex-Judy & Mary guitarist/singer Takuya’s rock band, and she has recorded and performed with Ayumi Hamasaki, Japan’s best-selling pop singer.
She is a founding member of Kokoo and the “avant pop girl group” Hoahio. More recently Yagi formed Kyu, a self-described “punk-noise-ambient-bondage duo,” with bassist/singer Kirilola of Ex-Girl, and Trance Koto Express in collaboration with sound engineer Shigetake Ao.
As a cutting-edge improviser Yagi has performed with Mark Dresser, John Zorn, Peter Bro¨tzmann, Elliott Sharp, Han Bennink, Fred Frith, Chris Cutler, Omoto Yoshihide, Ned Rothenberg, Samm Bennett, Lauren Newton, Hans Reichel, Satoko Fujii, Joe¨lle Leandre, Tatsuya Yoshida (Ruins), Bill Laswell, Kazutoki Umezu, Carl Stone, Christian Marclay, Billy Bang, Keiji Haino, Sachiko M and many others.
Yagi’s most recent albums are “Seventeen” (Zipangu , 2005 ), entirely recorded on the giant 17-string bass koto, and “Live! at SuperDeluxe” (Idiolect/Bomba, 2006), a trio performance with bassist Ingerbrigt Ha°ker Flaten and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love. Forthcoming CD releases include a studio session with Dresser and Rothenberg, and a duo album with Sharp.

Maki Isogai, a graduate of Takasaki Junior College of Arts and NHK Professional Training School for Traditional Musicians, has been presenting recitals since 1999. She has toured Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, China, Malaysia and several other countries under the auspices of the Foreign Ministry’s Japan Foundation, and has performed at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Expo Que´bec 2006, the Istanbul International Music Festival, and the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak. In addition to Kokoo, Isogai is a member of the NHKJapanese Traditional Music Ensemble, the Sawai Tadao Ensemble, Soemon and Fine! She is an instructor at Sawai Koto School and a lecturer at Takasaki Junior College of the Arts.
Isogai’s koto has been featured on the Kokoo CD “moon” (Columbia Music Entertainment, Inc.), Soemon’s eponymous CD (Sparkling Beatnik), and NAMCO BANDAI Games’ hit video game “Taiko: Drum Master” as well as its offshoot soundtrack CD. She has recorded NTT ringtones for the Roland Corporation and contributed to the soundtrack of the documentary film “Magnificent Obsession: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Buildings and Legacy in Japan.”