No fees.
Instruments provided free.

Venue

Takanawa Ikiiki Plaza, meeting room
3 Chome 18-15, Takanawa, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0074
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Access

8 min walk from Shinagawa or Sengakuji Station
7 min from Takanawa Gateway Station

Schedule

Three times a month (weekday evenings, weekend mornings and afternoons)

Eligibility

Residents of Minato City, or those who work or study there, aged 10 and over

Fee

Free

Instrument

Provided free of charge. You're welcome to bring your own instead

Repertoire

Traditional solo pieces, ensemble music with koto and shamisen, and the school’s own repertoire, as well as Western music, popular songs and bossa nova (here is a theme from the video game Splatoon, for shakuhachi and guitar). Tozan school certification is available on request

Language

Lessons are usually conducted in Japanese, but I also teach in English — I have had students from abroad. Feel free to get in touch

The class playing at a local festival, with me and two friends joining in — highlights from Eine kleine Nachtmusik, Amazing Grace, and Yachiyo, a piece from the Tozan school’s own repertoire.

1. 01
   Get in touchSend an email saying you would like to join the shakuhachi class. I'll let you know the dates.
2. 02
   Come empty-handedThe venue is Takanawa Ikiiki Plaza. An instrument will be lent to you.
3. 03
   Learn how to hold itHow to hold the flute, and where to place your lips. I take my time here.
4. 04
   Make a soundOften within five minutes. You should get at least one note on the first day.
5. 05
   Set the next dateWe decide the date and time of your next lesson together, and the day ends there.

I took up the shakuhachi in 2007 and studied under Hozan Yamamoto II of the Tozan school. I qualified as Shihan (Master) in 2015, and was promoted to Dai-Shihan (Grand Master) in 2026.

I have taught the class at Takanawa Ikiiki Plaza since 2014, and a class for children and teenagers at Shinmei Plaza since 2017. Before that I taught on a programme run by the City of Kyoto.

As a player, I took part in the 2012 concert at the National Theatre in Tokyo marking the first Hozan Yamamoto’s sixty-five years in music, and played on Goshikizakura (Victor, 2020), an album by my teacher. I also perform in two duos, Gitahachi and Tokyo Shakuhachi Boys.

Fuller biography (in Japanese)

Kago no Tori, an arrangement of the children’s song Kagome Kagome, with two koto players. Recorded at Takanawa Civic Center, Minato City.

mt.rain@outlook.com

If you live outside Minato City, please write to me — the class is intended for residents, but I consider enquiries individually.

Performance enquiries are welcome at the same address — tea gatherings, ceremonies, local events, and school visits.