Event overview
020 7919 7133
The first ever WSF in Europe offers an amazing variety of shakuhachi activities and concerts by top performers from all over the globe.
The World Shakuhachi Festival 2018 in London will consists out of a diverse range of concerts, workshops, master classes, lectures, exhibitions, study sessions and informal gatherings which are open to the general public. It is the seventh large-scale international shakuhachi festival to be held and will be the first to be held in Europe, acknowledging and celebrating the fact that Europe has become a firmly established territory for the shakuhachi with substantial representation of various schools, styles and approaches to the performance of the instrument and its music.
40 top players from Japan and a further 40 from other parts of the world have been invited, including top koto and shamisen players, to make 2018 in London an unique experience. The festival will feature an opening concert (31 July), 4 main evening concerts as well as a further 12 concerts during the day-time. Additionally there will be performance opportunities at open mic slots and informal sessions.
All the main styles of performance will be represented to give a broad view of the various lineages and schools, including Kinko, Tozan, KSK (Yokoyama-lineage) and My?an styles for the shakuhachi and Ikuta, Yamada and Miyagi-kai for the koto and shamisen. Musical genres such as koten honkyoku (classical solo repertoire for shakuhachi), sankyoku (classical ensemble music with shakuhachi, koto and shamisen), shinkyoku (modern ensemble music), gendaikyoku (contemporary music) and several new compositions will also be premiered. Genres often not heard at international gatherings, such as the shakuhachi in min'yo or folk music and some of the rare and almost unknown Myoan guilds will also be represented for the first time at this festival.
The WSF2018 in London will be hosted by Goldsmiths in partnership with the Asian Music Unit (AsMU).
Preceding WSF events at Goldsmiths, there will also be a shakuhachi symposium on 30th July 2018 at SOAS, University of London.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Aug 2018 | 9:00am - 9:00pm | |
| 2 Aug 2018 | 9:00am - 9:00pm | |
| 3 Aug 2018 | 9:00am - 9:00pm | |
| 4 Aug 2018 | 9:00am - 9:00pm |
Accessibility
If you are attending an event and need the College to help with any mobility requirements you may have, please contact the event organiser in advance to ensure we can accommodate your needs.
