Music is also food. Last week Alison Brown brought her muscial nourishment to Kamakura, performing at the ancient Myohonji temple, up in the hills just a short walk from the city center. It was a very atmospheric event, held in mild autumn weather under a clear sky with the moon rising above the trees. So favourable were the conditions, the temple's head priest told us, it showed that this evening must have the blassing of the gods of Kamakura — and of America.
After an introduction by Peter Barakan, Alison gave a short solo demo of bluegrass banjo music, which she does play, very adroitly of course, but not exclusively.
That was followed by a solo recital by biwa artist Ban Reisui, a Kamakura resident who plays in the Satsuma-biwa tradition. The lyrics of the song recount a very famous moment in Kamakura's long history, the events in 1333 by which the Kamakura bakufu, the military government that ruled Japan, was overthrown — when the sea miraculously retreated so far it allowed the attacking army to enter the city and prevail.
The third clip is a snippet of Alison and her band playing 'Magnificent Seven'.
Besides bringing several guests up on stage to play alongside her, Alison also featured her own children for one number, with Hannah on fiddle and lead vocal. I'll load the videos for those just as soon as Vimeo lets me. In the interim here are a few photos:
Alison and her band are currently touring Japan. More about the tour here...
And more about her and her music here...
