Triangle Project - PJ Hirabayashi's Artist Statement

Triangle Project - PJ's Artist Statement

I humbly claim to be the instigator and the initiator of the Triangle Project: "Journey of the Dandelion." It was in December 1999, that the notion of working with Yoko Fujimoto and Nobuko became a compelling thought. Individually, we are founding members of established companies that mentor groups and individuals that have a vision to create work that can be meaningful and bigger than just for art sake alone. Yoko and Nobuko, and their companies---Kodo and Great Leap---have profoundly inspired me.

I first met Nobuko in the early 70's when I was a student and community activist in the San Francisco Bay Area working with grassroots community organizations, the anti-war movement, and Asian American Studies. During that time, I saw Nobuko (who was known as "Joann") perform in a community concert, singing in duet as "Chris and Joann". I was deeply moved by their songs for social and political change. I vividly remember their final song; where I became one amongst a sea of people who fervently danced to a modified traditional Japanese folkdance, set to Chris’ western acoustic folk guitar and Nobuko’s verses sung in English. The song and dance, unique in character---something traditional, yet new---created a sense of euphoria, camaraderie, and solidarity. To this day, those feelings are embedded in my body’s cellular memory.

This experience was my segue into San Jose Taiko. Since 1973, taiko has been my instrument and tool for creativity, empowerment, and community building. I have sought to make San Jose Taiko’s style to imbue the same inspiring qualities of Chris and Joann's music, while also developing a holistic system and contemporary voice for the taiko art form.

Twenty-five years ago, I first met Yoko, when she was a touring member of Kodo. To see her perform onstage with Kodo, was breath-taking. Since then, we have become good friends empathically sharing our triumphs and challenges of our professional taiko companies, as well as our own personal artistic paths.

The three of us first came together in June 2000, with Nobuko and Yoko meeting for the very first time. We felt the same intuitive message that we were meant to work together and were being presented with the rare opportunity to work as solo artists outside the comfort of our respective performing groups, With the invaluable support from the Rockefeller’s MAP grant (2001-02) we forged through our first phase of exploration, making magnificent discoveries of how we can weave our personal stories, distill our work to the basic essence of simplicity and beauty, and synthesize our individual art forms and similar/contrasting cultures (Japanese and Japanese American) to carry appealing universal themes.

We are indebted to our companies for supporting us in the Triangle Project and for providing us with the network to spin a larger web. This network will prove invaluable when we tour the project with a residency component. We each have long histories conducting dynamic workshops, and it will be exciting for the three of us to collaborate and design a residential activity to complement the performance piece.

Our rehearsals and meetings to date have yielded extraordinary ideas and images for a riveting production. I am seriously committed to this project and will participate as an equal collaborator. I will infuse whatever I can ---as a musician, movement artist, and idea generator. I will also help to find additional support for this project---monetary, artistic/technical resources, and in-kind support. It is an honor to work with Nobuko and Yoko, as we enter the next phase of our project---to prepare the production to tour.

PJ Hirabayashi
Creative Director, San Jose Taiko

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Updated: 10/5/05

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