Date: February 7^th (Sat.) 20:30-22:30pm

Venue: Orchestra Hall, ASWARA (National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage)

Admission: Free

  Co-organized by ASWARA and the Embassy of Japan

ASWARA’s Gamelan Group

ASWARA’s Gamelan group was established in 2007 under the auspices of ASWARA (National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage), an academy to produce experts and practitioners of Malaysia's traditional arts. This group consists of diploma and undergraduate students, together with the academy’s alumni under the guidance of Pak Bob Khalil, a Gamelan lecturer at the Faculty of Music, ASWARA.

The group has performed on many occasions including concerts (ASWARA and MPO friends at DFP, KLCC), Archipelago Drum Festival, World Gamelan Festival in Terengganu and various prestigious weddings. The group has also won the best gamelan players award in the Malay Gamelan National Competition 2010.

KOHEI NISHIKAWA: Japanese Transverse Flutist

Kohei Nishikawa, born in 1953, was the principal flutist at the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra at the start of his musical career before embarking on an important career path as a traditional flutist, playing the bamboo transverse flutes, shinobue and nohkan, to accompany the classical traditional dance Nihon-buyo and Kabuki. 

In parallel, he invites Japanese and foreign composers in order to diversify the repertoire of the flutes which primarily play traditional roles in the theater and makes music recordings under the title “Flutist from the East, Kohei Nishikawa”.

In order to promote his instruments and Japanese music to a larger public, he began teaching the instruments in different universities in Tokyo since 2003, published several books and performed as well as provided master-classes  abroad including in Canada, US and in Europe.

KEIKO NAKAGAWA :  Flutist

Keiko Nakagawa started playing the flute at the age of twelve. She graduated from Soai University (music course) in Osaka, Japan. She is a director of The Japan Flute Association and formed The Mahoroba Flute Orchestra. She was also the organizing chairman of the Flute Festival in Nara.

In 2000, she relocated to Malaysia and in December 2006 released her 1^st solo album called JAMBATAN (Bridge). In September 2007, she organized the very successful  Flute Festival in Malaysia, one of the events to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Japan-Malaysia Friendship. Keiko is currently the principal flutist as well as a dedicated instructor with the Malaysia National Symphony Orchestra (NSO).

YOKO NISHI : Koto Artist

Yoko Nishi started learning to play the koto at the age of four and formally studied koto under the modernist performer-composers Tadao Sawai and Kazue Sawai. After graduating from Tokyo University of the Arts, she performed in front of Their Majesties The Emperor and Empress of Japan　at the Imperial Palace as a representative from the University at an event organized by the Imperial Household Agency.

She is a lead performer of ancient musical instruments at the National Theatre, Tokyo. She has performed for international festivals such as the London Chelsea Festival and Moers Jazz Festival as well as held solo concerts worldwide including Germany, Hungary and the US. In 2008, Ms. Nishi performed at an event organized by the governor of Tokyo at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

HAFIZ OTHMAN : Koto Artist

Hafiz has loved the sounds of koto since he was introduced to the instrument by his father during his primary school years but only started learning to play it when he enrolled as a freshman at the University of Tsukuba, Japan in 1996.

His first teacher was Takako Ikeda, a koto master based in Ibaraki Prefecture. He then moved to Tokyo and continued his lessons at the house of Souju Nosaka under the supervision of her daughter, Mizuyo Komiya. After returning to Malaysia, he joined the koto group of Japan Club Kuala Lumpur. Hafiz has collaborated with Fukuda Chieko and Kazue Sawai’s group as a performer and organiser during their shows in Kuala Lumpur. Hafiz, who currently plays the koto as a hobby, is interested in Sawai Tadao’s compositions in addition to the traditional masterpieces.