Portfolio Category: Performances
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Friday September 20th 2024
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Eva Mather, 11 years old award winning singer and actress who has been featured on San Diego CBS8, Fox5, CW, KNSD, the San Diego Union Tribune, the Del Mar Times, Channel 933 etc.
Besides singing she enjoys playing piano, swimming, art, speaking French and Chinese. Performing has been her passion since she was 5..
Opera
Qian Mather
4:05PM
Eva has won many international vocal competitions and performed at the Carnegie Hall. Her past performances include at the San Diego Padres, Carmel Valley Friday Night Lights Flag Football, Balboa Park December Nights, San Diego County Fair, Chinese New Year Fair and her own concert at the Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park to raise money for the homeless.
She has performed routinely at festivals, sporting events and banquets. She recently performed at the San Diego International Kids Film Festival.
She has starred in many musical theater productions including the Old Globe production of “How Grinch Stole Christmas” , “Junie B Jones Jr” and the “25th Annual Butnam County Spelling Bee”.
She will be singing the national anthem at the upcoming Miramar air show in September. She also hosted many events including House of China Chinese New Year celebration at Balboa Park.
She likes singing Disney, pop, opera and Chinese folk songs
You can follow her on Instagram at @evazoemather
Madam Kao Khogetsu, from the Temecula area of Riverside County, was granted her Natori stage name and teaching credential by the Japanese dance school Khogetsu-ryu.
The Khogetsu-ryu was founded in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture in April 1966 by Jusen Kohgetsu and is currently known as a creative Japanese dance based on Hanayagi-ryu. Currently, 58 years after founding, the third head of the school, Iemoto Sukeju Khogetsu leads the school.
The Khogetsu-ryu Jukakai association was organized by Madam Juka Kogetsu 20 years ago. Juka is the mother of Kao.
Creative Japanese dance is a genre which dancers can perform in a wide range of styles freely. In addition to performing a classical style dance, the creative Japanese dance incorporates choreographies involved in popular songs, nursery rhymes, folk songs, etc. to aim to provide entertainment that can be enjoyed by performers on stage and by the audiences.
Traditional Japanese Dance
Madam Kao Khogetsu
Yanagi no Ame
5:15PM
Ayame Buyo Dohkohkai was created by Yoko Bagwell, stage name also known as Bando Hirohide, who received the Master instructor name from GrandMaster Bando Mitsugoro’s daughter. After Yoko-sensei retired from Bando dancing school, many friends requested for her to open her own dancing school. Her dancing lessons reached many across southern California; Newark, Torrance, Oceanside, and San Diego.
Yoko taught for around 30 years until unfortunately she passed away in 2017. Tomi Kobayashi, who was the senior student at that time, took over the school. Tomi has been dancing since she was 18 years old, that is over 40 years of experience. She received her instructor credentials in Japan and has been taking in students for classes once a week in San Diego.
Traditional Japanese Dance
Ayame Dance Club
TO BE ANNOUNCED
Madoka Entertainment was founded by Kimiko Saito who has many years of singing and Japanese traditional music experience. She started Madoka Entertainment on January 1st 2015, in hopes of spreading the joys of singing and music. It is currently an informal service group that organizes events where amateur singers can showcase their talent. Madoka Entertainment has been a part of various success stories at many music events.
Founded by Yuki Easter, the SoCal Koto Ensemble brings the enchanting sounds of traditional Japanese music to Southern California.
The group specializes in performances featuring the koto, a beautifully intricate stringed instrument with a history spanning over a thousand years.
Yuki Easter, our founder and lead instructor, received her koto instructor’s license from the prestigious Sawai Koto Academy of Music in Tokyo, Japan in 1996. With a passion for sharing Japanese culture through music, Yuki and our ensemble have been performing at various cultural events throughout San Diego County since 1993, including regular appearances at the Japanese Friendship Garden of San Diego.
Traditional Japanese Music
Yuki Easter
Kumiko Esparza
6:00pm
The koto, also known as kin, is a traditional Japanese board zither. It features 13 silk strings and movable bridges, with a body crafted from paulownia wood measuring approximately 190 cm (74 inches) in length. Traditionally, when the musician kneels or sits on the floor, the koto is elevated using two legs or a bridge-storage box. However, in contemporary concert settings, it’s often placed on a stand, allowing the performer to sit in a chair.
Musicians play the koto by plucking its strings with the thumb and first two fingers of the right hand, which are equipped with ivory plectrums called tsume. Since the 16th century, the left hand has been used to alter pitch or timbre by pressing or manipulating the strings to the left of the bridges. The instrument employs various pentatonic tunings, depending on the musical style being performed.
The koto was introduced to the Japanese court in the 8th century, where it was referred to as the gakusō. By the 16th century, schools teaching koto to the bourgeoisie were established. Two prominent schools—Ikuta (founded in the 17th century) and Yamada (established in the 18th century)—continue to operate today.
The koto repertoire primarily consists of solo pieces (danmono) and chamber music (sankyoku). In sankyoku performances, the koto player often sings while playing the instrument.
Welcome to the performer profile for Noriko, the vibrant spirit behind Bondance Joy! Originally from Osaka, Japan, and now residing in San Diego, California, Noriko brings the lively tradition of Bon Dance (Bonodori) to communities across Southern California and beyond. Bonodori is a traditional Japanese dance performed at festivals, where participants dance in a circle to simple, repetitive steps. It’s open to everyone, creating a joyful, inclusive experience.
With Bondance Joy, Noriko blends traditional Bonodori with modern influences like American pop, J-pop, and K-pop. Her group performs at local events, hosts virtual dance sessions, and shares tutorials on YouTube. Whether you’re an experienced performer or new to Bonodori, Noriko invites you to join the fun—either in person or virtually!
I
n Japan, Obon is a special time for honoring and remembering deceased relatives and ancestors, traditionally with the hope that their spirits may find peace and attain Buddhahood. This period typically occurs around the 15th day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar, corresponding to a four-day span from August 13th to 16th in many regions. Some areas, such as parts of the Kantō region and Hamamatsu, may observe Obon either in July or August, depending on local customs.
One of the most iconic traditions during Obon is the Bon-Odori, or “Bon Dance.” This lively folk dance is performed across Japan to welcome and send off ancestral spirits. While its religious roots have faded over time, Bon-Odori remains a vibrant cultural event, often featured at summer festivals.
The dance itself often includes simple, repetitive movements that are easy to follow, with choreography inspired by everyday actions, such as harvesting rice or scooping mud. This accessibility allows people of all ages to join in the celebration. Participants frequently wear yukata, a light cotton kimono, as the dance steps are traditionally designed with this attire in mind.
Today, Bon-Odori continues to bring communities together with its rhythmic movements and joyful spirit, keeping the energy of Japan’s summer nights alive.
Wanting to spread the wide array of physical, mental, and social benefits of taiko to her local community, Diana Wu founded Naruwan Taiko and in early 2008, with the help of her collegiate taiko friends, she held a community workshop for San Diego with some taped tires and a once forgotten old lion dance drum with a growing hole in the center. Since that day, Naruwan has grown to over thirty performance members, met numerous community class attendees over the years, and thankfully, has been blessed with drums that don’t have holes in the center.
The word “Naruwan” (那魯灣)) is a Taiwanese Ami greeting, meaning “welcome, for we are all in the same family” and conveys the group’s belief that even though taiko is traditionally Japanese, it is an art form that has the ability to bring a diverse community together. Thus, the name embodies the group’s mission to provide everyone the opportunity to discover taiko and make joyous sound with each other, regardless of background, age, and experience. This year, Naruwan Taiko plans to build a full-fledged taiko center in San Diego where new interested students can come learn taiko, and taiko players from all over the world can come to share their taiko knowledge, and hopefully do it while enjoying some carne asada fries and California burritos.
Traditional Japanese Music
Diana Wu
7:20PM
The taiko is a traditional Japanese drum with a rich history dating back over 1,400 years. These drums come in various sizes, from small hand-held versions to massive barrel-like instruments that can measure up to 1.8 meters (6 feet) in diameter. Taiko are typically made from a single piece of wood, often keyaki (Japanese zelkova) or oak, hollowed out into a cylindrical shape. The drum heads, traditionally made from cowhide, are stretched tightly over both ends of the body and secured with tacks or ropes in intricate patterns.
Taiko drumming, known for its thunderous sound and dynamic performances, involves not just musical skill but also physical stamina and choreographed movements. Players use large bachi (wooden sticks) to strike the drum, producing a range of sounds from gentle taps to resounding booms. While historically used in religious ceremonies, folk festivals, and as a means of communication the villages, modern taiko has evolved into a vibrant performing art. Today, taiko ensembles showcase complex rhythms, synchronized movements, and intense energy, captivating audiences worldwide with their powerful and visually striking performances.
EmoRain is a collective of musicians and vocalists that primarily performs JRock, video game, and pop culture music. Performances include, guitar, bass, drums (electronic/acoustic), keys, vocals, and dance.
JRock
David Bataan
7:40PM
From time immemorial, autumn has captured the imagination of poets across the world. The clouds floating listlessly in the clear blue skies,the rustling of the breeze through the leaves, the mesmerizing aroma of the seasonal flowers, the bountiful harvest creates an air of gaiety that is hard to ignore. It is not a coincidence that autumn ushers in a plethora of festivals in different parts of the world.
In this thematic presentation, we have explored the concept of autumn season and autumn festivals through the works of John Keats, Rabindranath Tagore, and traditional Sanskrit hymns. The compositions are in English and Bengali. The sequence has been choreographed based on Indian classical dance forms with an interconnecting script.
Traditional Dance
Debarati Kundu
8:00PM
Debarati Kundu and Debapriya Das have been practicing the Indian classical dance forms of Bharatnatyam and Kathak for more than two decades. Both of them hail from the state of West Bengal, India. Debarati is a computer engineer at Qualcomm and Debapriya is a postdoctoral associate in biophysics at Scripps Research. It is their shared passion for dance that has encouraged them to propagate Indian cultural art forms with a wider audience.
Ever since she was 12 years old, Bria has been fascinated and passionate about Japanese historical and pop culture. Bria began focusing more on the creative side of Japanese pop culture by becoming a cosplayers and attending multiple conventions and events throughout Southern California.
Bria also has a deep love and passion for music, and has started to perform as a kaigai idol (overseas idol) with the hope of spreading her love for idols and idol culture with everyone around the world. Her goal is inspire anyone who has a dream that seems impossible, and to let them know that with hard work and dedication, anything can be achieved.
J-Pop, Cosplay
Bria
8:30PM