It’s been busy in the shop lately. My workbench has been bustling with not only the usual onslaught of winter repairs due to cracks, but with flutes that came in from buyers who found flutes eBay. Every year is a record year and as eBay grows, so does my retuning work. In my experience, eBay is a place where it is possible to find a fully functional, well-playing shakuhachi as expected by experienced players, but I strongly encourage everyone to ask questions, especially if you are in the market for a well-made shakuhachi that can be used learning for shakuhachi music with an experienced shakuhachi teacher.

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Hello all, I am frequently asked, “Why don’t you have any shakuhachi to for sale?” Well, I make nearly all my flutes on commission these days as the shop is always busy with repairs, restorations and fine tuning for professionals. You have to remember that I am a one person operation and work in the traditional manner of most Japanese craftsmen. My flutes are hand made with patience and care so that they reflect the deep beauty of Japanese culture. The photo above shows some of my 1.8 stock for my high end instruments. They range from about 5 - 15 years old (or more). These pieces were obtained over the last 10 years from Kinya Sogawa who gets it form his supplier in Nara, Japan. The classical 1.8 with proper node spacing are difficult to find in a bamboo grove. One can spend all day looking and not find a single 1.8 piece. Many traditional makers who harvest their own bamboo still have to get their 1.8 stock from special bamboo harvesters (yes they exist!). Today, I am starting on a Chikusing 1.8. I am always extremely grateful to those who come to me as there are many options these days. I am even more surprised when I tell them the wait can be 6 months and they say, “No problem”.  To these people I say, “Great. You will have the best flute I can make. It will not only play with all the advanced fingerings required of shakuhachi music, but in time will feel like a friend who will always be there for you.

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Hi All, this concert is highly recommended!

The Universal Flute:
A Concert of Contemporary American Music for the Shakuhachi Performed by Ralph Samuelson with guest artists Nancy Beckman and John Singer (shakuhachi) 
This program features compositions for the Japanese bamboo flute, shakuhachi, by American composers, including works by Henry Cowell, Elizabeth Brown, Richard Teitelbaum, and Barbara White.

Date: Feb 08,2012
Time: 07:30 PM - 09:00 PM
Meridian Gallery
535 Powell Street San Francisco, CA 94108
Phone:415 398 7229

Ralph Samuelson is a performer and teacher of the Japanese bamboo flute, shakuhachi.  He was trained in the classical tradition of the Kinko School under the tutelage of the late Living National Treasure Goro Yamaguchi, as well as by Shudo Yamato and Kodo Araki V. He began shakuhachi studies in 1969 as a graduate student in the World Music Program at Wesleyan University and studied traditional music in Tokyo in the 1970s under the guidance of the distinguished musicologist Fumio Koizumi.  Mr. Samuelson has performed in leading concert venues in New York, around the United States, and in Europe and Asia.  He has been presented in live radio and television broadcasts in the US and Japan and has recorded for Music of the World, Lyrichord Records, CBS Masterworks, Axiom, Tzadik, and other labels.  In 1991 and in 2008 he was the featured shakuhachi soloist in the New York City Ballet’s production of Jerome Robbins’ “Watermill”, with music by Teiji Ito.  In spring 2011 he was an artist-in-residence at the Lou Harrison House in Joshua Tree,California; and in fall 2011 he was a guest artist at the Seoul Institute of the Arts in Korea. Since 1976 Mr. Samuelson has also worked as a foundation professional facilitating and supporting international cultural exchange, and from 1991 to 2008 he served as director of the Asian Cultural Council, a foundation supporting exchanges in the arts and humanities between the United States and Asia.

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Photo from the booklet accompanying the 10 Disc Honkyoku set of Yamaguchi Goro. Japan Victor, 2002

Hi All, I was just practicing for my next lesson with Ralph and wanted to check a passage on the piece I was working on. Instead of finding the section on my lesson recording, I decided to reference it on the 10 Disc Honkyoku set of Yamaguchi Goro. That little excursion turned into a two-day listening experience that left me both humbled and inspired.  Yamaguchi’s playing reaches beyond music. It has the “x factor”, that unnameable thing that seems to embody the art of all the greats. Perhaps it’s simply just called soul - the unique heart and passion of the player. Yamaguchi’s playing is, for lack of a better description, full of soul. This is not only good shakuhachi music, but truly great music beyond cultural categorization.

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Playing Auld Lang Syne on Barrington Beach, RI, 5:06pm. Dec. 31, 2011

Click on the arrow to play the tune. (Played on Earth Model 1.8.)

Hello dear friends, as we close 2011, I’d like to share with you some of thoughts that cross my mind, and guide my hand. As many of you know, I have two careers, one as a performing artist of the stage and the other as a shakuhachi craftsman. (The full time job of being a supportive partner and father is a whole other thing!) I am always thankful and grateful that some find me talented enough to hire me to perform in their plays, musicals and performance art pieces. I have been in New York City for over twenty years practicing art in various forms and I am the first to understand that much of what amounts to success can often be attributed to luck - meeting the right people at the right time etc… I can say with all honestly that I am somewhat lucky to be a working artist in New York City, a city that is boundless in what it offers, but yet can reap more than what an individual can give. I was lucky that I managed to become part of a wonderful, supportive theatre community, a group of people who give more than take. Most performers do it for the love of the stage or the craft, but underneath the lights the greater reward, for me, is the sense of community that is created. (You gotta love people to be in the theatre business). They remind me that we are happiest when we are part of a community with a shared goal. And because of them, I bring this sense of community to my workbench where I am usually alone when crafting and repairing flutes. I can not physically feel most of my shakuhachi friends in the same way since we are spread all over the world, but I know in my heart that we are all striving for the same thing. I may be wrong, but I think this is called peace. So, my message at the end of 2011 is to say a sincere, “Thank you”. Thank you for your support, comments, suggestions and for listening. And, a special thank you to those who have joined me in support of UNICEF. Many of you know that a portion of every shakuhachi I sell on eBay goes to UNICEF to help the world’s neediest children. Here is one such live auction: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-0-DAILY-ZEN-SHAKUHACHI-BAMBOO-FLUTE-PERRY-YUNG-UNICEF-SPECIAL-DONATION-100-/140671809650?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20c0b17872

100% of this auction goes to UNICEF. Thank you for joining me in helping to make the world a better place.

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Hello everyone, I just shipped out the last shakuhachi of 2011. Now it’s just me and the family for a week of festivities.
What an amazing years it has been, full of touring, performances, workshops, retreats, the Vangelis concert and ending with sending shakuhachi all around the world for Christmas. I personally can not think of a better present than the gift of peace.

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Photo by Qatari Philharmonic Orchestra

This is a shot of the Qatari Philharmonic Orchestra performing Hope by Vangelis. Those are fireworks on the back shot from a ship on the Persian Gulf. When I first picked up the electric guitar at the age of thirteen, I fantasized that one day I would play to a packed stadium like my heroes Led Zeppelin or the Rolling Stones. Never could I have dreamed I would come close to this fantasy by performing with the world renown Vangelis, composer for Chariots of Fire. But instead of the guitar, for an audience of thousands that included the Queen of Qatar, the Crown Prince, world ambassadors and Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations, I played the shakuhachi bamboo flute. Vangelis was invited to compose and create this event for the grand opening of the magnificent Katara Amphitheater with hopes of introducing art and culture from all corners of the world. Jeremy Irons announced, “You called, we came - now let us deliver our message of hope.” The show began with an Arabic singer calling across the space with a powerful, yearning voice. It was soon answered by Native American voice and drum, Aborigine didgeridoo, Yemenite oud, Arabic kanoun,Turkish ney, Indian sitar, Japanese shakuhachi, Chinese erhu, West African kora, and African drums. Each with it’s own unique voice in the world of music, the instruments symbolized harmony among peoples of the world. On December 11, 2011, in Doha Qatar, I believe Vangelis delivered his message of Hope loud and clear. I was honored to have been a part of it. Stay tuned as I’ll write more with photos as I process this amazing experience.

Peace to you my friends, Perry

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The Emir is commemorating the new Doha amphitheater in Katara Culture Village and Opera house with a 150 member orchestra concert featuring top opera stars and a 160 member childrens choir from Russia. They are also presenting some of the world’s most iconic ethnic music, such a Native American drumming, Chinese erhu, Turkish oud, West African Kora and me on shakuhachi, to name a few. What an experience it has been so far. I got off a 12 hour plane flight and went right into rehearsals (until after midnight. No union here). There’s going to be a laser light show and fireworks and everything projected onto the huge video screens. (which I was told is the biggest in the world thus far). Notice the raised circle platform in the middle of the stage. That’s where they decided to put me, front and center….gulp. This huge event has been unpublicized because its done in conjunction with the Fourth United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and they are worried about security. I can’t mention any names until Monday. There’s a couple of big ones so stay tuned
Ma’a salama, Perry

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