What is EC? | Presenter's Message

Earth Celebration

We live in a time when the strength of each community is being tested. Communities are built just as the word itself describes, through “communication” and “unity.” People from all over the world gather to share diverse ideas and culture at Earth Celebration (EC). A rich dialogue emerges and countless new connections are born. In this sense, EC itself becomes its own community.

In this community, we exchange wisdom and know-how passed on by people who live harmoniously with nature, as well as music and performing arts which are born from life itself. Conversations held at EC consider the importance of society and search for ways to live in a sustainable environment. We examine the necessity of recovering the functions of a small economy that leverages local resources, resources that are ignored or lost when we pursue a large-scale economy. The extraordinary happenings that take place at the festival link with our daily lives and spread beyond EC to enable human exchange on a global scale.

I believe that art is the key to moving towards a more sustainable way of life, and when you look closely, you can find “art” hidden in the word “earth,” acting as a bridge between the letters E for “environment,” and H for “humans.”

This year, we are fortunate to have the Ranaei Family from Iran as our special guests for the Shiroyama Concerts. Their music dates back as far as 6,000 years, and they have kept their traditions alive throughout many difficult times in their country’s history. I believe they will bring a tremendous amount of wisdom and an important narrative with them to Sado. I look forward to welcoming everyone to this special gathering.

Atsushi Sugano, EC Executive Producer

Raising the Curtain for Earth Celebration Together

I remember going to see a show in a theater right after the Tohoku Pacific Earthquake. The artistic director broke the silence with a simple announcement, “We have performers and a place to perform, so if there is an audience, the curtain will rise.” And the curtain did go up. I still remember those words and how they reverberated within me.

I believe this encounter with the Ranaei Family will awaken something that lies deep within us as Japanese people, conjuring distant memories from the Silk Road era. Together with KO no kai and Kodo, our three ensembles will forge a new road ahead as one.

These days we are reminded of the sheer force of Mother Nature, and I believe that people first made music and performing arts because they were given life in her realm. Sado is a place where even now nature and human beings coexist in harmony and where people can feel culture and performing arts in the very air they breathe.

Earth Celebration welcomes its audience from Sado Island, Niigata Prefecture, and from all over Japan and around the world. The celebration will take place at the Shiroyama Concerts, Harbour Market, the Fringe stage, workshops, and in places we have not even imagined yet, all connected by this festival and the many incredible people who gather here.

We have performers, a place to perform, and an audience. And so, the curtain will rise for Earth Celebration!

Shiroyama Concert Artistic Director Yuichiro Funabashi (Kodo)

Earth Celebration Concept

by Toshio Kawauchi, from the 1983 "Kodo" Quarterly Fall Edition

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