Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Greetings!

My name is Mark, and after years of being part of this community, I would like to finally introduce myself:

I have been a sideline observer of the Shakuhachi Forum since 2006. This forum helps sometimes for inspiration, and always for entertainment.

I've been playing shakuhachi on my own for 4 years, after making PVC flutes based on Carl Abbott's recipe, and the extensive, educated ramblings of the Shaku Master Index on navaching.com. I have received no instruction in shakuhachi; it has been a personal journey. I followed Carl Abbott's book, "Blowing Zen," to a point. About a year ago I purchased a yuused Yuu 1.8, and have enjoyed the instrument. I dabbled a little bit in constructing a bamboo instrument, but to no satisfactory results yet.

I'm on & off with playing, but enjoy it as a meditative practice, and as a good pre-amble to a sitting meditation. When I play, my practice is as follows:

- I blow ro, sometimes doing sasa-buki a la Perry Yung (Thanks for the tutorial Perry!), and I play different sound shapes ( <> , <] , [> , >< , [-] , __ ).

- I play Honshirabe/Choshi (thanks to Alcvin Ramos' instruction), and play Kojo No Tsuki (Moonlit Castle Ruins) all over the flute (otsu & kan, starting on ro or re or ri or chi).

- I've also played Kyorei some, and just recently played along with some recordings of Kyorei and Choshi, which I found very helpful. I listen with headphones, so the sounds of the flutes merge.

- Sometimes I play whatever the flute and my fingers want to play.

I have found these simple practices to provide more than enough material to keep me occupied.

Though I have discovered a lot on my own, I'm sure that my practice would benefit from the input of an experienced player. I had contacted Phil Nyokai James, and he & I had planned a meeting in cyber-space for my first lesson. That was before his recent stroke; very sad news, and my prayers are for his swift healing. I still hope to meet him, perhaps this summer, and play together.

I am not interested in the shakuhachi as an instrument of musical performance, but rather as a meditation tool. I have not yet played shakuhachi for anybody's ears, except those few who may have overheard my practice. I don't even really care to listen to shakuhachi music, except to learn from it how to play.

I am a musician on other instruments as well: The celtic flute (PVC, via Doug Tipple); the ukulele (a difficult instrument to put down once you've picked it up - careful); the guitar; the Bansuri (bamboo flute) and the Sarod (sister to the Sitar; like a Banjo with 25 strings), both instruments of North Indian Hindustani classical music. Mostly I play music for fun; though I have performed a few times in my life on a public stage, it is not an aspiration of mine.

I have never gathered with other shakuhachi players, but I have read posts on shakuhachi Erin's blog about blowing long tones with other players, and I thought that sounded like it would be a great practice! Until I find other players to play with, I am quite content to be blowing on my own...