Japanese Junior Jazz Orchestra to Perform in New Orleans as a Token of Appreciation for the Musical Instruments Received after the Earthquake Disaster

The Japan Foundation is pleased to announce that it is organizing the “Miyagi-New Orleans Youth Jazz Exchange Program” in collaboration with Tipitina’s Foundation, the Wonderful World Jazz Foundation and TOMODACHI Initiative this summer. The program will send a youth jazz band consisting mainly of middle school students from Kesennuma City in Miyagi Prefecture, to New Orleans and Lafayette, LA, from July 30 to August 10.

Following the March 2011 earthquake, the volunteers of New Orleans made a gift of musical instruments to the young people of Kesennuma who had lost their instruments in the tsunami. A student jazz band from New Orleans visited three disaster-afflicted areas in Miyagi in October 2012 to bring cheer to people’s lives with their music. They played music and spent time with the local children. This summer in a show of gratitude, the 19 members of the Kesennuma junior jazz orchestra “The Swing Dolphins” will be visiting New Orleans to reunite with their fellow musicians, Tipitina’s Intern Band and O. Perry Walker’s Chosen Ones Brass Band, and to give their best performance in the birthplace of jazz music.

Photo of The Swing Dolphins 1

Photo of The Swing Dolphins 2

Miyagi-New Orleans Youth Jazz Exchange - Schedule

August 1 (Thursday) Visit O. Perry Walker High School
August 2 (Friday) Appear on a local TV program (to be confirmed)/Visit Martin Behrman Charter School
August 3 (Saturday) Perform at Satchmo Summerfest, the premier jazz festival dedicated to Louis Armstrong
August 4 (Sunday) Visit Tipitina’s Foundation and perform with Tipitina’s Intern Band and others
August 5 (Monday) Perform on a Mississippi River steamboat
August 7 (Wednesday) Visit with students of Lafayette

Kesennuma junior jazz orchestra “The Swing Dolphins”

The band was formed in 1993 by a group of amateur musicians from the Kesennuma area with the aim of teaching children the joy and beauty of music. Comprised of students from 5th to 9th grade, the ensemble performs a wide range of musical genres from pop to screen music as well as jazz. In October 2012 they gave a joint outdoor performance with the visiting student jazz bands from New Orleans.

Organized by: The Japan Foundation, Tipitina’s Foundation, Wonderful World Jazz Foundation

Photo of The Japan Foundation, Tipitina’s Foundation, Wonderful World Jazz Foundation

Supported by: The US-Japan Council (TOMODACHI Initiative) Photo of The US-Japan Council (TOMODACHI Initiative)

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The Japan Foundation
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E-mail: Yukari_Shinohara@jpf.go.jp

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