Music in the Dojo
Inryoku Volume 5 Issue 7
By Josh Paul, AOSB Head Instructor
The dojo is a unique place that brings likeminded individuals together. Perhaps traditionally and ideally, an aikido dojo is a single-purpose space used only for training and meditation that sits pristinely and idly between training sessions.
However, in New York City a single-purpose space—especially an aikido dojo—that is used only a few hours a day, is luxury few businesses can achieve. Spaces cannot sit empty and unused 18 or more hours a day. A storefront like AOSB needs to be open and visible. When a dojo is closed and inactive, it is not fulfilling its primary purpose of bringing people together. So, we are filling some of those non-aikido hours and our dojo with music!
Our Music in the Dojo concert series brings together my passion for aikido and music. There is a great deal of overlap in how aikido and music are learned, and the Music in the Dojo program continues a tradition of music and musicians on our mats. Many of our adult and youth members are performing musicians, and my first aikido teacher was Joseph Jarman Sensei, a founding member of the renowned Art Ensemble of Chicago.
Since December 2022, we’ve hosted concerts with the Artemis Guitar Duo and the South African group Timbila, both of which were available in-person and online. We’ve also hosted open mics, and the Dal Maestro music schools’ annual student recital.
Nicoletta Todesco
On Saturday, July 29, with The Brooklyn Classical Guitar Society, we’ll be hosting a concert with guitarist Nicoletta Todesco. Nicoletta will be performing an original program called The Cockroach Diaries. She describes the program as duets for guitar and voice that, “journey into the mind of a classical guitarist dealing with loneliness, creativity, and ambitions in New York City at the height of the pandemic.” The performance features classical and electric guitar, poetry, and singing. Click here for more info and to reserve your spot.
Other events are coming soon. Help us make the most of our space while enjoying world-class music.