Venice Japanese Community Center

Inside the VJCC

The Venice Shamisen Club

By Alex Nishimoto



If you’ve ever been to the VJCC on a Wednesday night, you’ve probably heard something that sounded a little bit like a banjo. What you heard was actually the sound of silk strings twanging in unison, a sound that could only be created in the Shamisen Club. The Shamisen is an ancient Japanese instrument with three strings. The Shamisen plays a crucial role in traditional Japanese music, with the capability to carry the melody or keep rhythm; it is a very versatile instrument.

Mde. Kayo Nishimura		The Shamisen club was formed by Mde. Kayo Nishimura twenty-five years ago and is still going strong with seven students and one teacher, Mde. Kayo Nishimura herself, who is internationally renowned for her expertise in Shamisen and Japanese folk music. Besides teaching her Nishimura-Ryu style, she is credited with the development of a notation strictly for Shamisen-players, which is accepted throughout the U.S. and in Japan. The club has gained much publicity over the years, being featured in the Rafu Shimpo, performing locally at the annual Cherry Blossom Festival and abroad in Venezuela. The club focuses on Shamisen but also incorporates all other elements of Japanese folk music, such as dancing, singing and Taiko. The club is also the only group in the Los Angeles area that is capable of playing the Jongara style of music (fast music). With so many areas of specialization, it’s quite an achievement to be the best in any one thing. If that weren’t enough to be proud of, the club is also the only group in the United States that is a registered member of the Zaidanhojin Nippon Minyo Kiyo-Kai, an organization devoted to teaching the traditional

Japanese arts to children in Japan. As explained to me by a member of the club, Japanese children are being raised very disconnected from their culture. Japan has become so “Westernized” so fast that generations to come will soon lose any contact with their roots. The goal of this organization is to bring back the old ways and keep the culture alive. Every year the club performs a benefit concert for the organization where all proceeds go toward the enrichment of the children’s education.

In many ways the Shamisen Club reflects the goals of the Community Center itself: “To preserve, share and promote the Japanese and Japanese-American culture and heritage…” They are doing their part to preserve and promote the Japanese heritage both inside and out of the community. The Shamisen Club makes the statement that even if culture is threatened by progress, tradition can still endure if the effort is put forth to make it so.

Visions for the VJCC

by Alex Nishimoto

Sharon Aratani has been involved with the VJCC since 1980. She started working with the VYC and the Boy Scouts then went on to become the VJCC corresponding secretary for two years. She is currently the VYC commissioner.

What is one thing you would like to see happen here at the VJCC within the next 12 months?
Sharon would like to see more involvement from the people of the Community Center within the next twelve months. She believes that we are on the right track with the new volunteers that have recently offered their time and she believes that the volunteers are the true unsung heroes of the Community Center. Without them, the Community Center would not be what it is today.
What is one thing you would hope to happen with the VJCC in the next 5 years?
As for the next five years, Sharon has a vision of a more “Member-friendly” Community Center. This means making the Community Center more than a place where people go for meetings and classes, but a place they can go because they like going there. She hopes for the addition of a coffee shop or a lounge where members could relax and hang out. She also hopes to have events like family fun nights and basketball nights. With these changes, she sees the Center becoming a second home for its members.