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Arts & Entertainment

Japanese Drums and Ikebana Art

Macculloch Hall Historical Museum is proud to present the very popular Japanese Drums and Ikebana Art program.  This presentation proved to be a crowd favorite last year and performers Marco Lienhard (who replaces Kenny Chin) and Anna Nakada plan on a similarly engaging program in the colorful and elegant gardens of Macculloch Hall. The gardens were restored in the 1950s by the Garden Club of Morristown and are planted for seasonal bloom. In spring, daffodils and tulips are followed by the magnificent wisteria on the back porch. Commodore Matthew Perry, who opened Japan to American trading in the mid-1850s, brought the wisteria planted along the rear porch arbor as a gift circa 1857 to the Miller family who resided at Macculloch Hall. The garden’s magnificent wisteria inspires the program on Sunday, August 19th from 1pm – 4pm, bringing together the Japanese style drumming known as Taiko, performed by Marco Lienhard and the beautiful Japanese art form of Ichiyo Ikebana, with Anna Nakada, for an engaging afternoon of music and living art in spectacular surroundings. 

 

Both guest artists have a wide background and deep appreciation for their specialty.  Marco Lienhard studied the shakuhachi under Master Katsuya Yokoyama, quickly mastering the instrument and becoming a virtuoso solo artist. Marco Lienhard was a member of Ondekoza from 1981-1994. While touring as a professional taiko player in Japan, Lienhard also studied the fue and the nohkan (Noh theater flute) with Masayuki Isso. He has toured, the US, Japan, Mexico and Europe. Lienhard has performed more than 3000 concerts in Europe, Oceania, Asia and North and South America with appearances at some of the world’s most prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Boston Symphony Hall, Osaka Castle Hall, Hong Kong Cultural Center and Suntory Hall in Tokyo. He has contributed to many movies, documentaries and CDs and has appeared on many TV shows including the Regis and Kathie Lee Show, the PBS special A World of Performances (the 20th Anniversary Gala of Wolf Trap), and NBC's 1998 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Marco will play periodically throughout the afternoon while Anna Nakada puts together a large-size arrangement of Ichiyo Ikebana.

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Anna Nakada is a Master of the Ichiyo School of Ikebana and will utilize the branches from a recent trimming of the historic wisteria in the Macculloch Hall garden to create her Ikebana installation. Anna teaches Ichiyo Ikebana classes and demonstrates and gives workshops in the U.S. and abroad. Typically, an Ichiyo demonstrator makes an effort to show the audience every step of the process by which an arrangement is created, as he/she engages in an exchange with plants, flowers, containers and the surroundings. The Ichiyo artist strives to make flowers come alive, hopefully in a beautiful, profound and natural way and in the process tries to learn more about life and oneself; in other words, the “way” of flowers. 

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The program will begin at 1pm. Both Ms. Nakada and Mr. Lienhard will provide opportunities for the audience to participate and learn about these art forms. Visitors may also tour the variety of plantings in seasonal bloom, and relax on the large lawn during the program. Guests are welcome to bring chairs or blankets. There will be house tours of the period rooms of the museum, which leave throughout the afternoon starting at 1pm, with the last tour leaving at 3pm. Tours will visit upstairs gallery exhibits Thomas Nast: President Maker and Campaign Breaker and The Other Side of War: The Civil War on the Home Front.  After touring visitors may return to the garden to enjoy the program. In the case of inclement weather the program will be moved indoors. We are pleased to offer accessible restroom facilities during garden events this summer. Tickets can be purchased on the day from 1pm onwards. Admission is Adults $8; Seniors & Students $6; Children 6 – 12 $4. Members and children under 5 are free.

 

Macculloch Hall Historical Museum preserves the history of the Macculloch-Miller families, the Morris area community, and the legacy of its founder W. Parsons Todd through its historic site, collections, exhibits, and educational and cultural programs. The Museum is open to tour the house and view exhibits on Wednesdays, Thursdays & Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m. The last tickets for admission are sold at 3 p.m.  The museum is closed for the Labor Day holiday on Sunday September 2nd.  For information, call the Museum weekdays at (973) 538-2404, visit our website www.maccullochhall.org or find us on Facebook.  Macculloch Hall Historical Museum, 45 Macculloch Ave., Morristown, NJ 07960. Macculloch Hall Historical Museum is a nonprofit educational affiliate of the W. Parsons Todd Foundation. 

Pictured are Kenny Chin & Anna Nakada, courtesy of Stan Freeny

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