7th Terurin festival honors Okinawan entertainment icon

Some three dozen entertainers and groups are scheduled to participate in the Terurin Fest.

Almost three dozen entertainers and groups are heading on stage Sunday to honor an Okinawa musical giant who died in 2005.

Nothing is more Okinawan than Eisa and naturally it will be part of the weekend Terurinsai.

The nine-hour concert on Chuo Park Avenue in Koza pays homage to Rinsuke Teruya, the man who stirred Okinawan entertainment after World War II, and became the icon of Okinawan pop culture. Performers are slated to be on stage during the afternoon and evening concert. The free concert is being held in Okinawa City, the traditional center of Okinawan entertainment and music.

Admission is free for the noon ~ 9 p.m. concert, which features more than 30 artists, including Sadao China, Tetsuhiro Daiku, Shuken Maekawa, Toru Yonaha, Kazufumi Miyazawa, Yoriko Ganeko, and Tink Tink among others.

Koza by Okinawan folk musicians very much retain the traditional Okinawan spirit.

Rinjiro Teruya the organizer of the Terurin festival, says “we thank all musicians and supporters and fans of Okinawan music in the world. Such a hand made festival couldn’t happen without all your support.”  Teruya says the concert will “introduce much of the Okinawan old folk music here in Koza by Okinawan folk musicians who retain the Okinawan spirit very much.”  He says there are so many great songs here in Okinawa but “most of original singers and musicians have passed away, and it’s our duty to keep up their spirit and spread it out to generations to come.”

17:11 29 Mar , 2024