the qualia journal

Bats are such fascinating creatures, by the very nature of their existence. The playing time passes quite rapidly for a child. In the olden ...

I was 25 or so when I first visited Madrid. I usually do not consult a travel guide except for the very basic information. So I entered the ...

Some things keep staying in mind, no matter how intractable they may be. When I read Roger Penrose's "The Emperor's New Mind...

I had a dialogue with the artist Rei Naito for a digital radio program by NHK. We have had several conversations before. Some of them has be...

I continued to stroll in the beautiful region of Takashima. In the Harie district, many houses are equipped with Kabata, a natural water poo...

Computers are wonderful things, but to the extent that we associate with them, something in us becomes dumb. It is especially true for the i...

I had a dialogue with the political scientist Kang Sang-jung in the Hilltop Hotel in central Tokyo. The conversation was held for a woman...

I think The Carpenters was the first pop singer group that captured my imagination when I was a kid. I guess I was about 10. "Top of t...

I and Ms. Sumiyoshi Miki had a conversation with the manga artist Takehiko Inoue for "The Professionals" program broadcast by NHK...

When I am hungry at night, having been unable to take a respectable bite, at the bed time I am faced with a dilemma. Should I eat something ...

When I was a kid, I used to love to eat white thin noodles ( Somen ) in the summer. After being boiled, the noodles would be put into ice c...

My native and resident country, Japan is a nation of islands. Going abroad used to and remains to have a special connotation for its inhabit...

Parsifal is the final opera of Richard Wagner. It seems to be a fitting end to the career of a composer who pursued the theme of Erlosung du...

In order for a work of performing art to be maintained in a living condition, it needs to be refreshed in the styles of times. The concerns ...

The performance of Tristan und Isolde, conducted by Peter Schneider and directed by Christoph Marthaler (Bayreuth Festspiele, on 13th August...

On 13th August 2009, I attended a performance at the Bayreuth Festspiele for the first time in my life. It was Tristan und Isolde.

So I have come to Munich, in translation to Bayreuth. I have visited Munich many times. Whenever I can, I listen to operas, preferably Wagne...

Lands in Tokyo, like in any cotemporary city of big lights, are heavily utilized. It was a rare occasion that a space near my house, after t...

This summer, within a few days, I would be traveling to Bayreuth for the first time in my life. I will be listening to the performances of T...

When the onceness of life touches us, tears drop from the eyes. Yesterday, there was a wedding party. Shinichi Nozawa, a Ph.D student in my...