April 30 - This year Ann and I were on the road for my birthday. The Japan-America Society of Niigata was celebrating its 50th anniversary, and when Ann told me she planned to bring an American singing group named Hudson Shad to help them celebrate, I thought I should go along.
We had a wonderful time. About 200 people came to the Niigata Okura Hotel to hear the Hudson Shad concert. This group of five male voices and a piano performs American music from the 30s and 40s. Many of their tunes are well known in Japan, including standards by Cole Porter and George and Ira Gershwin. Others are hits from American popular culture such as the theme song from the hit TV series "Rawhide" and a cheerful song from the Walt Disney movie "Snow White" called "Whistle While You Work."
Hudson Shad developed a wonderful rapport with the Japanese audience in Niigata, who enjoyed the pleasing blend of their voices along with their humorous interpretations of well known musical hits.
Ann and I sat in the front row of the auditorium, and next to us sat a young Japanese mother with her daughter who appeared to be about 10 years old. The young daughter seemed a bit shy at first, but as the performance progressed, she really started to enjoy the music. She was tapping her feet to keep time to the music, and she laughed out loud at some of Hudson Shad's antics on stage. She particularly seemed to enjoy the song "California Here I Come."
After the concert, the mother explained that they would soon move to California. She had brought her daughter to expose her to some American culture as they prepared to leave Japan. What a wonderful experience the evening was for us both!
The Japan America Society hosted a nice reception after the concert, and after I gave my congratulatory remarks, someone wheeled in a large birthday cake. It was a complete surprise. Hudson Shad's singers led the entire audience in a rendition of "Happy Birthday to You." As I admired the cake and heard the enthusiastic melody sung by so many new friends, I turned to Ann and told her I could not imagine a more special birthday. And the cake was my favorite too - strawberry shortcake!
Until next time,
Jim
Happy Birthday, Jim-san! What a wonderful birthday you had! I admire your lovely wife, Ann-san, for her effort to make the day very special for you! I wish I could be there to sing the birthday song to you too, with everybody! I could, though, easily imagine that every participant had such a fun evening since you described about the party well in the blog. I have enjoyed reading your blog and would like to say that you deserve to have a special moment like that, cerebrated by a lot of people for your hard work between the two countries.
Your big fan, Chizuko
