Pittsburgh Taiko is dedicated to bringing Japanese group taiko drumming (kumidaiko) to the city of Pittsburgh. Open to anyone interested in learning about the art form, they seek to educate members of the community about taiko and about Japanese culture through performances and outreach activities.

Pittsburgh Taiko performs both regional Japanese drumming styles arranged for their group and original compositions. In this way, they not only look to pass on knowledge of what has come before, but also work to create new possibilities for taiko performance.

Noh, a six hundred year old traditional Japanese performing art, combines elements of dance, music, theater, literature, and costume. In a series of two classes we will examine the hayashi (music) ensemble and the integral role it plays in creating the atmospheric aesthetics of this art. First we will discuss the individual instruments of the hayashi ensemble. Then, through live demonstration we will see how they interact to create a variety of musical textures at different points of a dramatic performance.

During the 17-year rule of Kim Jong-il, North Korea became a dictatorship armed to the teeth but unable to feed its own people without foreign aid. But with the death of Kim Jong Il on December 17th, foreign policy experts across the globe have wondered aloud what does the future hold for this nuclear power? “North Korea as we know it is over,” a Korea specialist who served in the second Bush administration confidently asserted in the New York Times, a mere two days after Kim died.

Come to experience an extraordinary world class show -- Shen Yun Performing arts, it will be at the Benedum Center Feb. 15-16, 2012.

Reviving the purity and grandeur of Chinese classical dance and music, the show is inspired by the myths, legends, and divine beauty of 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture.

Shen Yun and its breathtaking beauty are not to be missed. Its masterful choreography and graceful routines range from grand classical processions to ethnic and folk dances, with gorgeously costumed dancers moving in stunning synchronized patterns.

Divination is a ubiquitous feature of everyday life in South Korea. Under the backdrop of economic liberalization, it proliferates as a medium for patrons to explore anxieties and desires, as they attempt to negotiate the unpredictable currents of the market economy. Divination conjures uncanny explanations for things that happen in the past, present, and future; and in this sense, it is explicitly tied to the theorization of knowledge as it reveals itself via character and fate.

Students are invited to a study abroad information session hosted by Alliance for Global Education. Attendees will be introduced to four study abroad programs in China and India. Alliance representative Clay Harmon will discuss:

• China Now: Development, Politics, and Social Change in Beijing
• Contemporary Chinese Society and Language in Shanghai
• Globalization Then and Now: Xi'an
• Contemporary India: Development, Environment, and Public Health

Jiang Rong’s 2004 bestselling novel Wolf Totem tells an alternative history of the traditional Chinese empire, reviving a once heated debate on Chinese characteristics. This talk will take Wolf Totem as an example of minority historical fiction to discuss the centripetal and centrifugal forces of Chinese history in re-imagining and reconfiguring ethnic, national, and international relations in the contemporary world.

Part of the East Asian Languages and Literatures Colloquium.

Refreshments will be served.

Do you know how to prove how well you speak Chinese, Japanese, or Korean? Come join us to hear from Pitt instructors & students about how to show off what you know for scholarships, jobs, and more! We'll talk about options, which tests are right for you, and even do a sample "OPI" interview in Chinese & Japanese!

Open to all students of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages. Refreshments will be served.

ASIA OVER LUNCH LECTURE – Noon in 4130 Posvar. Please feel free to join us for this lecture – all are welcome to bring their lunch or a snack along if you wish and enjoy!