Learning to Play Hitoyogiri, the Single-Node Bamboo Flute - with Alcvin Ryūzen Ramos

We were pleased to welcome back shakuhachi master, Alcvin Ryūzen Ramos, for the final instalment of an immersive series of programs introducing the world of the ancient hitoyogiri bamboo flute, the direct ancestor of the better-known shakuhachi.

2025 marked the 400-year anniversary of the death of Ōmori Sōkun, the first pioneer of hitoyogiri in the Edo period. In conjunction with hitoyogiri events taking place from May to September all over Japan, Alcvin’s contribution to the celebrations included a lecture on the history of the forgotten hitoyogiri and demonstrations of the beautiful sounds of this ancient instrument and a workshop in which participants made their own hitoyogiri from local bamboo from the Sunshine Coast.

In this final program, participants joined Shakuhachi master Alcvin Ryūzen Ramos for an introduction to the basics of hitoyogiri tuning, fingering, and the mysteries of Japanese flute notation, before learning to play the first piece in the repertoire of the Sōsa-Ryū, the fundamental school of the hitoyogiri bamboo flute with roots in the early Edo period.

Thank you to all of our participants for making this very special program possible and so much fun!