Performances

kuste

• © Namine Doi

• © Hirose Modoro

Profile

• Formed 2025 in Japan. Works nomadically.

Mayunkiki, a musician and contemporary artist from Hokkaido, grounds her creative practice in a deep, introspective engagement with her identity as an Ainu, an Indigenous ethnic minority in Japan. Taking as her point of departure the “experiences that arise from being Ainu,” she insists on an artistic perspective rooted in personal subjectivity as she probes the complexities of what it means to be Ainu in the present moment.
Mayunkiki+ is a special ensemble created exclusively for this performance at Aichi Triennale 2025. The group brings together: apetunpe, featuring Mayunkiki’s older sister Rekpo, a singer active mainly in traditional Ainu music; SUIKA KEIMAI, an experimental sonic unit featuring Mayunkiki and Hirose Tact; Koyano Tetsuro and Watanabe Naoka of hoshifune, collaborating with Ainu shadow pictures; and WHITELIGHT, who will handle audio design.
This ensemble has conducted extensive fieldwork in the Tenryu River basin in the Oku-Mikawa district in Aichi Prefecture and the upstream areas of Ishikari River in Hokkaido. Drawing on the findings of this fieldwork, kuste will retrace the footsteps of Kawamura Kaneto: Mayunkiki and Rekpo’s grandfather, who was a legendary surveyor and prominent Ainu leader in the city of Asahikawa, Hokkaido, during the early part of the Shōwa era (1926 -1989). Kawamura left a remarkable legacy through his work constructing some of Japan’s most challenging railway sections, including Oku-Mikawa and the old Sanshin Line (the current JR Iida Line), between the Tenryukyo (Tenryu Gorge) Station and Mikawa Kawai Station in Shinshiro, Aichi Prefecture.
The title kuste comes from a transitive verb in the Ainu language meaning “to let something pass through a place.” Following Kawamura’s path, this performance seeks to build bridges across what often feels unbridgeable and irreversible: before and after, upstream and downstream, and ancestors and descendants.

Selected performances

2024

SUKIYAKI MEETS THE WORLD (Toyama, Japan)/SUKIYAKI TOKYO (Japan) Mayunkiki & Surge (*1)

2024

“ukouk”, Sapporo International Art Festival 2024, MAREWREW × KOMAKUS (*2) (Hokkaido, Japan)

2023/2024

“nociw kotan”, Upopoy, hoshifune × apetunpe (Hokkaido, Japan)

2023

Shanku Musical Festival 2023, SUIKA KEIMAI (Hualien, Taiwan)

2022

Mayunkiki solo exhibition, SIKNURE – Let me live Opening performance, Mayunkiki & Surge (Birmingham, UK)

2022

Picnic at Music Hall, hoshifune × Apetunpe (Kanagawa, Japan)

*1 A band SUIKA KEIMAI organized in the United Kingdom.
*2 An artistic group whose members were originally with WHITELIGHT.

Staff

Cast

Apetunpe (Rekpo, Mayunkiki)

Apetunpe is a sister duo consisting of Rekpo and Mayunkiki, both also members of the female vocalist group Marewrew that breathes new life into “upopo” (traditional Ainu songs). As Apetunpe (Ainu for “moth”), the two explore avenues that are not possible with Marewrew (“butterfly”) and present a unique style of upopo that only they can create.

Sato Naoko

Sato Naoko graduated from the Toho Gakuen School of Music, where she also completed an advanced research course. Having previously worked in a variety of genres, among them classical, contemporary, jazz, world music, pop and chanson, Sato now performs as a multi-percussionist. She has contributed to numerous live concerts, recordings, theater productions, film soundtracks, TV series, commercials, and videogames. As a concert musician, she performs with Masakatsu Takagi and chanson singer Kumiko. As a skilled improviser, Sato collaborates with many jazz musicians and free improvisation artists. She is an endorser of Canopus drums. Her releases include the solo percussionist album “108,” released under the moniker satonaoko.

SUIKA KEIMAI (Hirose Tact, Mayunkiki)

Inspired by multinational jam sessions in the UK, the duo Suika Keimai (“Watermelon Siblings”) was formed with the idea that “we also need to explore sounds beyond American and European music,” and consists of Mayunkiki, an Ainu woman from Asahikawa, and Hirose Tact, a Tokyo-based musician originally from Mino in Gifu Prefecture. Together, they try to resolve a frustrating and complex paradox: that you end up sounding Western if you aim for a universal sound, and are labeled ‘ethnic’ or ‘oriental’ if you pursue something local.

hoshifune (Koyano Tetsuro, Watanabe Naoka)

The unit hoshifune consists of Balinese mask dancer Koyano Tetsuro and storyteller Watanabe Naoka, who also runs the publisher Yalada. Drawing inspiration from nature, local regions, traditional culture, and dreams, hoshifune collaborates with artists across various genres to weave stories into stage productions using shadow puppets and masks. Their work follows the rhythms of daily life, celebrates with all beings of nature, and embodies performing arts as a link between the visible and invisible worlds. Focusing mainly on Japan, Bali, and southern India, they pursue a borderless approach to learning from traditional performing arts. With hoshifune, they build and embody an approach to performing arts based on bodily awareness and living in the present moment. They hold performances and workshops mainly across Japan and Asia, valuing works created in collaboration with local people.

WHITELIGHT

Driven by the desire to “free the soul from the constraints of gravity,” Whitelight focuses on sound production, multi-channel audio designs, and the development of original sound systems. His work ranges from commercial space to concerts, live performances, theater, and contemporary art, where he has previously collaborated with artists such as Akio Suzuki, Gozo Yoshimasu, and Yasunao Tone. Since 2019, he has also been active under the name Komakus.

Matchume Zango

Born in 1980 in Maputo, Mozambique, Matchume Zango is a master of the mbila (a xylophone associated with the Chopi people), as well as a percussionist, composer, and music producer. He is a co-founder of Timbila Muzimba, one of Mozambique’s most important bands. Alongside organizing international, cross-genre music sessions, Zango leads numerous projects focused on researching and preserving the practices of Mozambique’s indigenous cultures. In recent years, he established the NZango Artist Residency in Maputo, a space that serves as both a recording studio and artist residence, supporting collaborations between local and visiting artists. He also crafts traditional instruments and is deeply committed to passing on the skills and knowledge involved.

Yamada Hiroki (ayamelab)

Yamada Hiroki is the technical director and representative of the Ayame Lab for Cultural Technologies & Techniques. After working at an architecture company, Yamada became the technical coordinator of the Sapporo Tenjinyama Art Studio, a cultural facility that focuses on artist residency programs, where he gained hands-on experience in artistic production processes across numerous disciplines. He later joined the Sapporo Cultural Arts Community Center (SCARTS), where he handled technical direction for numerous exhibitions and managed the technical team. In May 2025, Yamada founded the Ayame Lab for Cultural Technologies & Techniques.
Through his work, he handles spatial design, construction, sound, lighting, video, technical direction, and stage management for museums, galleries, art festivals, alternative spaces, and various exhibitions and art-related events. With technical expertise built through years of on-site experience, Yamada supports creative projects across disciplines, fields, and genres.

Assistance for viewing

[Before you attend]

• This work is performed in Ainu traditional songs, Non-verbal.
• Preschool-aged children are welcome to attend this performance, especially Relaxed Performances at Setogura Tsubaki Hall. Children of preschool age may attend for free if they sit on an accompanying adult’s lap. A ticket is required for children who need a separate seat (U25 tickets are available).
• Visitors using wheelchairs are asked to contact i-Ticket at 0570-00-5310.

[Childcare Services]

Childcare services are available. Advance reservation is required. For more details, please refer to the Childcare Service Guide.

[MEET THE ARTIST (10/5 (Sun))]

A talk with the cast and director(s) will follow the performance. Audience members are welcome to attend without a reservation.

• Live text support via UD Talk.

[Relaxed Performance (10/3 (Fri) - 10/5 (Sun))]

These performances ease standard theater etiquette—small sounds and entering/exiting during the show are welcome. Families with children and people with disabilities can enjoy the performance in a more comfortable setting. A relaxed lobby space and stage-view monitors are available. For more details, please refer to　For visitors interested in Relaxed Performances.

Related Information

• 

  Mayunkiki

  • Contemporary Art