On June 24th, 2015—for the first time in history—nine shamisen masters will be coming together to teach their shamisen skills to shamisen enthusiasts like you from around the world.
If you love shamisen, no matter your skill level, this intensive shamisen camp is the place to be!
Only 30 spots available! Get all the details and RSVP at - http://bachido.com/camp
I take it that all of this will be in Japanese? I have no idea how many of our members that know the language. You should have some more information on this and consider a translator if you end up with many interested people that do not know the language. Although that might be really annoying to wait for during the precious time…
You’ve assembled quite the roster of instructors! The epicness is guaranteed!
Someone sponsor me, I’ll go along as a public bachido official translator for anyone who can’t speak the language! hahaha!
Sigh
A man can dream.
It’s gunna be BIG!
And yeah…considering I speak ZERO Japanese am I going to be relying on Mike, Kevin, and Kyle for instruction?
Hey dudes! Actually, I do believe many of the instructors speak a decent amount of English (Asano Sho, Jack, Tanaka Yumiko, etc). However, to be safe, I gave them detailed suggestions of how to lead an international workshop. Though we can help with English/Japanese translations, it’s best if the instructors plan their curriculum around drills/observation rather than verbal theory. (especially for instructors who don’t speak English)
To explain this point to them, I used my first lesson with Nitta san as an example. When I first met Nitta san, he spoke almost zero English and I didn’t speak Japanese, yet it was one of the best lessons I ever received! All because he used visual demonstrations. It was very direct, and in a way, language would’ve hindered his instruction. 
To accommodate 30 shamisen students in a hands-on group workshops, I’ve advised them to arrange their curriculum around mostly visual instruction packed full of drills. 
Their curriculum is up to them. When I get an idea of individual skill levels of the attendees, I will tell the instructors so they can appropriately format their workshop.
All I can add is…
Wooooooo!!! Submitted my quote request in the store. Beam me up, Kyle!
Hey speaking of sponsorships I could do the driving and bring coffee …
Nice. Do you think the Shamisen camp can become an annual thing, or is it a one time only thing?
RSVP received Eric! Glad you can make it, and looking forward to meeting you at last!
BH, dude, if there’s any way we could have a Bachido scholarship plan, you’d be the first person I’d accept!
David, excellent question! It all depends on the outcome of this first one. If it’s a rousing success, I can definitely see it being a yearly event. However, because it’s an international event, I think it would be fun to change location each year. Perhaps San Francisco in 2016, Berlin in 2017 (BH!), etc… This means we wouldn’t be able to fly out nine instructors, but perhaps three instructors? Who knows, something awesome can certainly be done.
Woo! Is there anyone interested in trying to find lodging together? There seems to be a couple of places that have dormitory or family style rooms.
Kyle, do you have any ideas as far as cheap places where we could stick a group of us for the week?
That’s a great question, Joseph!
I don’t really have any personal experience of tokyo hotels, as I’ve stayed with friends in previous trips. However, I’m planning to go the hotel route this time, and so will do some research.
Oh! Mike once suggested the Sakura House. That seems really, really nice. I’m planning to stay 2~3 weeks, and so the cost of a shared house is cheaper than a 5000 yen/day hotel. I guess the feasibility change depending on length of stay.
Anywho, this is a great subject to discuss.
Hey Adrian! Where did you stay in Asakusa post-Team Bachido 2013 Attack?
Asakusa… That was the Sakura Hostel. Cheap, friendly, clean, and right next to Asakusa Jinja, where they have that there Kaminari-mon and everything. They also speak English, and have loads of maps to help you get around.
Be wary that getting there from the airport alone at night can be confusing, because Japan generally does not have street signs.
I’ve stayed in Sakura House in Ikebukuro in 2010 around Christmas and it was nice and not too expensive…
But I would check on site like Booking.com to find the best place. I Since we still have 6 months to go before, we have plenty of time to find the best spot.
See you cats there! Just reserved my spot. Haven’t figured out my exact itinerary yet, but I figure I’ll probably stay for a bit and maybe do some traveling too.
Jacinthe, good idea! I’ll be checking out Booking.com soon.
Jamie: Stoked to see your RSVP! You’re gonna have an awesome time, I know it! Matej posed the idea of a hosting a show in Yokohama before/after ShamiCamp, perhaps you’d be into making a showing there too.
Thanks to Jacinthe’s recommendation, I’ve been looking at Booking.com.
As I said to her, I don’t plan to spend much time at the hotel, so a cheaper price is the most attractive for my thrifty tastes. That said, I found this place! - Asakusa Hotel Fukudaya, Tokyo – Updated 2022 Prices
Any thoughts? The public bath is always a great addition. (After all, what’s the point of it all if we can’t see each other naked in a big bath?? )
That looks pretty good! Seems I can get something reasonably price myself… going into my bookmarks, good find Kyle! Now if only I can get a cheap plane ticket, then I might be able to confirm my presence!
Awesome, Calvin! The current exchange rate can also make things a bit nicer for travelers going to Japan as well.
I’ve recently noticed that flights are starting to get cheaper. ANA is still $2000, but an Alaska Airline/Delta flight with a 1 hour layover in Honolulu is $1500. So, things are going in the right direction!
Yeah that’s what the current price range from Montreal is last I checked and it’s almost a direct flight through Air Canada. So if I can get it down to the 1200-1300$, it would be almost a 100% go for me!
Once I pick my classes for next (summer) semester and know who my teachers are, I’ll email them about when the exams are due. Though at a quick glance, I should be good on that front!
Yahooo!! Finger’s crossed for the both of us!