Nagoya City University Program
“Playing and Creating with Lines, Shapes, and Sounds”
On Sunday, August 30, 2026, the Nagoya City University program of the MidJapan Festival of Sonic Arts 2026, entitled Playing and Creating with Lines, Shapes, and Sounds, was held at the Kitachikusa Campus of Nagoya City University.
We were delighted to welcome a large audience, and the event concluded with great success. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who attended and participated, as well as to all the performers and collaborators who contributed to the event.
Throughout the day, participants explored the relationships between lines, shapes, and sounds from a variety of perspectives through lectures; exhibitions of scores, graphic scores, and research materials; a hands-on workshop in which participants created their own graphic scores and transformed them into sound; performances of electroacoustic works; and violin and viola performances by Maya Egashira.
Workshop & Lectures
The first part of the event began with a lecture on the history of twentieth-century music by Yoko Momiyama, Researcher at Nagoya City University.
This was followed by a presentation by Chikage Imai on the composer Joji Yuasa and graphic scores.
Participants then took part in a workshop using an application developed by Hiromi Watanabe, Researcher at Nagoya City University. They were invited to freely draw lines and shapes on a screen and then listen as their drawings were transformed into sound.
Students from the Matsumiya Sound Design Lab assisted with the workshop, enabling participants of all ages, from children to adults, to experience how different sounds could emerge from the shapes they created.
Exhibition of Scores and Research Materials
The venue also featured an exhibition of scores by Joji Yuasa and Chikage Imai, along with books and research materials on graphic notation and panels presenting Yoko Momiyama’s research on Yuasa’s works.
Concert
The second half of the event featured a concert beginning with electronic music works by Joji Yuasa and Iannis Xenakis, followed by Chikage Imai’s Netori, Paganini’s Caprice No. 2 from the 24 Caprices, Keita Matsumiya’s Caprice in its hybrid viola version, and Joji Yuasa’s Viola Locus.
Through Maya Egashira’s violin and viola performances together with electronic sound, the program explored the relationships among instrumental performance, electronics, visual forms, the body, and sound.
It was a rewarding day for us as well, with seeing, drawing, listening, and performing continually intersecting and moving back and forth between one another.
Once again, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who attended and to all those who performed, participated, and supported the event.
Event Information
Date
Sunday, August 30, 2026
Time
13:00–14:10 — Workshop & Lectures
14:20–15:30 — Concert
Venue
Kitachikusa Campus, Nagoya City University
Sound Design Room / Atrium Grand Staircase, School of Design and Architecture
2-1-10 Kitachikusa, Chikusa-ku
Nagoya 464-0083, Japan
The concert was originally scheduled to take place in the Sound Design Room. Due to the large number of registrations, however, the concert venue was changed to the Atrium Grand Staircase.
Concert Program
Joji Yuasa
Icon on the Source of White Noise — electronic music (1966)
Iannis Xenakis
Diamorphoses — musique concrète (1958)
Chikage Imai
Netori — for solo violin (2018)
Niccolò Paganini
Caprice No. 2 from 24 Caprices — for solo violin (1817)
Keita Matsumiya
Caprice — for hybrid viola (2015)
Joji Yuasa
Viola Locus — for solo viola (1995)
Organizers, Grants & Collaborating Institutions
Organized by
Sound Design Lab, Graduate School of Design and Architecture, Nagoya City University
MidJapan Festival of Sonic Arts Executive Committee
Supported by grants from
Kakehashi Foundation for Arts and Culture
Kao Foundation for Arts and Sciences
In collaboration with
Aichi University of the Arts
Institute of Advanced Media Arts and Sciences (IAMAS)
Nagoya College of Music
Nagoya University of the Arts
Access
From Nagoya Dome-mae Yada Station (Nagoya Municipal Subway)
Approximately 15 minutes on foot from Exit 1.
From Sakae Station
Take the Key Route Bus No. 2 from Bus Stop 3 at Oasis 21 and get off at Kayaba.
From Ikeshita Station
Take the Kikan-Sunada Route 1 bus from Bus Stop 3, get off at Seimeiyama, and walk approximately 3 minutes.
The gallery was not found!