Noted US mandolinist Christopher Henry is making a trip to Japan this week for a brief duo tour with Kazuhiro Inaba, popular Japanese entertainer and bluegrass impresario.
They will make nine stops across the island nation, performing in duet on mandolin and guitar, on what is billed as The Blue Grass Story Tour 2026. It is meant to be part educational and informative, and part purely entertainment.
Kaz offered a brief insight.
“We will play as a mandolin and guitar duo in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Nishinomiya, Imabari, Kurashiki, and Kyoto.
In between songs, we will share the stories from the bluegrass legends.”
Both men are careful students of bluegrass history, as well as the music that informed its earliest origins. These shows should be great fun as well as deeply absorbing for Japanese bluegrass fans. Henry will also offer a pair of mandolin workshops along the way.
The tour begins on June 19 in Tokyo at the famous Rocky Top club, and runs through June 28, as follows:
- June 19 – Tokyo – Rocky Top
- June 20 – Nagoya – Armadillo
- June 21 – Nagoya – moss ARIMATSU – Mandolin workshop
- June 23 – Osaka – 5th Street
- June 24 – Nishinomiya – Sakura FM radio show
- June 25 – Nishinomiya – Fortworth
- June 25 – Nishinomiya – Shukugawa Public Hall – Mandolin workshop
- June 26 – Imabari – Asakura Community Center
- June 27 – Kurashiki – Guitar Trailer
- June 28 – Kyoto – Honky Tonk
Not to be missed if you are a Japanese bluegrass lover, or someone traveling in Japan during this tour.
