Popular Japanese bluegrass artist Kazuhiro Inaba has announced plans to perform a number of shows this fall in the eastern United States. He is traveling by himself, and will appear with a number of different US pickers at these various concerts.
Kaz grew up in a bluegrass family in the Kansai region of Japan. His dad was a banjo player and his older brother a mandolinist, and young Kaz likewise took up banjo when he was 15. Throughout the 1970s the Inaba Brothers performed together near their home, and in the ’80s Kaz set off on his own.
During a trip to the US in 1983, he took second place in banjo at the Old Fiddler’s Convention in Galax, VA. Making regular trips to the States ever since, Inaba has appeared at any number of festivals, and recorded several albums under his name, now seven in total, starting in 1984.
In addition to playing concerts all over Japan, Kaz hosts the annual Kazuhiro Inaba Bluegrass Camp, which typically includes dozens of Japanese bands who make the trip to Osaka to participate. Though they call it a camp, it is really a bluegrass festival.
Here’s a video of the Inaba Brothers from the 2023 KazCamp.
Virginia guitarist Jack Hinshelwood is helping put together these dates, and will perform as a duo with Kaz on two of the shows. Jack has put together a band for the concert in Galax, including Butch Robins, Scott Freeman, and Tim Yates. Randy Gambill is doing the same thing for the North Carolina stops. Both are open to other shows if they can be arranged in early November.
Shows with Kaz Inaba include:
- October 31 – Old Hampton Store in Linville, NC with Randy Gambill
- November 1 – Old Hampton Store in Linville, NC with Randy Gambill
- November 1 – Sims’ Country Barbeque Granite Falls, NC with Wes Tuttle and Randy Gambill
- November 4 – Southwest Virginia Cultural Center & Marketplace in Abingdon, VA with Jack Hinshelwood
- November 6 – Virginia Tech’s Moss Arts Center for Cultural Crossroads in Traditional Music & Dance with a number of traditional artists
- November 7 – Rex Theater in Galax, VA with Jack Hinshelwood, Butch Robins, Scott Freeman, and Tim Yates
- November 9 – Fretwell in Spartanburg, SC with Jack Hinshelwood
Any additional shows will be noted on Kaz’s web site.
