Thinking about "h.Imagine" and "Chigusa" on March 11th

Immerse yourself in jazz tonight
File.6 Rikuzentakata "h.Imagine"
Mayuko Niimura (Jazz Cafe Chigusa)

Chigusa closed once in 2007 due to the area's rezoning. In 2010, a three-day archive exhibition, "There was a Chigusa in Noge!", sparked calls for its revival, but there was neither the money nor the manpower. Time passed with the vague notion that "someday..." and "if we can reopen someday..." until the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred on March 11, 2011.

On this day, the tsunami that struck the Tohoku region claimed many lives and completely destroyed towns.
I was in Noge and saw the extent of the damage on the ground, but there was nothing I could do and I was overcome with a sense of helplessness.

Then in April, as the media began to report the details, I came across a photo. It was an article in the Kanagawa Shimbun newspaper showing a man standing amid the rubble, holding a record. The owner of a jazz cafe called "h. Imagine" in Rikuzentakata had lost everything in the tsunami: his shop, his sound equipment, his records—everything—but he still held out hope of rebuilding.
Jazz cafe... Records... Seeing the words lined up, I couldn't help but feel restless, so I immediately reached out to Chigusa associates and the town to plan a charity event. We held a flea market and collected donations, and also asked for donations of records. It was only a one-day event, but we received cooperation from many people, so we immediately headed to Rikuzentakata with the sales proceeds, donations, and records. I met the owner at the gymnasium where we were evacuated, and was able to hand them over in person.

With the owner, Mr. Tomiyama, as my guide, I also visited the former location of "h.Imagine." The situation, with tens of thousands of people still missing and the rubble still untouched, is difficult to describe and almost impossible to bear. There was no sign of jazz playing anywhere, and the dusty air was filled with a stale smell that made it impossible to remove my mask.
With the desire to play jazz in this place at least, I dropped the needle on the record player I had brought from Yokohama.
'Don't Be That Way' by Benny Goodman.
The cheerful sound of a big band and swinging clarinets reverberated loudly through the rubble-strewn city. It was a strange sight, but it was a sound that reminded me of the stories of Yoshida Mamoru.

When Chigusa 's founder, Mamoru Yoshida, returned home from military service after the war, the city of Yokohama was burned to the ground by a massive air raid. He headed straight for the site of his shop, but the cafe and the precious records he had painstakingly collected were all burned to ashes, with no trace of them left. However, the sound of jazz broadcasting from the occupying forces' radio station inspired him to revive Jazz Cafe Chigusa .

This story is a passage from "Yokohama Jazz Story," and I could see Yoshida Mamoru at that time overlapping with Tomiyama, who was affected by the disaster in Rikuzentakata.

After that, while living in a shelter himself, Tomiyama continued to visit other shelters energetically, carrying a gramophone, records, and a coffee set. Chigusa 's friends also visited Rikuzentakata again and held a "Mobile Jazz Cafe Chigusa" with Tomiyama. Connecting to Yokohama via live internet broadcast, they delivered the real voices of Tomiyama and the people rising up to rebuild, and they talked together.
At the time, I thought I was sending my support from Yokohama. But thinking back, maybe it was Chigusa who was being cheered on. I felt that I must not let the story of Chigusa , who was brought back from the ashes of having lost everything by Mamoru Yoshida, end.

With the help of many people who love Chigusa , Chigusa was able to reopen on March 11th, the year after the earthquake. This date was deliberately chosen as the reopening date so that the earthquake and the affected areas would not be forgotten. At Chigusa , we always report on the latest developments from Tomiyama and other affected areas on each anniversary.

Apparently, "jazz" also means "liveliness" in slang. This does not only mean music, but may also refer to life itself.
As we bring jazz to Tohoku, we approach March 11th, eight years after the earthquake and seven years since Chigusa reopened.