Biography
The Yoko Awaya Koto Music Conservatory (Awayakai) was founded in 1975 in Los Angeles by Yoko Awaya, a koto and jiuta sangen instructor and performing artist. The Conservatory is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the art of koto and jiuta sangen music and seeks to enhance Japanese cultural and ethnic awareness and appreciation not only in Southern California but also throughout the United States.
Yoko Awaya offers instruction in classical and modern koto (13-stringed Japanese harp), the bass koto (17-stringed harp) and the jiuta sangen (3-stringed banjo-like instrument) in Southern California. She has about 50 members and has graduated 18 with teaching degrees fro the Miyagi School of Koto in Tokyo. She and her students have performed in numerous engagements throughout Southern California and across the United States.
Yoko Awaya and Awayakai have received awards and recognition for their contributions and cultural services to the community from Nanka Kenjinkai Kyogikai in 1991, the Orange County Japanese American Cultural Association in 1993, and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce in 1991 and again in 1999. She was recognized by the California State Assembly in September 1999 and by City of Torrance in 2004 for their outstanding contributions to the Japanese American community.