The time to read a special book is something you want to spend in your favorite place.
Your home sofa, by the river, in the mountains, at a café... What kind of place do you like?
I enjoy the time of flipping through the pages of a book while sipping warm coffee and looking out at the calm Seto Inland Sea.
In early summer 2024, I participated in a music event for reading held at the café belk on Ojigadake Hill overlooking the Seto Inland Sea, bringing along a few of my favorite books.
What is the music event for reading?
The music event for reading is a concert held on June 4, 2024 (Tuesday) at the café belk on Ojigadake Hill, organized by belk and Folklore.
This concert, held at belk with different musicians and bookstores each time, is the fourth edition of the event.
This time, with the theme of "Enriching the time spent reading", participants will enjoy music that accompanies reading performed by musician Tanabe Gen, who is active in Yamanashi Prefecture, while reading their favorite books.
On the day, books selected specifically for this event by the Yamanashi bookstores BEEK and Nohohon will be available, so it’s great to discover new books on the spot or bring along a favorite book for the occasion. Additionally, there will be a booth from the bento shop Obento, Nichinichi. from Okayama City, allowing for a picnic on Ojigadake before or after the concert.
The concert is divided into two parts, with the first part starting at 1 PM and the second part at 4 PM. Each part lasts about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
The first part of the music event for reading
I attended the first part, which started at 1 PM.
The seats inside the café were almost full, and there were participants reading on benches outside, making it a lively event.
I arrived a little early and enjoyed a picnic with a bento from "Obento, Nichinichi." before participating in the music event for reading, so I will introduce that experience.
Picnic with a spectacular view of Ojigadake
Upon arriving at the venue, delicious bento boxes were lined up at the entrance of belk. These bento boxes were provided by "Obento, Nichinichi." from Okayama City for this event.
The weather was nice that day, so I picked up my reserved bento, spread it out on a sheet, and enjoyed a picnic.
The menu for the bento is as follows:
- Barley and pea rice
- Young sweetfish and new onion nanban-zuke (sweet and sour pickled dish)
- Zucchini omelet
- New potato with tree bud miso salad
- Broccoli aglio e olio
- Three kinds of beans with sesame dressing
Each dish has a gentle flavor that allows the taste of the ingredients to shine through, providing a sense of calm.
Moreover, the clear blue sky and the calm Seto Inland Sea in front of me, with paragliders flying above Ojigadake, created a peaceful scenery, making it a picnic that filled both my stomach and heart.
They say "the appearance of food is important," but perhaps the situation in which you eat is also a key point in enjoying a meal even more.
Carefully selecting the book you want to read today
With my stomach and heart satisfied, I returned to belk. Participants were gathering one after another, each picking up and browsing through the books selected by "BEEK" and "Nohohon."
This time, it seems that not only musician Tanabe but also the bookstores came all the way from Yamanashi Prefecture to Kurashiki. The books selected to match the scenery of the venue and Tanabe's music looked interesting, and participants were having a hard time deciding.
Having visited belk several times before, I brought along a few books that I had thought I wanted to read in this place.
The first book is "Diving into the Sea" by Akashi Yuka. It is an essay by her, who lives in both Kurashiki and Tokyo. Akashi Yuka is active as an editor.
The second book is the zine "Returning" by Manju Koki. Manju also lives in two locations, Okayama and Okinawa, and is active as a photographer.
As someone who moved from Tokyo to Kurashiki in December 2023, I support both of them as fellow migrants of the same generation. We share the commonality of having decided to move to Kurashiki because we fell in love with the scenery of the Seto Inland Sea, so I brought these two books about life in that area to read at belk.
The last book is "On the Day When Neither You nor I Will Be Here in 100 Years" by Domon Ran. I purchased this book at the bookstore aru in Kurashiki City, where Akashi Yuka operates. I had lost the timing to read it for a long time, so I decided to read it on this occasion.
Listening to music, enjoying the scenery, and reading
Upon entering the venue, I ordered a drink at the counter and sat at a seat of my choice.
I chose a seat by the window with a view of the sea.
When the time came, Tanabe's guitar performance quietly began. At first, drinks were still being served, so the sounds of coffee beans being ground and water boiling gradually mixed with the guitar sounds. With various sounds around, I couldn't concentrate yet, so I decided to flip through the pages of Manju's photo book.
Occasionally sipping coffee, gazing at the Seto Inland Sea, watching Tanabe perform, and then shifting my gaze to the book in front of me. Gradually, I became immersed in "reading."
The music continued to build up, and participants increasingly entered their own worlds.
Even though everyone was in the same place listening to the same music, I felt a strange sensation as time flowed, with each person entering their own world.
At the end, Tanabe made an announcement, and for the last song, everyone closed their books and focused on Tanabe's performance, ending the concert with a big round of applause. Surrounded by the aroma of coffee, Tanabe's music, and the afterglow of the stories each person had opened, we all headed home.
Conclusion
The sense of unity that cannot be experienced in solitary reading and the individual worlds that cannot be felt in a live performance focused solely on music. The time flowing simultaneously with both of these elements created a unique atmosphere that I believe is characteristic of the music event for reading.
This concert has become an opportunity to increase the spaces where I want to read and the music I want to listen to while reading.
I wonder what kind of music and books I will encounter next time. Since there were many interesting books selected, I think I will also try the experience of choosing a book to read from the selected ones on that day.
Data for the Music Concert for Reading
| Name | Music Concert for Reading |
|---|---|
| Date | June 4, 2024 (Tuesday) Part 1: Doors open at 12:30 PM / Starts at 1:00 PM, Part 2: Doors open at 3:30 PM / Starts at 4:00 PM |
| Location | 7 Kojima Karakoto-cho, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Participation Fee (including tax) | 2,500 yen + drink |
| Homepage | Official belk Instagram |
