Hello! I'm a musician and skateboarder raised in Alameda, California (San Francisco Bay Area), and following six years of living in Portland, Oregon for college and work (2009-2015), I moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan where I studied choral conducting at the University of Michigan. As of summer 2020, I’m back in Portland again, now as a professor of music at a local college. I'm friendly and always eager to learn about people's passions and interests. Happy to just sit and chat any time I'm free :)

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

My main goals in terms of this site are to meet people, continue to widen my sense of what living and getting by can look like, and share music!

I Couchsurfed around Europe and the UK for the first time in 2012 and now I'm really enamored with the whole concept of this site. It's been great meeting all these people and receiving such generosity and kindness all along the way. As soon as I can, I plan to pay all that goodness forward!

Interests

I'm a musician: conductor, ensemble singer, once upon a time a composer and singer/songwriter.

I started playing guitar in 2006 and writing songs in 2007 (some low-quality recordings can be found at www.soundcloud.com/shoheimusic and www.shohei.bandcamp.com). I played in a band of friends in Portland called the Dancing Hats that you should check out (www.thedancinghats.bandcamp.com)

I'd really enjoy playing music with you and sharing songs, if you'd like! I also really enjoy skateboarding and going out to see live music.

Music, Movies, and Books

Tinkers by Paul Harding. "A Personal Matter" by Kenzaburo Oe. Bluets by Maggie Nelson. The poetry of Shuntaro Tanikawa. Mary Szybist.

I really listen to all sorts, and I want to listen to yours!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I got stuck in Luxembourg once after leaving my bags at the train station storage which closed at 9:00PM. Met and played music for some drunk Luxembourg locals and ended up walking around the city with them all night until the train station opened again. If we ever meet, feel free to ask for more about this ridiculous night.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can try to teach you a bit about how to play guitar! Or teach you how to make a paper crane. I can try to explain what conductors are doing waving their arms around in weird ways!

I'd love to share my music with you, and get to learn about what makes your life fulfilling for you.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Music! I like a good music exchange, tipping each other off on worthwhile artists. Perhaps I could share some insights on my experience growing up in the States in a Japanese household, which may be a different experience than some of you know. And I'd love to know about your experiences too!

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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