TOP PICKS FOR THE WEEK
All things Japanese — even Pokémon — will be celebrated at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center, 201 W. Marcy St., from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday.
The annual Santa Fe Japan Festival this year features activities both indoors and in the convention center courtyard. There will be classical Japanese dance, ensemble drumming, karate, a demonstration of “the way of the bow,” kamishibai (storytelling using original art prints) and chado, using tea to calm the mind and soothe the spirit (there will be free bowls of matcha and tea sweets). You can even get into a game of go.
Then there’s ALJo6, a bi-cultural dance group from Albuquerque, ages 6 to 18. Each of the six members has an American and a Japanese parent, and their repertoire includes some hip-hop moves. Also on the non-traditional side, cosplay characters from two anime series, Sailor Moon and Pokémon, will perform a skit. Food and merchandise vendors will be on hand. Admission is $5; free for kids under 12.
BEETHOVEN:
This weekend, acclaimed pianist Anne-Marie McDermott gives two concerts of Beethoven piano concertos at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W. San Francisco St., with the Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra. The performances are at 4 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday.
In a review of McDermott’s many recordings, Gramophone Magazine said, “We have waited a long time for an American pianist of this stature.” Tickets are $20-$75 at ticketssantafe.org or 988-134.
SONOSPHERIC:
If something more modern is your thing, Sonospheric, a project from a group of Santa Fe instrumentalists, performs at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Kitchen Sink Studio, 528 Jose St., off North Guadalupe. Judging from the available evidence online, there’s jazz fusion in their sound, along with grungy soundscapes, but also assorted grooves that could get you dancing.
The band features leader Dave Wayne on drums and drum machine; jazz bassist and composer Casey Andersen on contrabass and synthesizer; and classical pianist and composer Grisha Krivchenia on keyboards, with and without digital processing. “No boring noodling ... we make you smile!” they guarantee on Facebook. Admission is $20; call 800-838-3006 or go to brownpapertickets.com.