About the film

This dance film is a collaboration between Kae Sakurai (Director, Percussive Dancer, Choreographer), Monika Smekot (Co-Director, Camera, Edit) and Riko Matsuoka (Musician, Composer)

This film was inspired by the experience of Japanese people living in Scotland.

ANTAGATA DOKO SA is a Japanese traditional children’s play song from Edo period in Japan, and it means “Where are you from”. 

Japanese composer, Riko Matusoka created a new piece of music ‘ANTAGATA DOKO SA Variations’ based on the children’s play song. She made the theme and the following 6 variations* by using Japanese musical scales from the north and south of the Japanese islands along with Scottish musical formats. 

Riko composed the tune while she was studying for her Masters Scottish Traditional Music Course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. The tune was her her winning piece at the Scottish Harp competition, the Princess Margaret of the Isles Memorial Prize for Senior Clarsach in 2018.

Traditional Japanese imagery and music is filtered through a Scottish dance and music landscape. A children’s song becomes the source of dance and music variations, remembering the past and imagining the future. ‘Where are you from’ looks both back and forward, links young and old, East and West. 

*ANTAGATA DOKO SA Variations: 

It consists of a theme and 6 variations:

◆Theme

◆ Variation Ⅰ ：Scottish piping-style decorations

◆ Variation Ⅱ：Ryukyuan / Okinawan style music

◆ Variation Ⅲ：Scottish Jig

◆ Variation Ⅳ：Scottish Strathspey

◆ Variation Ⅴ：Ainu Music inspired by the sound of Tonkori, which is a 5 stringed traditional instrument played by the Ainu people in Japan.

◆ Variation Ⅵ：Scottish Reel