Writer and music critic, born 1989. After completing Atsushi Sasaki’s critic training program Gips, he commenced his activities as a writer in 2013, and has since contributed to publications including ele-king, JazzTokyo, Jazz The New Chapterand Eureka. Essays include “New wave of improvised music – a disk guide for first encounters or initial thoughts” and “Towards the inevitable ’non-being of sound’ – The concrete and real music of Asian Meeting Festival.” Since May 2018, he has been hosting the “Explorations in post-improvisation” event series at M’s in Kokubunji.

Born in Hyogo Prefecture in 1960, Hiromichi Hosoma is a professor at the Faculty of Letters, Arts and Sciences at Waseda University. His research into everyday voice and body movements is combined with an interest in audiovisual culture. He has authored several books, including “Idatenbanashi” (“Idaten Stories”), “Kyo no Ama-chan kara” (“From Today’s ‘Ama-chan’”), both published by Kawade Shobo; “Elan Nyumon” (“Introduction to Elan”) by Hitsuji Shobo; “Futatsu no Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni” (“Two ‘In This Corner of the World’s”), “Ehagaki no Jidai” (“The Age of Postcards”), “Asakusa Junikai” (“Asakusa Twelve-stories”), all by Seidosha; “Kaigo suru karada” (“The Caring Body”) by Igaku-Shoin; “Uta no shikumi” (“How Songs Work”) by Pia; “Mickey wa naze kuchibue wo fukuka” (“Why Does Mickey Whistle?”) by Shincho Sensho; and “Ehagaki no naka no Hikone” (“Hikone in Postcards”).

Born in 1987, Yutaro Iijima is a German-to-Japanese literary translator. Having previously worked for a publisher, he is currently a Ph.D. student at Kyoto University’s Graduate School of Letters. His translations include Thomas Bernhard’s Amras (co-translated with Motoi Hatsumi, published by Kawade Shobo).

a blogger. born in 1989. living in a small town in Yamagata, I read and think about music every day. my blog “ただの風邪。(just a cold.)” is here -> http://caughtacold.hatenablog.com/

Toshiro Inaba, M.D., Ph.D. Born in Kumamoto in 1979. Cardiologist and Assistant Professor at the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine of the University of Tokyo Hospital from 2014 to 2020. Since April 2020, holds the roles of Head of the Department of General Medicine at Karuizawa Municipal Hospital, Associate Professor at the Shinshu University Research Center for Social Systems, Visiting Researcher at the University of Tokyo Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, and Visiting Professor at the Tohoku University of Art and Design. Inaba was also appointed Artistic Director of the 2020 Yamagata Biennale, and is involved in home medical care and mountain medicine. He engages in active discussion with professionals in a wide range of fields in order to bring about new medical and social solutions. His publications include “Inochi o Yobisamasu Mono” (Anonima Studio), “Korokoro Suru Karada” (Shunjusha), and “Karada to Kokoro no Kenkogaku” (NHK Publishing). Website: https://www.toshiroinaba.com/

Anthropologist / Associate Professor, Akita University of Art Born in Tokyo in 1974. Conducts research in comparative mythology and art-anthropology concerning images of non-human species. Ishikura has collaborated with artists on projects including the Japan Pavilion exhibition “Cosmo-Eggs” at the 58th Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition. Co-authored works include: Journeys into the wild: 12 trips to the source of the archipelago’s myths. (Tankosha), Lexicon: Contemporary Anthropology, More Than Human: Multispecies Anthropology and Environmental Humanities (Ibunsha), and Anthropology of Drawing Animals (Iwanami Shoten). Major exhibitions include “Toward the Spirit of the North: Capturing Faint Resonances” (Rovaniemi Art Museum, 2019-2020), “The Ecosystem of Expression: Remaking Relationships with the Worlds” (Arts Maebashi, 2019-2020), the Japanese Pavilion exhibition at the 58th Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition “Cosmo-Eggs | Uchu no Tamago”(2019), and Kenichi Obana + Toshiaki Ishikura’s “Tamagawa Geontography” (Chofu City Cultural Center Tazukuri, 2024). Curatorial collaborations include “New Ecology and Art” (Tokyo University of the Arts, 2022), “Material, or” (21_21 DESIGN SIGHT, 2023), and “Aichi Triennale 2025” (Aichi Prefecture, 2025).