Last weekend Koenji in Tokyo played host to the Awa Odori matsuri, a two day traditional Japanese dance festival that originated in Tokushima in Shikoku over 400 years ago. The event sees thousands of dancers hit the streets in choreographed groups, entertaining large crowds of spectators to the sounds of traditional Japanese music played on flutes, taiko drums and shamisen. This was the 62nd annual Awa Odori in Koenji and as always it was a wild affair with big crowds, lots of dancing and an array of characters in the procession. This matsuri is a personal favourite of mine and definitely one of the highlights of Tokyo living for me!
You can read more about the history of Awa Odori in both Tokushima and Koenji in another post of mine here.
This was my eighth consecutive Koenji Awa Odori in a row. As usual I spent Saturday enjoying the event with friends, while on the Sunday I was rolling solo, meeting the people involved and photographing. Here is a selection of some of my favourite shots from this years event…
Now featured on the Spoon & Tamago site – with thanks!
