Michael Chikuzen Gould lived in Japan from 1980 to
1997 and studied shakuhachi under renowned masters
Taniguchi Yoshinobu and Yokoyama Katsuya. Gould
earned a “Shihan” (Master of Shakuhachi) in 1987 and
was given the name “Chikuzen.” In 1994, he became
one of only a handful of non-Japanese to hold the title
of “Dai Shihan” (Grand Master of Shakuhachi). After
returning to the U.S., Chikuzen taught Zen Buddhism
and Shakuhachi at the University of Michigan, Oberlin
College, and Wittenberg University.

One of the most prolific performers outside of Japan,
Chikuzen has presented over 500 solo concerts and
has also played with traditional Japanese music ensembles,
Taiko drumming groups, Chinese harp and
pipe organ. He appeared in the world premiere of
the opera “Madame Butterfly” using Japanese instruments,
performed Karl Jenkins’ “Requiem” with the
Metropolitan Detroit Chorale, and provided the music
for the prestigious Dance Company of Ann Arbor at the
University of Michigan in a presentation of the works of
Mary Cassatte. Chikuzen is also a Shakuhachi instructor
at the annual Shakuhachi Camp of the Rockies in
Loveland, Colorado.

The capacity of the Shakuhachi is huge, not only as a
musical instrument due to its variety of colors and special
sounds, but, more so as a link or bridge between
the essential nature (soul) of human beings and the essential
nature (spirit) of the cosmos. The ability of the
Shakuhachi to reach into people and touch something
deep inside, to stir up something in a place that is not
often used, is evidenced by the large number of people
attracted to it that express such an experience. At the
same time, it has always evoked images of nature the
music reminding individuals of a beautiful place they
visited, maybe waterfalls, mountains, or the seaside.
Many titles of the songs (honkyoku) created by the
Zen monks bear natural titles: Three mountains, Three
Valleys, Floating Clouds, A Mountain Waterfall, Crane
Calls, The Distant Cry of the Deer, and so forth.

For him shakuhachi has always had this connection to
nature. Growing up in a small village in the Midwest,
he spent much time with nature, not being consciously
aware of it, but always in nature. He was aware of
the Earth underneath spreading out under his feet,
the distant woods forming the horizon across the
fields, and the sky above with the clouds. These were
like friends accompanying him: dependable, real entities.
Shakuhachi music comes out of these places for
him now: the expansive fields, the rolling hills, and
the cloudy skies bearing the thunderstorms of the
Midwest. These settings, of course, include man as a
spiritual being here on Earth. The Komuso Zen monks
spent their lives in contemplation of the natures of
both the human being and the natural world. The instrument
they used and the music they played on it
reflects the thoughts and feelings of their lives, and
can still be useful and powerful tools today for anyone
drawn to the contemplation of man’s inner nature
through sound.

Michael has published one solo CD of traditional zen
shakuhachi songs and several CDs with other artists,
including another Michael Gould, professor of percussion
at the University of Michigan; Sebastien Gishin
Cyr, a zen monk based in Montreal, Canada; and Joy
Hoffman of Chicago on chinese harp.

Chikuzen, now based in Cleveland, locally, has performed
at the Cleveland Museum of Art, Severance
Hall, and the dedication of the Peter B. Lewis School of
Management building, designed by Frank Gehry.
Michael currently is continuing the transmission of this
Zen music by offering lessons (e.g. webcam, private,
home intensives, and weekend retreats in the midwest.)
He may also be contacted for lectures, performances
and recording sessions.