"Music on the Edge Presents Devon Osamu Tipp: New Music for Shakuhachi and Electroacoustic Sound," October 23 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Department of Music presents "Music on the Edge Presents Devon Osamu Tipp: New Music for Shakuhachi and Electroacoustic Sound" on October 23.

Music on the Edge presents Pitt PhD candidate Devon Osamu Tipp performing new music by Pitt graduate composers for shakuhachi and electroacoustic elements. The program will include works by Brian Riordan, Ryan McMasters, Mark Micchelli, Jason Belcher, Emmanuel Berrido, Ramin Akhavijou, and Tipp.

Pittsburgh based composer/performer Devon Osamu Tipp creates unorthodox musical environments from ostensibly incompatible realms. A PhD candidate at the University of Pittsburgh, Tipp’s music draws influence from his Japanese and Eastern European roots, his experiences as a jeweler and painter, and his studies of gagaku and hogaku in Japan and the US. His compositions focus on rhythmic and timbral transmutation of cyclical materials, ranging from the orchestral, to string basses prepared with honey stirrers, to concerti for traditional Japanese instruments. He received his BMus from Montclair State University, where he studied composition and microtonal music with Dean Drummond, and shakuhachi with Elizabeth Brown. His music has been performed by microtonal specialists Kjell Tore Innervik, Veli Kujala and Tolgahan Çogulu. He has also worked with Rarescale, the Thin Edge New Music Collective, the TAK Ensemble, and members of Avanti! Chamber Orchestra. His compositions have been featured at the Soundscape Festival, Bowdoin Festival, Beyond 2020: Microtonal Music Festival, and the 2015 Tokyo International Double Reed Society Conference.

The event will be broadcast live online for the general public, though limited in-person seating is available in Bellefield Hall for COVID-safety-compliant university students, faculty, and staff. The event starts at 7:30 pm and registration is required.

13-week Chinese program for kids and adults at Win-Win Kung Fu in Squirrel Hill, from September 11.

Win-Win Kung Fu Culture Center in Squirrel Hill will offer its Chinese-language program for interested children and adults from September 11. It will run for 13 weeks until December 18, with breaks on October 16 and November 17. The kids' class is from 2:40 to 3:30 pm, and the adults' class is 3:40 to 4:30 pm. Instruction is by Yan Zhao of Pittsburgh-based American Almond International Education. The cost is $5 per student if currently enrolled in Win-Win classes, or $10 per class for those not currently enrolled.

Those interested should contact the enter to enroll or email masters at winwinkungfu.com. The school is located at 2705-2707 Murray Ave. in Squirrel Hill (map).

"Jazz Poetry Month: Norihide Nakajima Quintet" at City of Asylum, (online) on September 14.

The City of Asylum will present "Jazz Poetry Month: Norihide Nakajima Quintet" in an online concert on September 14.

This concert marks the first time Jazz Poetry reaches Japan. A concert filmed for fans in Pittsburgh inside the top jazz club in Kyoto, Rag Jazz.

The program features original compositions, with Japanese poetry woven throughout as lyrics, as well as Japanese Jazz standards. Featuring musicians Utako Yamauchi (vocals), Tsutomu Takei (saxophone), Kiyoshi Takeshita (piano), Norihide Nakajima (bass), and Takehiro Shimizu (drums).

It runs from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, and those interested should register in advance.

Films from Japan, Nepal announced (so far) for SCREENSHOT:ASIA film festival in October.

The inaugural SCREENSHOT:ASIA film festival will be held at the University of Pittsburgh from October 6 through 10, and a small selection of films have already been announced: Wife of a Spy (スパイの妻) and Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy (偶然と想像) from Japan, and Looking for a Lady with Fangs and a Moustache from Nepal.

Pittsburgh Chinatown celebratory event scheduled for May 2022.

The Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) Pittsburgh has moved its celebratory event for the city's Chinatown neighborhood from September 2021 to, tenatively, May 2022, due to safety concerns. Pittsburgh's historical Chinatown neighborhood was granted a state historical marker in March, after numerous attempts over the decades, and there is an online fundraiser to raise money toward the plaque and celebration.

After 12 long years and 4 separate attempts, non-profit OCA Asian Pacific American Advocates of Pittsburgh has finally succeeded in getting official Pennsylvania historical landmark status for Downtown’s old Pittsburgh Chinatown! You can help us complete this project! We need $5000 to complete the bronze plaque made to the state’s specifications describing the designation. We hope to have a celebratory event this September in person!

Thank you so much for your generosity and contribution to help keep our rich history alive!

Post-Gazette: "Pandemic and aggression toward Asian Americans highlights Pittsburgh’s lack of centralized AAPI community."

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes on Pittsburgh's figurative and literal AAPI communities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and increased hostility toward Asians and Asian-Americans.

Pittsburgh’s Asian American community, which lacks the numbers seen in cities such as New York City and San Francisco, has found the angry sentiments difficult to process.

Without a place to gather or a stable network, the Pittsburgh Asian American community cannot come together and heal the same as other communities, said Caroline Yoo, of Los Angeles, a a master’s degree candidate at Carnegie Mellon University.

“In L.A., even though there’s that type of racism, you have community. Whereas in Pittsburgh, even though there is a community, it feels just a little bit quieter,’’ Ms. Yoo said.

“It’s only my first year here. In my experiences, there isn’t this huge hub of just Asian celebration anywhere, and I think because of that lack of celebration and the lack of visibility, in ways all the little micro-aggressions build. And you end up just swallowing it up and repressing rather than releasing it, crying for help from your other members of the community.”

Fantuan / Just Order Enterprises Corp. (饭团) hiring Mandarin-speaking Business Development Specialist.

Just Order Enterprises (also known as Fantuan), is a delivery service catering to Asian restaurants and groceries that expanded to Pittsburgh last summer, is hiring a Mandarin-speaking Business Development Specialist.

Fantuan was founded in Vancouver, Canada in 2014. With a mission of “life made easier,” the company is a one-stop platform providing food delivery (Fantuan Delivery), reviews (Fantuan Reviews), an errand service (Fantuan Rush), e-commerce and marketing services. Fantuan is one of the top Asian life-services platforms in North America, currently operating across Vancouver, Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Los Angeles, New York and other metropolitan areas in Canada and the US.

Job Title: Business Development Specialist (Sponsor H1B, OPT or CPT)

Job Responsibility:

1. Facing local merchants, understand the business status and needs of the merchants, combine the needs of consumers, select and design marketing and operation plans that fit for the merchants, negotiate and reach cooperation with the merchants, and promote the increase of merchant transaction volume.

2. Incorporate the company's marketing strategies, policies and marketing activities to independently accomplish performance goals.

3. According to the current market situation and customer response, the corresponding strategic direction is formulated through data analysis, and the value of cooperation with cooperative merchants is continuously improved to achieve a win-win situation between merchants and the platform.

4. Maintain new and old merchants, establish stable and high-value cooperative relations, and maintain long-term repurchases.

5. Cooperate with departments to process and feedback market information in a timely manner, improve operational efficiency, and improve user satisfaction.

New York-based Chinese-owned fastfood chain 98K coming soon to Squirrel Hill.

A reader points out that 98K Hamburger, which just put signage up on a Squirrel Hill storefront, is part of a chain of heretofore New York City-based restaurants. That roster includes 98K Kennedy Halal in Brooklyn, a 98K in Brooklyn and a 98K in Flushing, and 98K Hamburger in Brooklyn. The Pittsburgh signage includes "NO:0006," though it's not quite clear what the fifth location might be. It will open at 5867 Forbes Ave. (map), though construction is still in progress.
Prior to 98K the location had signage up for Chatea, a bubble tea place that had been under construction since July 2020 but never materialized.

Signage up for Chinese-owned fast food place 98K Burger in Squirrel Hill, replacing yet-to-arrive Chatea.

Signage has recently gone up at 5867 Forbes Ave. (map) for 98K Burger.

It replaces the signage for Chatea, a bubble tea place that had yet to open.

The Pittsburgh burger place is Chinese-owned and shares a name with two restaurants in New York---98K Hamburg and 98K---though it's not clear what relation, if any, it shares with them.

Pitt hiring Assistant Instructor in Korean Studies.

The University of Pittsburgh's Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures is hiring an Assistant Instructor in Korean Studies.

The University of Pittsburgh’s Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures seeks an Assistant Instructor in Korean Studies to teach/instruct graduate and undergraduate courses. Will also be responsible for: (i) preparing for and teaching all levels of Korean classes as required, (ii) training and observing less experienced instructors, (iii) coordinating teaching and work with the Korean coordinator and other instructors, (iv) evaluating student performances and assign grades, (v) meeting with students as needed to advise study progress, (vi) assessing program performance, (vii) holding office hours, (viii) participating in department service and professional development.

Must have a master’s degree (or foreign equivalent degree) in Korean Languages or a related field plus one (1) year of experience teaching Korean at the college level in a North American institution of higher learning.

Must also have any experience with or knowledge of: (i) Korean and foreign language pedagogy in American higher education setting; (ii) linguistic knowledge of the Korean language; (iii) pedagogical technology; (iv) excellence in teaching as measured through student evaluations; (v) research in the field of Korean as a foreign language; (vi) teaching courses related to the Korean language (e.g., hanja); and (vii) coordination and administrative.

Must also be fluent in Korean (speaking, reading, and writing).

Experience can be concurrent.