Toronto

Shin Sugino

Shin Sugino is a renowned photographer with an extensive body of work in both commercial and art photography. Born in Japan and raised by French nuns, Sugino originally studied to become a priest, but became disillusioned with this life and immigrated to Canada at the age of 19 to become a photographer. Graduating from Ryerson […]

George Yamada

George Kiyoshi Yamada was the publisher and editor of the Rikka* newsletter, an important publication for the Japanese Canadian community in Toronto, for almost two decades. Yamada was born in Nebraska, and studied at San Francisco State College and Mexico City College. In 1941, he was drafted by the United States army, and declared himself […]

Bruce Tatemichi

Bruce was born in Montreal in 1953, and began piano lessons at five years old. In high school he first studied the clarinet, and soon after the saxophone. Along the way, he taught himself how to play the drums, bass and the flute. Bruce is a jazz musician, but he plays many styles including classical, […]

Sam Furuya

Sam Furuya was a Nisei singer who was active before, during, and after the Second World War. His trademark song was Someone to Watch Over Me, and he settled in Toronto after the war.

Roy Kusano

Roy Kusano is a Sansei country-folk singer who was billed as the ‘Yodelling Cowboy.’ He was active in the 1960s era of the Yorkville Village in Toronto, and well-known for his rendition of Gordon Lightfoot’s Steel Rail Blues. He is also a past president of the Toronto Buddhist Church.

Harry Kumano

Harry Kumano was a Nisei singer and actor. An active member of the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto, he is well known as the founder, director, and conductor of the Sansei Choir. He also did film work, appearing in several commercials. He once had an ambition to ‘play all the Buddhist churches up and […]

Sansei Choir

The Sansei Choir was a group formed at Toronto’s Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC) in 1964 by Harry Kumano. The choir originally contained children from the ages of 5-12, and was formed from a desire to provide a social outlet for young Sansei in Toronto. They performed at most events at the JCCC, and some […]

The Embers

The Embers were a Nisei rock ensemble that performed at many Japanese Canadian community picnics and dances. They featured musician Yo Mori (an NAJC Toronto stalwart), and were particularly well-known for their rendition of Kansas City.

The Asia Minors

The Asia Minors were an all-Asian Canadian band who played in Toronto in the 1960s. The band was formed by the Lumb family, a prominent Chinatown family: it was sponsored by restaurateur Jean Lumb and the members included three of her children. Other members at different points in the band’s lifetime included Alan Kondo, Terry […]

Ian Nishio

Ian Nishio was a bass player who recorded and performed on several recordings with Terry Watada as well as with the heavy metal band Snow Axe in Toronto, including their album We’re All Different.

Kunio Suyama

Kunio Suyama is an actor, singer, and emcee who has been highly active in the Toronto Buddhist Church. He is especially well-known for his role as emcee at the annual Obon Festival in Toronto. Suyama put on and performed in many shibai plays at the Toronto Buddhist Church over the years. He was also a […]

Garry Kawasaki

Garry Kawasaki is a musician who played bass and provided vocals for the Asia Minors, an Asian Canadian top 40s rock band that played in Toronto in the 1960s. He collaborated many times with Terry Watada, including appearing in his album Runaway Horses and several other recordings. He has also performed with the band the […]

Archie Nishihama

Akira ‘Archie’ Nishihama is a musician and composer. He studied music in Osaka, and composed several songs for schools in Japan, as well as the kohka (school song) for the Toronto Japanese Language School. He is also well known for his arrangement of the song Wonderful Canada for the Sansei Choir in Toronto. Nishihama was […]

Robert Yamashita

Robert Noboru Yamashita is a retired architect. He worked for the City of Toronto from 1968 to 2000, where he was the lead figure for homelessness, poverty, mental health, and housing issues. He is currently exploring a practice as an abstract painter and photographer.

The Singing Knights

The Singing Knights were an Asian Canadian folk band in Toronto in the 1960s and 1970s. They were formed by the Chung family, and at one time featured Garry Kawasaki and Terry Watada. They toured Ontario, and once performed for Prince Charles of England.