Concert Stream – Shomyo: Buddhist Ritual Chant – Moonlight Mantra

Six monks wearing brightly colored silk robes is shown chanting while holding chant books

March 30, 2021 | 7:00PM
Online

$15 | Free for UChicago Students

Concert premieres at 7 pm CDT on Tuesday, March 30 and will be available until 7 pm CDT on Friday, April 30.

Described as meditative and sublime, the Buddhist form of ritual chant known as shomyo is one of the oldest living forms of vocal music. Shomyo no Kai, a chorus of two dozen priests from the Shingon and Tendai sects of Japanese Buddhism, sets ancient shomyo against the backdrop of An'yo-in Temple, one of the oldest standing temples in Tokyo's Itabashi Ward, offering moments of reflection and relaxation in a turbulent year. Following the concert, the head monks of the Shingon and Tendai Buddhist sects host a live Q&A.

View the program book.

Presented in partnership with Japan Society, and with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Center for East Asian Studies Title VI National Resource Center Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, International House at the University of Chicago, and Rockefeller Memorial Chapel.