VOL.111／112 第 30 回 Yuri Nakamura／第 31 回 AZUKI 七

●○○ Excerpted from music freak magazine Vol.111／Vol.112

GARNET CROW's “word scope in M.F.M.” (Vol.30)

The much-anticipated tour, “GARNET CROW live scope 2004 〜君という光〜,” has finally begun, and only the February 13 show at Shibuya Public Hall remains. This year, too, our magazine will fully support GARNET CROW under the theme “more GARNET CROW life.” As their activities for 2004 get fully underway, vocalist YURI NAKAMURA joins us for this column.

Happy New Year, everyone. Please continue to support GARNET CROW this year.

The other day, on my way back from Tokyo, I bought a station bento. It cost—wait, wait, wait—¥3,500! The price was astonishing. It was called “Kiwametsuki Bento” (きわめつき弁当). I had seen it introduced on television before and had always wanted to find out what it was like, so I finally bought one this time.

As for the taste, the ingredients were indeed carefully selected for their origins, and the bento brought out their natural flavors while remaining very easy to eat. I had such an extravagant meal right at the start of the new year, but I thought that it was all right to be a little extravagant at New Year's, at least... Please tell me about your own little luxuries, too.

★ “GARNET CROW live scope 2004” rehearsal ★
Each song is performed repeatedly and discussed carefully, right down to the smallest details.

■ Only one show remains for “GARNET CROW live scope 2004 〜君という光〜”!!
● February 13 (Friday) Shibuya Public Hall
Inquiries: H.I.P　03-3475-9999

GARNET CROW's “word scope in M.F.M.” (Vol.31)

GARNET CROW's much-anticipated tour, “GARNET CROW live scope 2004 〜君という光〜,” has come to a successful close to great acclaim. This time, AZUKI Nana makes an appearance. (See P.6–7 for the concert report.)

Are there not many things that you keep thinking you will try someday—things you could do if you really wanted to, but still have never gotten around to?

I am particularly interested in “traditional crafts.” Well... it is not limited to traditional crafts, actually. Whenever I see what people call the work of a “master craftsman,” it gets added to the already enormous list in my head of “things I would like to try someday.”

Of course, learning only the basics will not make you a master of anything, so I am talking about experiences at an amateur level. Still, if you try several different things, perhaps one of them will really capture you. Even if you only begin at that point, you still have ten, twenty, or thirty years ahead of you... enough time to devote yourself to it, right?

Hmm... On my list of “things I would like to try someday,” I have also made a category near the top for “things I would not mind devoting myself to for the long term,” and there are several items in that category, too. If I started listing them, I would never finish: carving Buddhist statues, making wind chimes, seriously growing vegetables, living a nomadic life... The list really is endless, so I will stop here.

The other day, I tried throwing clay on a wheel. It was for making porcelain. I learned that day, for the first time, that something fired into a glossy white is called porcelain, while something with the texture of earth is called earthenware. There were so many interesting things that I wanted to ask about them in detail, but the instructor kept a completely expressionless face and gave only very brief answers.

Still, he said that all you had to do was crush stones and knead them with water, so on my way home I borrowed a stone from the backyard. I plan to break it up little by little next time, knead it, and try it at home. Of course, I do not have a kiln, so I am thinking of using an oven. That probably will not work, will it?

But it reminded me of the days in elementary school when I would stay in the science room after class doing all sorts of experiments, and I felt excited. Back then, I would collect bits of broken glass and try to melt them into ornaments, holding onto a blowtorch for ages. The experiments I did were unbelievably foolish. When I got bored, I would make a whole beaker full of yokan. I really miss those days...

Actually, I had gone to that town to try glassblowing, which was near the top of my list. But after a series of mistakes and missed opportunities, I came to my senses and found myself throwing clay instead—something that was not on my list at all. Still, I enjoyed the process, and I was looking forward to seeing the finished piece, so it turned out well in the end.

In the end, this is simply the story of how I greedily made a huge list of “things I want to do,” but have not managed to accomplish them all.