About Tazuo Yamaguchi

Tazuo Yamaguchi photographTazuo Yamaguchi has earned a national reputation as a poet, touring performer, and filmmaker for a full decade through his solo tours, his films, his long list of collaborations with some of the nation's finest poets and artists, two national haiku championships, and his "provocative" poetry workouts and workshops that guide the voices of youth to the
elders.

Tazuo Yamaguchi is a master storyteller, poet and spoken word craftsman with a deep heritage in Shigin Poetry (poet, chanter, and storytellers of the royal court of Japan.)

Growing up in the Bay Area, he was influenced by the poets, musicians, and creators of his time. He publishes his own works and implements ancient and modern traditions into new developing digital technologies.

The Dallas Morning News calls Tazuo "a modern road warrior telling mythic tales through spoken words and digital films." In a review after winning a Chico poetry slam, The Buzz said, "Yamaguchi's poems become interactive movies in your mind bringing ancient Asian elements together with modern pop culture..."

Peter Rabbit calls him "the poet with the brass balls." Commenting on how in the heat of a poetry slam off, Yamaguchi would whip out a fully improvisational poem.

Highlights of his work include:

Being the official host of the national head to head haiku competitions.

Producing the first ever full length documentary on English-language haiku titled Haiku: The Art of The Short Poem.

Sharing the stage with America's finest poets, opening for notable names like Maceo Parker, KRS-One, Gary Snyder, William J. Higginson, Sonia Sanchez, Coleman Barks, Saul Williams, and Jello Biafra.

Exchanging poems and interviewing the great Nanao Sakaki.

Winning two national haiku head to head bouts.

Performing and filming the SlamAmerica bus tour.

Producing the first ever DVD of the National Poetry Slam,

Being a part of the extremely talented and ever-growing Poetry Slamnation.

Tazuo is the author of Bishiki (ten years of haiku insights, rituals, and poems) published by WordSmith Press, four chapbooks books, three CDs, Director and producer of three films, director and producer of 12 National Poetry Slam DVDs, an old school poetry slam champion, coach of the award winning Chico youth poets for seven years, and a producer
of poetry events and slams in the Sacramento valley of northern California.

Tazuo is also an accomplished educator, multimedia producer, animator, and interactive developer, and online elearning specialist. He has worked for every major creative hi-tech company from IBM to Intel to Apple to a very impressionable opportunity working at Lucas Film LTD directly with Star Wars creator George Lucas. He holds three degrees in communication, psychology, and education fields and has taught at universities and k-12 schools nationwide.

The power of the written and spoken word has given him a medium to express his mystic journey of being healed of cancer when he was eleven years old. With this strong base value for life and a love for the poetic and musical human learning process, he speaks out with a graceful presence full of artistic power.

The Wordsmith Press @ http://www.myspace.com/PoemStudios

HAIKU:
The Art of the Short Poem

a film
by Tazuo Yamaguchi

and a film haiku anthology
edited by Tazuo Yamaguchi
& Randy Brooks

See the video trailer!

Tazuo Yamaguchi
HAIKU: the Art of the Short Poem

ISBN 978-1-929820-10-8
paperback & DVD © 2008
96 pages (5.5 X 8.5)
$28.00 plus $5.00 postage