This group photo of Matsubayashi-ryu Karate I took just prior to the 27th Okinawa-ken Karate-do Kobudo Enbu Taikai on March 4, 2012, held at Okinawa Prefectural Budokan. I am not 100% sure if everybody from Matsubayashi-ryu who was there at the time made it into the group photo though.
On the day of Nagamine Takayoshi Soke’s last public performance. March 04, 2012, Okinawa Prefectural Budokan
Matsubayashi group performances included Passai, Ananku, and Pinan Shodan. This was followed by Takayoshi Soke’s performance of Tomari no Passai, his favorite demo Kata. Prior to this, for many years Takayoshi Soke wouldn’t perform during this kind of demonstrations. But this time he did. Afterwards he invited me to the Seamen’s Club, a favorite restaurant were at that day the meeting of the Prefectural Karate Kobudo Association also took place. Everyone was there, including Taira Yoshitaki, who invited me to join their table. Unfortunately, I had to refuse the offer as I had to leave for my job at the Dojo Bar.
I returned home to Germany end of March 2012. Not long afterwards I received the message that Nagamine Takayoshi passed away on April 25, 2012.
He will be long remembered and terribly missed!!
Nagamine Takayoshi Soke’s last public performance. March 04, 2012, Okinawa Prefectural Budokan
© 2015, Andreas Quast. All rights reserved.