A Succession of Overseas Concerts In Ishikawa the government and the public have been working together to make our cultural wealth known the world over. The Kanazawa Noh Society has been spreading the name of the Kaga Hosho style of Noh all over the world. In 1981, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Kanazawa and Ghent, Belgium, the association sent a friendship delegation to Ghent. Performances at the World Theater Festival in Nancy, France and the Japan Art Festival in Copenhagen, Denmark (1983) were followed by performances in Suzhou, China (1985) and Hawaii, USA (1986). Our traditional Japanese music performers have also been active abroad. In 1995 the Kanazawa Society for the Preservation of Subayashi presented this traditional performing art of Ishikawa at the Japanese Festival in New York, held at Carnegie Hall. The Prefectural Wind Music Federation has also been active, giving concerts at important venues, including one at Carnegie Hall in 1998. At the 1991 "Evening in Ishikawa" held in conjunction with "Ishikawa Week '91" in Irkutsk, Russia, which has friendly ties with Ishikawa, traditional performances of Japanese music, lion dances and drumming were held. Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, established in 1988 as the first professional chamber music ensemble in Japan, made its international debut in Europe in 1989. This was followed by concerts in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Jakarta and more in Europe, all of which have contributed to the ensemble becoming more highly acclaimed the world over with each passing year.

A Widening Circle of International Cultural Exchange Cultural exchange does not only involve performers from Ishikawa going abroad. In 1993 seven countries and one region including Asian countries, Russia and the USA participated in the Seventh National Cultural Festival in Ishikawa '92. As many as 186 people came to take part in this event, which widened international exchange through culture. Four countries participated in the 1995 Ishikawa Autumn Performing Arts Festival, the theme of which was "Sounds of Asia". The field of crafts has also been active on an international scale. International competitions held in Ishikawa have been introducing the high-quality crafts of Ishikawa to the world, as well as providing opportunities for new creativity. The three lacquerware production areas of the prefecture, Wajima, Yamanaka and Kanazawa, make Ishikawa the ideal place for the International Urushi Design Exhibition, which was first held in 1989. Also, the Kutani International Decorative Ceramics Fair was held in Ishikawa in 1997, the prefecture being the home of the world-renowned Kutani ware. Our International Glass Exhibition, which started in 1984 with the aim of launching a new craft, is now established as an open competition that presents high-quality works of glass art from around the world. Furthermore, this Digital New Archives of Ishikawa Japan, which started in 1997, also serves to convey information from Ishikawa to the rest of Japan and abroad. Information about the 36 traditional crafts and performing arts which make up the cultural wealth of Ishikawa Prefecture is accessed by a wide range of people both in Japan and abroad through the Digital New Archives of Ishikawa Japan, which is highly acclaimed for its state-of-the-art multimedia technology, contents and design.