Tak Shindo (1922–2002) led an extraordinary musical career while remaining primarily in the background. He served as arranger, composer, and musical advisor for film, television, radio, and Las Vegas revues. He released several successful albums in the exotica genre, was a dance band leader who never missed a New Year’s Eve in forty years, performed in recording sessions on koto and on a variety of band instruments, acted in bit parts in Hollywood, served as a translator and tour guide in Japan, was a musical columnist and publisher, studied historical musicology and Asian religions—earning a master’s degree with a thesis on shakuhachi history—and, as an associate professor, taught world music courses and directed jazz ensembles at the college level.

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