Akita City Folk Arts Center (Neburinagashi-Kan)

A place where you can learn about Akita's traditional festival kanto.
The actual Kanto lanterns were on display and it was very impressive.

A staff kindly showed me how to hold the lanterns and I got to experience it,not easy but really fun! They also have demonstrations which I unfortunately couldn’t go but I am sure it’ll be fun. He explained in details about the Matsuri and I had also fun playing Taiko upstairs. Keneko family home’s beautiful and you get to hear Akita dialect. Heart warming experience!

The Akita City Folk Traditions Hall was created for the purpose of preserving and handing down the local folk events and entertainment of Akita City and it has been nicknamed the "Neburi-nagashi hall". On the first floor you will find an exhibition hall that introduces a number of traditional festivals and events in Akita City such as the Akita Kanto, the Tsuchizaki Shinmeisha Shrine celebration, and Bon-den. The Akita Kanto is a festival where a large number of paper lanterns are affixed on rods joined together crosswise in order to pray for a good rice harvest. You can see the skilled performers carrying the lanterns on their foreheads and shoulders as the audience watches on in wonder. You can also try out the Challenge Corner where you try to balance a lantern yourself, and on the second floor exhibition hall you can see documents and videos about the folk traditions here in Akita. From April to October on weekends and public holidays (13:30~14:10) there will be a performance from a representative of the Akita Kanto Society, and in summer there sometimes folk entertainment recitals.

Pretty interesting place—¥260 for 3 locations (foll arts center+old kaneko house+red brick museum) Very generous of them to not overcharge.

even we don’t understand Japanese from the guide, it’s still worth to take a look of this traditional art and watch the performance

Great place to experience some of the local culture, try your balancing skills and drum a big taiko. Definitely recommend.

Amazing opportunity to see the lanterns in action. If you are lucky and come with a group they balance it for you. Worth the 100 yen fee, but it's rather small. You can stay for about 30 min to an hour

i’ve been here twice and this time we were taught how to hold them, the staff was so nice providing us with history and an actual experience!!

You get to learn so much about Akitas festivities for only 100 JPY! Must go if you have time and is near the city.

The gentlemen working there were knowledgeable and passionate about the tradition of the kanto matsuri. Had a fun time trying to balance the lantern pole. Decent English explanatory plaques as well.

What a wonderful interactive museum, for only ¥100! You can try to hold the "kanto," the big wooden-lantern poles, as the people do during the real festival; the staff is super eager to let you try! On the 3rd floor, there is a big taiko drum anyone can try with a rhythm instruction video playing. There's also an old storefront attached that lets you see what old stores were like.

A great place to see and learn more about festivals (Matsuri) in the North of Japan and especially about the Akita Kanto Matsuri for the very low price of 100 JPY. The staff are extremely nice and helpful.

Only 100 JPY per person!!! Super nice

A very interesting and well maintained local museum. We learned a lot about all the festivals of the region

Great demonstrations. We were invited to join in and try balancing the kanto ourselves.

Good place! Nice value every matsuri, interesting.

Best place to know about akita culture

good

Nice performance!

It's awesome