This weekend, a stage built from local rice straw will rise on a hilltop in Kakogawa, Hyogo. “Karuma no Matsuri” (Karuma Festival), organized by the art brand CALMA, takes place on Saturday, November 14 and Sunday, November 15, 2026 at ON THE HILL inside Hioka Yama Park. It began in 2025, and this is its second year. The timetable for both days has just been announced.
23 acts: Sumiyoshi Shachu on the 14th, Yohei Miyake Trio with HIMI on the 15th
Twenty-three live acts, DJs and screenings are set. Live music takes place on the straw stage. On the 14th it starts at 12:30 with 泰尊／TAISONG, followed by 住吉社中 (Sumiyoshi Shachu) 14:00–15:00, SWANS 17:15–18:00, and THG, HIMI & MANAW 18:45–19:45. At 16:30 there is a screening of “PEACE BUILDING (Solidarity With You)” with a talk.
On the 15th, MARRON aka DUBMARRONICS opens at 11:45, then Yohei Miyake Trio with HIMI play 15:00–16:00 and SOFT 16:45–17:45. From 18:30 to 20:00 there is a screening of the film “MISSION 100” with a talk by 小坂薫平. On both days, 20:00–22:00 is the night program “DJ & BAR”: 米立 and YOKOYAMA 宇宙 on the 14th, and DJ KENSEI on the 15th, each playing for two hours straight.
Photo: Masao Inoue (2025)
A stage of rice straw and bamboo that returns to the fields
The star of the venue is the stage made of rice straw. The straw is gathered from local paddies in Kakogawa, Ono and nearby, and the stage is assembled starting a week before the festival. This year bamboo is added to last year’s well-liked straw stage, making it bigger and bolder. When the festival ends, the straw goes back to the fields. It is a stage that exists on the hill for just two days.
There are 52 makers from 17 prefectures selling food, drinks, ceramics, clothing and antiques. Since the last announcement, Felix Conran Shop (Nara), NEBRASKA LEATHER WORKS (Hyogo) and TISSUE PAPERS (Fukuoka, 15th only) have joined. The full list is on the official website. You can browse the makers’ goods between sets.
Pre-registration required; direct Shinki Bus service runs into the night
Admission is free, but this year pre-registration is required. It takes about a minute on the official website. Among those who follow CALMA’s Instagram (@calma.rt) and enter their account when registering, 20 people will win an original festival tenugui (hand towel) by lottery. At the venue’s office “Karuma no Ma”, scanning a QR code tells you on the spot whether you won.
Photo: SNK5578 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (modified); destination sign courtesy of Shinki Bus, composited
By train, it is a 10-minute walk from Hioka Station on the JR Kakogawa Line. On both days, Shinki Bus runs special direct buses from the north exit of JR Kakogawa Station, with the last bus back at 22:07. There are Special Rapid Service trains from Kakogawa until late, and even if you stay until 22:00 you can get back to Kyoto by train. It is a festival you can reach by train, enjoy a drink at, and still get home from. On the direct buses, original audio generated by CALMA plays, with different content on the way there and back.
There is also a corner where image generation turns you into a “Calmapian” poster of your own. You can take the image home, and it is also presented at the venue and listed in a numbered tribe directory.
What is a “festival of the tribe of the future”?
Karuma no Matsuri is planned by CALMA, led by Kakogawa-based artist 岡本亮. Under the idea that “humans are nature, nature is the future, and the future is in the present,” CALMA works on the theme of a “tribe of the future,” treating everything about how we live, from paintings and sculpture to products, spaces and festivals, as its work. It invites makers and musicians who give form to nature, technology and everyday wisdom from across Japan to a “tribal festival,” which is neither a music festival nor a craft fair. 岡本 describes it as “for an age that has forgotten that humans are animals.”
Photo: Masao Inoue (2025)
Information
- Name: Karuma no Matsuri
- Dates: Saturday, November 14 and Sunday, November 15, 2026; 11:00–20:00 (LIVE / SHOP), 20:00–22:00 (DJ & BAR)
- Venue: ON THE HILL, inside Hioka Yama Park, Kakogawa, Hyogo
- Admission: free, pre-registration required (a fee is planned for the future)
- Makers: 52 (some for one day only) / Acts: 23
- Access: 10-minute walk from Hioka Station (JR Kakogawa Line). Shinki Bus special direct buses from the north exit of JR Kakogawa Station (last bus back 22:07)
- Official website (Japanese): https://matsuri.c-a-l-m-a.jp/
- Pre-registration (Japanese): https://matsuri.c-a-l-m-a.jp/entry/
