[1] Kubota grew up with a strong Japanese focus in his home and with an early interest in the writings by Jack Kerouac and D. T. Suzuki.
He went ostensibly to study Japanese art but found his way to Kyoto where he was invited to live with a Zen master, Nanrei Sohatsu Kobori, in his temple in the famous Daitokuji complex.
A member of the Artists Jazz Band from the late 1960s on (he played alto sax)[5] and the CCMC (Canadian Creative Music Collective) (1974-1991), and as one of the founding members of the Music Gallery,[6] he is known for his extended vocal techniques and sound poetry[7] which can be watched and listened to on You Tube.
[8] In 1999, the Kelowna At Gallery held a retrospective of his work titled Nobuo Kubota: The Exploration of Possibility.
[5] His current interest involves the development of a calligraphic style of notation for the depiction of sound which he calls 'Sonic Calligraphy'.