Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Japanese Immigartion to Brazil AMANOJAKU TAIKO DRUMMERS with Kyosuke Suzuki (yokobue flute) and Katsunari Sawada (shamisen) Wed., August 13, 2008 19:00 (Doors open at 18:30) Thu., August 14, 2008 14:00 (Doors open at 13:30) Nerima Bunka Center TEL: 03-3993-3311 Ticket Prices: Advance Tickets: JPY 4000 Door Tickets: JPY 4500 All seats are non-reserved Ticket Release Date: June 5, 2008 Ticket Sales: Ticket Pia – http://pia.jp/t P-Code: 293-971 TEL: 0570-02-9999 Contact: Amanojaku － http://amanojaku.info TEL: 03-3904-1745 FAX: 03-3904-9434
CASE CLOSED: Evidence of Amanojaku influence among Japanese Brazilian youngsters doing a great rendition of “Kenka Yatai,” by Yoichi Watanabe, Amanojaku leader, composer and master drummer. Together for a century and building for the next century _ look at that little kid on the right, a future taiko star!!
TOGETHER FOR A CENTURY: One Thousand Brazilians Drum up a Celebration The 100th Year Anniversary of Japanese Immigration to Brazil
(TOKYO) _ The celebration of the 100th year anniversary of Japanese immigration to Brazil will be coming to Sao Paulo’s samba venue Skol Arena Anhembi with an unmistakable blast in a June 21 taiko drumming performance by Amanojaku, a Tokyo-based group now on their sixth visit to the country.
Amanojaku blends an innovative, modern sound that is all Tokyo with “hogaku” sounds including Kagura festival music and Edo-style Sukeroku taiko, to create fascinating Japanese contemporary percussion music.
Amanojaku has performed in the U.S., Great Britan, Thailand and other nations. But in recent years, much of their ambassadorial work has focused on Brazil, the nation with the biggest overseas Japanese community in the world.
The drummers for the Sao Paulo event are mostly Japanese-Brazilians in their teens and 20s. Amanojaku drummers have been working closely with the youngsters, delivering the message that taiko is a way to connect with Japanese roots and to revel hiphop-style in cultural pride.
It’s a surprising ironic twist of rediscovery for Japan, a nation where an idolization of the West has many _ young and old _ forgetting their own legacy, or maybe just taking it for granted.
The Japanese Brazilan youngsters will perform the tune, fittingly called “Kizuna (Bond),” co-composed by Amanojaku leader Yoichi Watanabe _ a spectacular rendition by 1,000-drummers-strong lined up along the 500-meter long venue.
“Playing taiko requires more than just technique,” says Mr. Watanabe.
Learning the value of hard work, perseverance and teamwork is all part of taiko, he says.
The event is a moving and joyous testament to the success story of Japanese-Brazilians, who are now an integral part of a dynamic and booming Brazil.
For photos, video clips and interviews in Japan and Brazil, please e-mail Isaku Kageyama at isaku.kageyama@amanojaku.info or call Amanojaku at 81-3-3904-1745 (for calls from Japan: 03-3904-1745).
AMANOJAKU CONCERTS:
IN TOKYO Amanojaku Taiko Concert – Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Japanese Immigartion to Brazil Personnel: Amanojaku, Kyosuke Suzuki (yokobue flute), Katsunari Sawada (shamisen) Date and Time: August 13, 2008 Wednesday at 19:00 (Doors open at 18:30) and August 14, 2008 Thursday at 14:00 (Doors open at 13:30) Place: Nerima Bunka Center TEL: 03-3993-3311 Ticket Prices: Advance Tickets: JPY 4000 Door Tickets: JPY 4500 All seats are non-reserved Ticket Release Date: June 5, 2008 Ticket Sales: Ticket Pia – http://pia.jp/t P-Code: 293-971 TEL: 0570-02-9999 Contact: Amanojaku － http://amanojaku.info TEL: 03-3904-1745 FAX: 03-3904-9434 Sponsors: Asano Taiko
ELSEWHERE:
Ecchu Oshima Daiko 20th Anniversary Concert Date and Time: June 15, 2008 at 14:00 Place: Kosugi Bunka Hall “Rapport” Contact: Hechima Sangyo TEL 0766-52-5454
100th Anniversary of Japanese Immigration to Brazil Celebrations Date: June 21, 2008 Place: SKOL ARENA ANHEMBI （Sao Paulo, Brazil） Contact: Associacao Brasileira de Taiko TEL +55-11-3341-1077
12th Nippon Taiko Festival Date and Time: July 13, 2008 at 12:30 (Doors open at 12:00) Place: Sapporo Education and Culture Hall Ticket Prices: Advance Tickets JPY 2500, Door Tickets JPY 3000 (All seats are non-reserved) Ticket Sales: Ticket Pia TEL 0570-02-9999＋Pコード(290-857) Contact: Nippon Taiko Foundation TEL 03-6229-5577
Kan Nihon-kai Taiko Festival Date and Time: July 27, 2008 at 18:00 (Doors open at 17:00) Place: Ohama Seashore Stage Ticket Prices: Advance Tickets JPY 2000, Door Tickets 2500 Contact: Kan Nihon-kai Taiko Festival Organization Office TEL 0234-26-0381
3rd Japan Taiko Festival Date and Time: August 3, 2008 at 18:30 Place: Kurashiki TIVOLI Park “Plaenen Stage” Ticket Prices: Please purchase an admission ticket to TIVOLI Park Contact: Kurashi TIVOLI Park Information Center TEL 086-434-1111
Search for “amanojaku” on iTunes Music Store, Napster, eMusic.com, and other online music distributors.
One Thousand Taiko Drummers Celebrate Japan-Brazil Immigration 100th Anniversary
(TOKYO) – Amanojaku, one of the world’s most respected taiko ensembles, has been appointed by the Nippon Taiko Foundation to direct a performance by one thousand taiko drummers at Skol Arena Anhembi, Sao Paulo’s finest samba venue, on June 21. Amanojaku will also hold a concert in the city. The performances celebrating the 100th anniversary of Japanese immigration to Brazil are the culmination of a bold and innovative five-year program. The drummers, primarily Japanese-Brazilians in their teens and 20s, will perform “Kizuna (Bond)” co-composed by Amanojaku leader Yoichi Watanabe at the 500-meter samba venue. “Playing taiko requires more than just technique,” says Mr. Watanabe, who is making his sixth trip to Brazil to help young Japanese-Brazilian men and women discover their roots, learn the value of hard work, perseverance and teamwork through the traditional Japanese art form. Taiko has spread rapidly through the nation known for its love of percussion, and is now played by more than 60 groups. The event is a moving testament to the success story of Japanese-Brazilians, who have risen through hard work, to become an integral part of a dynamic and booming country. About Amanojaku － http://amanojaku.info As one of the world’s most respected taiko ensembles, Amanojaku has toured more than 40 nations, including Thailand (’06), the United States (’05) and Brazil (’04). Amanojaku breathes the funk of Tokyo’s cityscape, the multi-layered vibrations of the present and faraway sounds like swing and samba – all integrated with the Japaneseness of taiko. About Yoichi Watanabe － http://amanojakuweblog.seesaa.net Founder and leader of Amanojaku, Yoichi Watanabe, is one of taiko’s premier players and instructors. Mr. Watanabe’s influence on taiko is most recognizable through his compositions, which feature a distinctive modernity combined with traditional techniques. For more music from Amanojaku can be found on the iTunes Music Store, Napster, eMusic.com and other online music distribution sites. Contact Information Isaku Kageyama TEL: 03-3904-1745 FAX: 03-3904-9434 E-Mail: isaku.kageyama@amanojaku.info Skype: ikageyama MSN: ikageyama@hotmail.com
Amanojaku collaborated with the tap dancers of Takeshi Kitano’s “Zatoichi” fame. Their performance delivered a deliciously unexpected juxtaposition of percussive narratives at a Roppongi Hills outdoor stage.
This is the latest composition from Amanojaku leader/master drummer Yoichi Watanabe, performed by Ayutsubo Daiko. It’s inspired by Tokyo festival rhythms that even young people these days are rediscovering. Beautiful beasts, the natives gather around a phallic shrine/float/”yagura,” celebrating in dance and music the harvest, filled with gratitude to the gods for the gift of Life. The beat is nostalgic/primordial with a lot of sexy rock ‘n’ roll drive that gets your heart racing. It’s both new and old, faraway and immediate, all at the same time. Why look to the West (rock, R&B, etc.) for the roots of cool when nothing is hipper than Edo-style “iki?” We cannot live/express ourselves/function as human beings if we cannot be proud of who we are. Yes, it’s a challenge in this increasingly globalizing world. Economic power and other discriminatory hierarchies are used to define superiority, leaving chunks of people/races/regions out of a chance for personal realization, which is a human right. It seems too easy to use culture (down to the simplest aspects of everyday life) as a tool to dominate/wipe out the legacy of weaker groups. When a kid grows up to be a giant wanna-be, going blond or wearing dreadlocks (not that I have anything against these as fashion for fun and it’s the concept of self-negation that’s the problem), something is wrong with us as parents. We must also accept that we are all hybrids in this New Era. We are no longer that Sukeroku samurai of Kabuki. Japanese grew up on Motown and Mozart. The cross-pollination from all kinds of music (blond/dreadlocks), as long as that truthfulness-to-who-we are remains, can give birth to a new kind of Japanese music. The best in Edo culture has always been defined by influences from abroad, Korea, China, Europe. Fortunately, being open to diversity is the essence of the Japanese aesthetic. No one writes/creates by starting out with the goal of “being Japanese.” One must write/create with the goal of being honest/yourself _ nothing else. And in so doing, you create what is Japanese _ and universal _ because that’s what you are. Watanabe talks about what makes for “the Japanese sound” in this englightening Podcast.
My son Isaku, taiko drummer with Tokyo-based Amanojaku, talks about his dreams and his music on this Web magazine that has a nicely done video piece at the bottom of the page.
This is a photo of my son Isaku during his previous trip to Brazil to teach taiko, Japanese drumming. He’s there now with his master sensei Yoichi Watanabe to do more good work. Taiko tends to be viewed as something for old people in Japan, but it’s totally cool in Brazil. It’s part of kids’ lives and a music to party to. My son is learning a lot from Brazil _ and the youngsters there who believe in the same magic of taiko that he believes in. Isaku writes in his July 6 entry of his blog: Learning how to teach Aside from the 100th Anniversary music we’ve been teaching in Marilia, we’ve also been conducting 5th Degree Nippon Taiko Foundation Examinations. The entry level exams we have been conducting in Marilia test drummers on basic knowledge of music and the history of taiko. The exams present a high-pressure situation for the kids, because they must perform a piece perfectly as adults, peers and instructors look on. Today, a boy who had trouble reading music could not perform the piece without making mistakes here and there. One by one, his peers passed the examinations until he was the only one left. Watanabe Sensei put peers on either side of him so that he could follow them, and told the boy to play the piece again. The boy, who was now teary-eyed, still could not play the piece. Sensei shouted “Stop crying! You’re almost there,” and started the piece again. The entire room was filled with tension, as everyone prayed. All of us wanted him to play the music perfectly. After he finished playing, Sensei said “Congratulations! Muito bon!” and his friends ran over to him, hugging and patting him on the back. The boy could not hold back his tears. Teaching taiko is not only about improving technique. It’s about life experiences that will help the kids to be better people. It’s about learning things that will help the kids succeed in whatever path they choose to take in life. We hope the boy gained confidence in himself. We hope he learned that if you stick with something, good things will happen. And we hope all of us in the room learned something about kindness and caring for others. As teachers, we try to teach these core values – but that is easier said than done. Today I got to see Watanabe Sensei work his magic, so that someday I may work my own.
An encounter with Taro Okamoto’s Sun Tower from a window of a winding train was the highlight of a trip for a story about American beef. Maybe it was the way the monument held its head _ so strangely animalistic while being so robotic and manmade, so full of intelligence yet so devoid of thought _ eerily and suddenly making its presence known through the trees. It was very surreal. It didn’t fit, yet it fit so perfectly. A reminder of how an artist’s statement _ view on life/death and the meaning of art _ speaks to us today. It was almost painful. Maybe it was also the way a coworker shared that moment of Truth and Joy. The AP photographer jumped up: “Ah, taiyo no to da!” This moment came back to me recently because my son and Amanojaku taiko drummer Isaku Kageyama talks about Okamoto on his blog. In that, Okamoto , whose famous motto was: “Art is Explosion,” says something like: Art isn’t pretty. Art isn’t comfortable. Art isn’t well-done. Okamoto was fully aware of the real-life context in which his piece was going to be perceived, and that’s how he delivered his message so effectively. The tower became complete only in that moment, when the photographer and I saw it and felt it. Standing proud and ashamed, a mutant monstrosity built to herald an Expo, the work is a genius of Modern Art.
