My recommendation is… TA-DA!!!

“Eternity” on DVD/Blu-ray!

“Eternity” was released in 2014 and it’s one of our works that was directed by Kabuki actor Tamasaburo Bando.
This DVD is a memento of when I was young and headstrong (I’m still young at heart), with no idea what I was doing (lol).

The scenery depiction in this production is really beautiful.

“From the still of a starry night to the thunderous roar of a raging sea, an array of phenomena weave together to conjure an infinite realm.”

We used over fifty different types of instrument, mainly taiko, to express this grand theme.

This production is also a visual feast, with contemporary dancing, which is rare for Kodo. It’s a different side of Kodo.
A visual Kodo!!!

Available on both DVD and Blu-ray.
I hope this production brightens up your time at home!!!

DVD / Blu-ray | Eternity

↓Learn More and Watch Trailer
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/od013014_en.html

↓Listen to Sample Tracks (Japanese)
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/od015_ja.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store
Blu-ray: http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_78.html
DVD: http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_JPY_79.html

I never got to join in when everyone else was recording a new album. When they came back from the studio and told stories about how the recording sessions were going, and who they met, I felt sad that I was missing out.
But when we’re making a DVD, I can join in. When I danced in “Kodo,” filmed on Sado Island; “Live at the Acropolis,” filmed in Greece; and in “Sado E” filmed in Tokyo with Tamasaburo Bando; I was so happy because I finally felt like a member of Kodo.
If I had to pick just one Kodo album, I would pick “Mondo Head”!

Firstly, because you can dance to it!!! I love how Mickey Hart’s arrangements mix Kodo’s sound with music from around the world. It’s like fusion cooking, but he’s making borderless dishes that use our sound as a sauce. Swirling, undulating, spiralling rhythms combine with Kodo’s tight beats and it’s wasabi-cool! Mickey works like a skilled chef to combine Japanese flavours into new, delicious dishes.
I love every song on this album, but if I have to select one, I’ll go with the first song, Berimbau Jam. It’s like all the spices from around the world bursting in your mouth! If you’re going to dance at home, this is the perfect track.

I also recommend “Sen no Mai,” even though it wasn’t released under the Kodo label. Kodo performed this full production as a one night-only special event. It was the first time Kodo has ever done that. I think this DVD shows a new direction for Kodo. Music reverberates through the air, dance turns to light, and they both fade into the universe. But we captured those reverberations and light in this DVD.
This is the DVD I always dreamed of making.

Album | Mondo Head

↓Listen to sample tracks (Japanese webpage)
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/sicp1_ja.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store
http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_86.html

DVD | Sen no Mai

↓Trailer + Info
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/od022_en.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store
https://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_JPY_135.html

When I was little, every year when my family went to Earth Celebration we would constantly play this album, Irodori, in our car. According to them, I would keep playing the title track over and over again! (lol)

Every time I listen to this CD, it brings back those memories of summer and makes me feel nostalgic. So I really love this album.

In fact, I still have and treasure that same CD we were listening on those trips!

Album | Irodori

↓Listen to sample tracks (Japanese webpage)

https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/cscl1525_ja.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store

http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_97.html

]]> https://www.kodo.or.jp/en/kodo_blog_en/posts-by-member/25820 Wed, 17 Jun 2020 06:15:23 +0000 https://www.kodo.or.jp/?p=25820 In the lead up to Kodo’s 40th anniversary in 2021, we looked back over the many works our group has released to date. Each Kodo member will introduce their personal pick (or picks) in this blog series over the weeks ahead.

Mitsuru Ishizuka 

I recommend Kodo’s Akatsuki album and Honoka DVD!

Both of these were recorded in 2010–2011 as special works to commemorate Kodo’s 30th anniversary.

I remember that time as a really tough one.

The entire Kodo ensemble seemed to feel bound by the invisible shackles of its 30 years of history, which had an indescribable oppressiveness on us. And in early 2011, the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami struck. So it was also a period which made us question our reason for doing what we do.

At that complex time, I think each Kodo member was hanging in there, struggling to make it through by focusing on the fundamentals: taiko, their own playing, and the people waiting for Kodo’s tours and concerts.

That led to the emergence of an array of really simple, bold, powerful compositions, which were captured in these recordings.

Akatsuki and Honoka are both works that might feel rather rough, raw, and more rugged that Kodo’s previous works… I think that’s due to an overflow of all the energy we poured in. Our struggles added to our power, so I think that made the works interesting and well worth a listen. (lol)

I hope you’ll enjoy my picks!

Album | Akatsuki

↓Listen to sample tracks

https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/od006_en.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store

http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_75.html

DVD | Honoka

↓Watch trailer

https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/od007_en.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store

http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_68.html

My recommendation is “Warabe.”
My seniors in my high school taiko club played Itsuka Mata (Until Next Time) and I thought it was a great song.
Then I found out it was on a CD, so I bought “Warabe.”

I started listening to it over and over every day.
The flow of tracks starting with Yokigen (Mirthful Mood), then Bird Island, Koro Koro (Round and Round), and leading in to Itsuka Mata (Until Next Time) is amazing.

Even today, listening to this CD gets me excited.
It shows that great music is timeless.

Album | warabe

↓Listen to sample tracks
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/srcl4671_ja.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store
http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_88.html