I hardly knew anything about Kodo before I joined, and for me “prism rhythm” is an album that broadened my understanding about taiko.
In particular, Sayagi-uta and Kuyurage are pieces that still inspire me.

Taiko as music. This is taiko music that will stand the test of time 100 years from now.
This album feels like a guide that Kodo’s senior members left for my generation.

Album | prism rhythm

↓Listen to sample tracks
https://www.kodo.or.jp/discography/sicl10003_en.html

↓Buy at Kodo Online Store

http://kodo.shop.multilingualcart.com/goods_en_jpy_7.html

Throughout my travels, I have been blessed with opportunities to meet many inspiring people from around the globe.
While I keep most of these conversations close to my heart, there is one quote in particular that I was reminded of during my time in China, which I’d like to share.

“Music and performing arts have the power to make the walls between us become a little bit lower. While it may only be a really little difference, it is a very significant difference.”

China has always been a country that was close yet far for me. Growing up internationally, making friends and meeting people of Chinese descent was nothing out of the ordinary. Chinese people make up the majority of inbound tourists in Japan, and I’ve always been surrounded by things that were “Made in China.” But the country itself? It has always been a great unknown for me. So I wondered…
Will people come to our concert?
Will they like it?
Are we going to be able to do this?

As we wrapped up our first performance in Guangzhou, I remember thinking, “What was I worried about?”

The applause and cheers that we received were as big as we’ve ever received. The audience was ecstatic.

It’s those moments that I think to myself that perhaps what we do has some meaning in this world after all. Maybe just a little bit, but maybe just enough.

My sincerest gratitude to the wonderful people who made this tour happen, and to the amazing audiences in China.

Xiexie!

Kodo members watching the instruments getting packed up for transport back to Japan.

“Kodo One Earth Tour 2019: Evolution” China Tour

Schedule

• Jul 12 (Fri), 2019 – Jul 13 (Sat), 2019 Shanghai MISA Event Stage, Shanghai, China
• Jul 16 (Tue), 2019 – Jul 17 (Wed), 2019 Guangzhou Opera House, Guangzhou, China
• Jul 20 (Sat), 2019 – Jul 21 (Sun), 2019 Beijing Tianqiao Arts Center, Beijing, China

I’m not sure where to start.

It’s difficult to put into words how these past two weeks at the Théâtre du Soleil have been, but simply put, it has been one of the most interesting experiences of my life.

It has been a time of tranquility, but also a time of passion.
A time of exhilaration, but also a time of exasperation.
It was truly a much-needed time of self-meditation, and a time of self-reflection for each and every one of us.

I’m still having trouble writing down my thoughts.

One thing that is for sure is that we are truly grateful for all the support and love we receive doing what we do.

To Ariane Mnouchkine and the wonderful people at the Theatre du Soleil: thank you for bringing us into your home like family. This has truly been an opportunity of a lifetime.

To our families, staff, and supporters all over the world; we are only here because of you. We appreciate all the love and support, and we promise to strive to continue to bring you our very best.

Once again, thank you to everyone, and we hope we’ll see all of you very soon.

Kodo Next Generation (France)

The youngest members of Kodo.
I wonder what we could achieve if we threw ourselves wholeheartedly into a project.

With those thoughts, and mere enthusiasm and energy, last year we created a new EC Theatre performance,
“Kodo Next Generation.”

Back then, I never thought we’d have back-to-back performances of that production in Paris one day.

And now it’s one year on.

Each one of us has grown.

Now we have the chance to tackle this production once more
With new spirit.

Of course, we still face so many challenges.
We all feel insecure about many things.

But one thing is for sure.
We all feel truly happy to be able to do this work.

Thanks to the support we receive from so many people,
We can throw ourselves wholeheartedly into any new challenge we want to undertake.

We are filled with absolute gratitude.

With gratitude in mind,
I think the best thing we can do in return for that support
is perform with all our might
and give each audience our best performance.

I want this journey to be a fruitful one.
I hope we all grow during our time in France. We’ll do our very best.
See you later, Japan! See you soon, Paris!

Kodo Next Generation (France)

Kodo is based in Ogi on Sado Island. On Aug. 26, the town of Ogi held its annual festival.

The Kodo Group came together to take part in the festival. We spent the day showing our appreciation to the people of Ogi by hauling our cart from door to door to play taiko for everyone.

Thank you for everything, Ogi!

After the festival, it’s time for us to head back out on tour again.
My next destination is Hakataza Theater in Fukuoka for “Yugen”!

Tamasaburo Bando x Kodo Special Performance “Yugen” (Japan)