Yamato The Drummers of Japan

Opera House, Graz, 10 July

Pictures taken from Yamato The Drummers of Japan website.

‘Serendipity – the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.’

If there is one word to describe why we found ourselves in Graz to see Yamato, The Drummers of Japan, then serendipity would be as good as any.

In truth, in our #RaceAcrossEurope with Interrail, we had some time to spend between watching Amyl And The Sniffers in Zurich and travelling to Zurich to see The Kills and Graz seemed as good a place to stop over as any other. And, by chance, Yamato were playing a residency at the Graz Opera House.

We’re both fairly eclectic in our musical preferences and this seemed to tick that box perfectly.

After a show lasting the best part of two hours, we left the Opera House behind us amazed at the athleticism, choreography and no little humour provided by the ten members of the group.

They describe their work as ‘not simply making their Taiko drums explode with sound; they produce delicate music that provides the listener with a palette of meticulously crafted sound.’

Throughout the performance different members took the lead, sometimes there would be a couple of players on stage enacting a ‘scene’ more than a ‘song’ while, for the majority of the performance all the group would be on stage with an array of drums that were bewildering in their size and the sounds they generated.

It wasn’t just an act of pounding away on set of drum skins, there was dexterity at the heart of the drumming. The movement between drummers the timing to ensure each beat was meticulously delivered all added to the unique sound.

Occasionally, the drumming would give way to the collective sound of the shamisen, (a three-stringed instrument similar to a guitar), the shakuhachi (a flute) and chappa (cymbals). Their introduction adding a further layer of musicianship that only dedicated practice and no little talent offers.

The music throughout the show ranged from slow paced ceremonial and intricate to dynamic and celebratory, though the show had it’s lighter moments, not too dissimilar to that of The Blue Man Group shows, and the comedy relief was the prefect way to engage with the audience and get them involved, especially in what might be termed the encore section.

Life experiences must be treasured, and this is certainly a night that will live long in the memory for all the right reasons.