Japanisch-Deutsches Zentrum Berlin

Concert: Taiko Drums and Dance

JAPAN – Trommel und Tanz – Drums and Dance – a Program of Contrasts of Japanese Culture.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007, at 8 pm

An audience of 400 people watched and listened excitedly to performers from Japan in the fully booked hall of the Berlin Rathaus (townhall).
The world-renowned Japanese drumming ensemble WARAKU-KAI-SHÔ from Kawasaki demonstrated their talents in an opening performance bursting with power and synchrony. This type of performance follows the style of the founder of the group, Tanaka Noboru, who seeks to present the classical, traditional TAIKO rhythms, free of modern show effects and influences.
The evening continued full of atmosphere but on a quieter note with a rendition of the "Dance of the cherry blossom festival" (a dance from the end of the 17th century) given by two traditionally made up dancers wearing fascinating costumes; the dancers were accompanied by the melancholy notes of the warm voice of the singer Kineya Katsunobu.
Finally the master of the drum group Tanaka Noboru appeared dressed completely in white: with his daughter Hirano Yuki accompanying him on the Shamisen, a type of lute, he performed folk songs from northern Japan that are often played when Sake is drunk.
Following a resounding performance given by the drummers who brought the hall to vibration, a wide hand of applause was given for all performers, with a few "drumming" their way out of the hall leading a line of very satisfied audience.


The Japanese-German Center Berlin (JDZB) and the German-Japanese Society Berlin (DJG Berlin) invited you to attend a cultural offering of a very special kind: :
TAIKO, the large Japanese drum – the accompanying instrument of religious ceremonies for centuries which was rediscovered by young Japanese in the 1970s as a national folk music instrument - encounters the classical Japanese dance NIHON BUYO.

The dynamics and rhythm of the drum meet the elegance, harmony and mystic of classical Japanese dance and demonstrate the diversity of Japanese music and dance culture.

The drum group WARAKU-KAI-SHO from Kawasaki is dedicated to the traditional art of drumming, and 14 drummers will demonstrate the high art of Japanese drum culture.

The dancers are from the dance group TATSUNA-KAI from the Wakayagi School in Tôkyô and look back on an uninterrupted 40-year tradition of dancing with many performances at the Japanese national theater as well as overseas.

The Asia-Pacific Weeks are supported by the foundation Deutsche Klassenlotterie Berlin (DLKB).

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