October 4, In Shimane, with Mr. Yuu Imafuku


Sound check


Dinner at the food stand in front of the station


Mr. Imafuku (on the right) shaking hands with Takeru Matsushita.(on the left).

 

We went to Shimane Prefecture. Shimane, which is famous for its Kagura music, is where Mr. Yuu Imafuku lives. Today, we performed with him in concert as special guests. The title of this concert is “Kagura-Bolero Imafuku`s world II”. We had many intense rehearsals.  The music was played all on Japanese instruments, while Mr. Imafuku gracefully danced to the music alone.

We could not help but be moved by his gracefulness. Mr. Imafuku used to be a member of Ondekoza. After he left Ondekoza, he worked as a salary man for 7 years in order to save money to buy Japanese drums. The man at the food court in front of the station told us “He was working so hard at the transportation company to buy drums.” Yes, Mr Imafuku has immersed himself in drums. It was clear that his way of life was reflected in the sound of his taiko playing.

We played three songs: “Yakara”, “Rakuda” and “Raion”. As we played these songs, we tried to express our feelings of gratitude to Mr. Imafuku, who invited us, and to the audience in Shimane, who was probably seeing Yamato for the first time. We played with a lot of energy as usual, and wonder how it was perceived by the Shimane audience. After that Mr. Imafuku performed alone with a single drum, which was a large contrast to Yamato. The simplicity and directness of his taiko playing made us think: “Yes, this is the essence of taiko!” Mr. Imafuku was very active during the after party as well. He is a real entertainer. 

Many thanks to Mr. Imafuku`s two students, who worked hard to invite Yamato to Shimane, to the people who helped organize the concert and to those who performed on the stage. Thank for giving us such an opportunity. We will try to work hard and incorporate what we learned today.		  
October 8 (Thursday) Departure for US and Canadian Tour
Arrival

We arrived at the San Francisco airport.

The American and Canadian tour will begin. The first destination is in Modesto! We will work hard for the next 2 months!

  
October 9 (Friday) Modesto - Unloading
Unpacking
Today is a set up day.
We were re-united again with our drums and stage set. We opened up boxes, built stage sets, lined up drums, set up lights and had a sound check. There are tons of things to do and so little time. We worked till 11 o`clock at night and prepared for rehearsals tomorrow.

I wish we could say “We have no jet lag!” but actually we have quite bad jet lag…		  
October 10 (Saturday) Modesto - Rehearsal
Picking out radishes for the rice bran.
We went to the supermarket today.
Akiko Ogawa is picking vegetables to put in rice bran. It is Yamato`s custom to bring rice bran everywhere we go and make our own meals. Even though we use the same rice bran and the same vegetables, if the preparer is different and the place is different, the taste will be different.

We heard that a person’s caring heart will come out through the hands of the person who is making the food and it creates a unique taste. We agree with this idea. In Korean, there is even a word for it.
Whatever the case, Akiko`s pickles and rice bran is quite superb.		  
October 11 (Sunday) Modesto - Concert
The audience seats.
Today is the first performance of our American tour. The program is called “Festival-Matsuri”. It has been a while since the last time we played a concert (or has it?), but we played pretty hard! The applause of the American audience is tremendous.

Encouraged by the cheering audience, we were able to perform full of energy. We are going to tour all over this big, American continent, from East to West and North to South to continue the concerts. Everyone in the USA, please look forward to seeing us!!@		  
October 12 (Monday) Moving to Chico

 
Today we gave a workshop in Modesto in the morning. We cleaned up right away and traveled to Chico. In Chico, we had the honor of meeting Mr, Toku sensei and were able to visit him at his home. He lives in a quiet neighborhood, but at his place, many of his friends had gathered and it was quite lively. He had prepared a famous dish from Amami-oshima: “Chicken Rice” as well as pasta and many other homemade foods.

After the delicious meal, we are now well prepared for tomorrow’s concert. Toku sensei, thank you for always supporting us.		  
October 13 (Tuesday) Chico - Performance

 
Today is a day when we have to do a complete set-up and perform on the same day. This is a very strenuous schedule. We arrived at the theater at 9am and started working right away. The preparation goes very fast.

In the picture on the side is Hisato Fukuda, who is helping with a lighting check. Actually, before he joined Yamato, he worked in lighting. Now he can be very helpful with our stage lighting.		  
October 14 (Wednesday) Chico School Concert, travel to Davis and unloading

 
After we finished the school show in Chico, we packed up and moved on to Davis.
When we arrived in Davis, the taiko we had just packed up in Chico, need to be taken out of the trailer and set up again.

Our schedule for this American tour is extremely hard. BUT…we will do it! Nothing is impossible. We will do anything! That is how we think. We tell ourselves that we can do it. Work hard!!		  
October 15 (Thursday) Davis, School Performance and Concert

 
Today, we gave a workshop in the morning and a performance at night. Tiffany came to see our performance in the evening. Tiffany used to be a member of Ondekoza and now she plays with the Sacramento Taiko Dan in California. She brought a lot of food for us. 
Miso paste, Japanese snacks and beer as well! To be honest, we are sooo happy!		  
October 16 (Friday) Traveling to Cerritos

 

Today we traveled by car for 10 hours. Many of us slept… we slept the whooooole time. When you continuously sit for 10 hours straight, your body hurts all over. One should really take the time to stretch.

We didn’t do anything other than sit, so why are we hungry now? As soon as we arrived, we had pizza. Now we are ready to work hard again tomorrow.		  
October 17 (Saturday) Cerritos Concert

 
 America means meat……!!! Meat tastes so good here! The meat in this picture is called “T-bone steak”. Just like the name says, there is a T-shaped-bone, which has meat all around it.

The natural taste of the meat is strong enough so that just a little bit of salt makes it taste really good. Greasy food is very juicy! If you eat it everyday, you will be fat~. Be very careful!		  
October 18 (Sunday) Moving to Santa Barbara - Concert

 
So, what’s today’s theater like? We checked out the stage … Ohhhhh! It is very small. We had a meeting before setting up to try and work out the difficulties. It is not possible to do our usual set-up without changing part of the program as well. Plus, the light bar is not coming down!? Ohhh (>_<) I wonder if we’ll be ready in time …  
October 19 (Monday) Santa Barbara, CA – School Show, moving

 

Today we had two performances. The stage is a huge outdoor theater! It is called the Santa Barbara Bowl and many famous rock musicians have performed here. In the backstage hallway there are many pictures of famous people like Bob Marley, BB King, ZZ-Top, The Cure … etc. There are 5000 students in this theater and it has an incredibly beautiful stone wall.

The audience was extremely excited. Not to be outdone by children`s energy, we performed our very best. After the school show, we packed up again and move to L.A. We will travel to Texas by plane from L.A. tomorrow.		  
October 20 (Tuesday) Moving to Texas

 

wYAMATO the drummers of Japan USA & CANADA tour 2009x

We left Japan on the 8th and arrived in California on 9th! We started rehearsals on the 9th and had our first performance. We played in Chico, Davis, Seritos, and Santa Barbara. Today we are on the plane! Our next destination is Texas. Let`s go eat some Jalapeños and get warmed up!		  
October 21 (Wednesday) Kerrville, TX - Concert

 
This is our first performance in Texas. This is the only theater we will play at in Texas and today we must set up and perform the concert on the same day. Setting up in American theaters is hard. Today the lighting is giving us problems. We usually borrow an electric ladder called “Genie” to make lighting adjustments. But look at this antique-looking ladder. It is made of wood. We called it “Jimmy”.  
October 22 (Thursday) Kerrville, TX – School Show and Concert

 
We are performing in the same theater as yesterday. This morning we have a school performance. American audiences get very excited, but children, even more so. Their cheers and applause are amazing. They cheered on our members and we ended up playing the songs in a faster tempo than usual. We felt a lot of energy because the children were so happy. Our evening concert was the main event for today. Let the sunlight shine on the costume... Be refreshed!  
October 23 (Friday) Moving to Iowa

 

We imagined Texas to be pretty warm and had packed a lot of short sleeve shirts. But when we arrived in Iowa it was much cooler than we could have imagined. I was not ready for the cold I felt when we left the airport in Iowa. “It’s so cold!” We did change into long-sleeved shirts before we left Texas, but that was not nearly sufficient. Iowa is 1770 km north of Texas… We think… actually we’re not sure… at any rate, we are Up North and it’s cold.

The autumn leaves are very pretty. We never really had this type of image of America. Maybe it was just our own misconceptions…		  
October 24 (Saturday) Ames, IA – Setting up

 

Today we begin our Iowa performances. Luckily we do not need to set up and perform on the same day.

We have an extra day. It is wonderful, but we don’t take the attitude: “OK, let`s relax and work slowly!!” Instead, we think: “Now we have time to practice!” We haven`t been able to practice properly for a long time!! So, we wasted no time and finished setting up by 5 o`clock. After that, we could practice. Tomorrow will be a great concert!! We hope for lots of applause!!		  
October 25 (Sunday) Ames, IA – Concert

 
This is quite a large hall with a capacity of 1800 people. The sound was good and we could easily feel the music. It was easy to listen to each other and hear all the parts. After the concert, the people in the theater told us “this hall is designed for acoustics”. Interesting. Even things you cannot see can have a large effect.  
October 26 (Monday) Moving to Indiana

 
Today we travel 900 km by bus!! This is a real American tour. We are enjoying the size of this continent. Now what shall we do? Of course, we are going to sleep!! (That’s what we mean when we say we are enjoying this big continent) By the way it is Halloween soon. Take a look at these colorful plates. Wow…….  
October 27 (Tuesday) Muncie, IN – Concert and Travel

 
This is an incredibly large hall. It is big, too big. For Yamato`s normal performance, the width of the stage is 12m. 10m for minimum and 14m for maximum. But today it is 18m!!! It is way too much. But we have to do it so we are practicing as hard as possible. Play bigger and bigger!!  
October 28 (Wednesday) Athens, OH Workshop and Concert

 
Right after we performed on the huge stage, we packed everything in the trailer and moved to the next destination. Midnight on the American continent. We were on the bus for 4.5 hours, taking naps. After we arrived there, we started setting up immediately. There was also a workshop at noon. It is the “Death Road” course… The concert hall is small, a big change from yesterday, and there is not enough    height. After we tried many different things, we finally finished setting up.  
October 28 (Thursday) Moving to Indiana

 
Today`s journey was 350 miles, that’s 565 kilometer. It took us 7 hours. On traveling days, our stomachs don`t feel quite right, but we still want to eat something!! Oh yeah! I almost forgot! We have “Fox” cup noodle. We eat them with rice bran pickles…. We fully enjoy the Japanese cuisine!!  
October 30 (Friday) South Bend, IN - Concert

 
Today`s concert was the 90 minute version, with no intermission. It was a full audience and they were quite happy! We were happy too!  There was a Q and A time after the concert, and it was refreshing.  
October 31 (Saturday) Moving to Pennsylvania, unloading

 
In the audience of yesterday’s performance was the Sole family. They drove to see us from three hours away. The mother`s nickname is “Miami”. If you recognize her name, you must be quite a Yamato freak.  Time goes back to 1999, Yamato’s first European tour. She came with us as a translator. Now, 10 years later, she and her husband are starting their own taiko group. They bought 13 drums in Japan and are starting a Taiko Center in Michigan. The Wadaiko population is growing.  Good luck, Raion Taiko!!