MUSIC REVIEW
From Japan, Percussive Gratitude
‘Overcoming the Disaster’ at Jazz at Lincoln Center
By JAMES R. OESTREICH
Published: March 7, 2012
Amid a din of percussion and heavily amplified voices and instruments in the Rose Theater of Jazz at Lincoln Center on Tuesday evening came a remarkably understated moment. Not quiet, exactly, since it too was amplified, but simple, intimate, unexpected and soul wrenching.
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The program, “Overcoming the Disaster: Gratitude From Japan to the World,” nearing the first anniversary of the great earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident in northeastern Japan, was presented free by theJapan Foundation as part of an international tour to show gratitude to the world for its sympathy, solidarity and support. Dominated by the crack drumming ensemble Ondekoza, the evening also included performances by Wakumizu Kagura, a folk-dance troupe from one of the hardest-hit areas; the Bamboo Orchestra; the Ochi Brothers, a percussion duo; the Umezu Chibi Brass; and various individual artists.
After a brief public-address announcement of purpose and two folk dances characterized as prayers, the music unfolded in a steady, shifting stream, and the mood was celebratory, with no further reference to the disaster or the continuing agonies in Japan (unless, that is, there were any in the Japanese song texts, nowhere translated). But as Ondekoza was setting up for its big number, “Odaiko,” on a semidarkened stage, the strains of “Amazing Grace” wafted from the speakers, played on a shakuhachi, the Japanese bamboo flute.
You might have doubted that — especially for a New Yorker, used to hearing “Amazing Grace” performed on bagpipes at official funerals and in Sept. 11 memorials — anything less could have a similar impact. But in the context of this commemoration, the deeply felt performance by Yoshimitsu Matsuda of Ondekoza proved shattering. The breathiness that the shakuhachi conveys gives its sound a human, vocal quality like those of speech and song, and Mr. Matsuda exploited them to the full in his eloquent inflections.
There is something cathartic about drums, for player and listener alike. Kodo, an offshoot of Ondekoza that has achieved greater prominence in the United States, performed at Avery Fisher Hall last March, just over a week after the earthquake. It made no reference to the disaster but simply performed with its usual near-manic intensity, drawing the audience into its art form and into a larger, unstated cause.
Ondekoza here performed in like fashion. Much of its routine was familiar even to a newcomer, since Kodo has retained some of the repertory: in particular the culminating “Odaiko” (“Big Drum”), leading immediately into the resounding “Yatai Bayashi.” And as with Kodo, the stamina of the performers, often wielding sticks approaching the size of baseball bats, is as striking as their artistry and precision; both groups, of necessity, make performance part of a larger physical culture.
Weaving through and around Ondekoza’s performances were those of the brass players — as ragtag a group as Ondekoza is meticulous, led by Kazutoki Umezu, on saxophone — and the vocalists. Sizzle Ohtaka’s singing, in a largely Westernized style, was attractive; but Yumiko Tanaka’s vocalizations, in a rawer, more folkish and sometimes almost violent mode, were far more compelling (again, apart from whatever meanings they may have been conveying in Japanese). The style of their male counterpart, Suguru Ikeda, fell to the earthier side.
The concert sometimes took on the look of a variety show, with children performing on bamboo instruments and even a bit of byplay with kendamas (toys with balls attached to elaborately fashioned sticks by strings) of various sizes, which combined juggling and musical skills with humor. There was — as there could only be, given the wildly diverse styles of the performers — a monster jam session at the end, though in truth, most of the evening amounted to a jam session, and an entertaining one.
