Japanese group showcases ancient percussion music
JAKARTA (JP): The Spiral Arms, a unique Japanese percussion group led by Toshiyuki Tsuchitori, will take the stage at the Second Art Summit Indonesia on Friday and Saturday at Taman Ismail Marzuki art center in Central Jakarta.
Accompanied by several Indonesian musicians from the Surakarta-based Indonesian School of Art, the group will perform Ikai: Another World. It features the ancient Japanese drum, Kuretzumi, which was used to accompany the mask dance Gigaku between the sixth and seventh centuries.
The Spiral Arms brings together musicians accomplished in various genres, including hard rock and ethnic Korean, Japanese and Indian music.
Tsuchitori explained that performing with local musicians was expected to open more possibilities for musical exploration in the 21st century.
"Cultural differences between countries (of the musicians) will not make the performances become a slapdash show, but it will display ideal unity and harmony," he said in a written explanation about the show.
Born in 1950, Tsuchitori made his musical debut as a percussionist in the 1970s along with other Japanese musicians like Toshinori Kondo and Ryuichi Sakamoto.
In 1975, he left Japan to live in New York and Paris and held concerts along with renowned jazz musicians, such as Milford Graves, Derek Berry and Steve Lacy.
From 1976, he held several concerts in various countries, and was music director in Peter Brooke's theater group, which was known for its works such as Mahabarata and the Tempest.
In 1987, Tsuchitori moved to a remote area in Japan, where he developed a center of his musical activities along with another musician, Momoyama Harue. He also became active in promoting and nurturing local culture.
He conducted a tour with a group specializing in Mexico's ancient musical instruments in 1995. The following year, he conducted research on the Native American tribe of the Iroquoi.
In 1996, he embraced the Kuretzumi as the symbol of his group's percussion instruments.
Interest in this small drum, which had actually almost disappeared a long time ago from his homeland's music scene, was revived by Tsuchitori, who developed his group's music with the instrument also with strong influence from Asian music.
It was his decision to bring unexploited ancient music back to the music scene which made his name. His albums surprised people and he carved out a new chapter in Japanese music history.
Besides Tsuchitori, who acts as musician and director of the performances here, the Spiral Arms comprises of Yoshinori Marui, Kazuhiro Yamada and Mitsui Chou.
The musical performances will be accompanied by projection of photographs by noted Japanese ethnophotographer Masatoshi Naito.
In his pictures, which form part of the group's stage decoration, Naito captured "the dark side" of Japanese people's life, from the past to the present.
"The pictures are filled with amazing power, as though coming through the depth of one's feeling. The pictures have a power to help the group to improvise our music," Tsuchitori said.
Rahayu Supanggah, Aloysius Swardi, Nyoman Sukerna and Rasita Satriana are the Indonesian musical accompanists.
Prior to the Jakarta performances, the Spiral Arms and their Indonesian counterparts held a concert in Surakarta, Central Java, on Tuesday. In November, they will perform in Tokyo, Kobe and several other cities in Japan. (ste)