“In Preparation for ‘Michi'” by Tsuyoshi Maeda
Feb. 14, 2015
Kodo 2015 Special Concert “Michi”
This month we began our rehearsals for Kodo 2015 Special Concert “Michi,” which will be held at KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre in Yokohama on March 19 & 20. The programme is nothing but “Kodo classics.” We have taken the pieces that Kodo has honed over the past decades and let our current members recreate them.
For a couple of years, we have been working on all kinds of new challenges and taken a break from the fundamentals of Kodo to date, such as our signature pieces and costumes. With that distance comes new realizations about things until now that had never occurred to us before. It has been a period for us to find out about what defines us as “Kodo” beyond our name.
Now, at this particular point in time, we will hold this special concert, Michi, which means “road” or “path.”
Chonlima, Monochrome, Miyake, O-daiko, Yatai-bayashi. We have taken a look at an array of classic Kodo pieces anew. Personally, I deeply feel that a special Kodo aura radiates from within each of these “classic Kodo performance” pieces.
During our rehearsals for Michi, the senior members remind us about our stance, the nuance of each rhythm, how to approach the taiko mentally and emotionally, and they performed with us for the first time in quite a while. This really emphasized to me where my weaknesses lie, and it also made me realize just how high our seniors have set the bar with their own skills.
Rehearsing feels like I’m banging into a wall that I can’t climb over yet, and while I completely frustrate myself everyday, I can also feel a fire burning my belly ignited by motivation. In any case, I am learning a lot every day.
In Japanese, onkochishin is a phrase we use at times like these, which means “to attempt to discover new things by studying the past.” I can reaffirm what is important for Kodo, what Kodo must never lose, through these rehearsals for Michi. And I want to make a good use of what I learn in brand new creations, too.
▶Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1N2ME9rH4E
Kodo 2015 Special Concert “Michi”
Mar. 19 (Thu)–20 (Fri), 2015 Yokohama, Kanagawa
http://www.kodo.or.jp/news/20150319michi_en.html