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Giving them something to drum about
Published October 23, 2009
As 800 elementary school students rose to their feet at the end of the performance, applauding and filling the Cailloux City Center for the Performing Arts with shrill screams of enthusiasm, one may have assumed the amassed youngsters were cheering the latest Disney Channel pop star or the latest 3-D animated movie — but probably not a group of eight traditional Japanese drummers.
But the Yamato Drummers, a group that for decades has performed around the world, combining traditional Japanese percussion instruments with a modern flare, were able to rev up the audience of grade-school students from across the Hill Country, who came for the latest performance in the Kerrville Performing Arts Society’s Outreach series.
“They were the best, especially the guy with the really big drum,” said Dylan McWilliams, a second- grade student from Harper.
Dylan was referring to the centerpiece of the Yamato performance, a 1,000 pound drum carved from a single 400-year-old tree. The drum prompted many “oohs” and “ahhs” as it shook the auditorium.
But that was only one of many traditional Japanese instruments used by the band during its performance. In addition to drums of all shapes and sizes, performers played several simple string and wind instruments.
The highly choreographed performance was filled with energy, passion and humor. And for an encore, the drummers got the students into the act, turning their applause into another percussive instrument.
Soon the auditorium was filled with children clapping, stomping and chanting.
“I think the performers like playing to the audience of kids, because the kids get so much more into it than the adults,” said Sue Talford of KPAS.
Japanese drumming, traditionally associated with ancient thanksgiving festivals, experienced a revival in the mid-20th century, explained the Yamato’s North American tour director, Uriel Luft.
Luft said the drummers are different than other drumming groups. Many viewed the performances as historical recreations that should be as close to the originals as possible.
Luft said the Yamato sought to blend ancient techniques with a more contemporary style, synching the show to lights and choreography.
“Many of the groups that were performing this did it for the sake of displaying a part of the culture,” Luft said. “But the Yamato look to bring in the modern aesthetic and make it something that is enjoyable to watch just as a show by itself.”
Every year, the KPAS outreach program offers a series of free live performances to students across the Hill Country.
Talford said KPAS likes to vary the type of performances to expose kids to different art-forms.
“The Yamato Drummers are something that these kids would otherwise not have been exposed to,” Talford said. “And now, they are leaving here all excited and will hopefully bring their family and parents back to see the show in the evening.”
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