Yamato – The Drummers of Japan provided the people of Portland with a unique opportunity to feel the beat of authentic Japanese culture at their show in Merrill Auditorium last Tuesday, Nov. 10.
The group performed an intense combination of masterful drumming and synchronized dance. They swung the drums – which were almost as big as they were – around the stage and gracefully performed marshal arts moves without ever missing a beat. Throughout the entire show, the performers had massive smiles strewn across their faces, encouraging each other and radiating positive energy out into the audience.
One song incorporated two men and two women in a drum off of sorts. The two guys came out first and got the crowd to clap along as they began to drum. They kept this back-and-forth going with the audience until the women came out and captivated the crowd by beating out a fiery new rhythm. For minutes on end, everyone’s attention darted back and forth as the two pairs competed, showing off with big cocky grins. Finally, the women brought out a humungous drum and left the men to shame.
In another song, drummers on opposite sides of the stage alternated playing beats, passing the sound back and forth between each other as if it were a tennis ball. “It kind of took your breath away,” said Peggy from Cape Elizabeth.
The Yamato drummers are all from the town of Asaku, Japan where the band formed in 1993. They spend much of the year in intense training there. According to their website, they start everyday with a 10k run and weight train for the rest of the morning. The afternoon is filled with group practice and then individual practice until they go to bed, only stopping for modest meals, sleep and other daily necessities.
The began travelling internationally in 1994 when they performed in China. Since then, they have traveled around the world several times and won numerous accolades at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, the biggest art event in the world. Their current world tour is scheduled to take them to Mexico, Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia within the next few months.
“I really enjoyed the interplay between performers,” said Stuart Gillespie who drove all the way from Bath to attend the performance. Gillespie said he found the show “overwhelming,” but, like many in the audience, found himself on the edge of his seat wanting more. “You hear it through your skin,” he said. “You hear it in your gut.”