The typical western orchestra is made up of a large body of string and wind instruments, with a few percussion players playing from the back the stage. The Japanese touring chamber ensemble KODÕ turns that formula inside out. KODÕ is a mighty 13-member percussion ensemble, with the occasional flute or koto added in certain pieces to provide melodic decoration. But KODÕ is essentially rigorous, highly skilled ensemble drumming.
This acclaimed ensemble has been visiting San Diego with some regularity since 1989, primarily as part of the wide ranging offerings of the La Jolla Music Society, as was Thursday’s KODÕ concert at the Balboa Theatre in downtown San Diego. So it is no surprise that KODÕ has a significant, loyal following here, and that Thursday’s concert was sold-out.
Although drumming has been a part of Japanese musical culture for 2000 years, KODÕ’S type of ensemble drumming is a modern tradition that first appeared in Japan after World War II. KODÕ started in 1981 and its reputation is based on its high performance standards and its rigorous training. Its members live in a compound on Japan’s remote Sado Island, spending a third of each year rehearsing their music; a third of the year touring Japan, and a third of the year touring worldwide.
To give KODÕ’s sound a truly orchestral range and texture, its drums come in all sizes, from small, high-pitched drums that the instrumentalists can easily carry and play as they march about the stage, to a variety of larger, deeper sounding drums that rest on small wheeled platforms that allow them to be moved about the stage in various formations. The stage is dominated by a massive bass drum situated in a commanding position high above the players at the back of the stage.
The bass drum stands in austere isolation until the concert’s penultimate offering when a fundoshi-clad drummer climbs up to play an extended thundering solo on this mighty instrument, creating an amazing sonority that easily filled and reverberated through the 1200-seat auditorium. In the earlier times of KODÕ tours, when the ensemble was exclusively male, the fundoshi was the standard performing uniform.
The dozen works performed on Thursday’s One Earth Tour 2025: Warabe traversed the emotional spectrum from deep introspection to raucous exultation, although we experienced more of the latter than the former. Several of works were rooted or inspired by traditional performance practices from various provinces throughout Japan.
Unlike the western musical practice of naming and acknowledging soloists in a performance, KODÕ focuses instead on the identity of the group. All of the KODÕ performers are listed in the program, but, for example, the flute soloist, the female vocalist, and even the master of the giant bass drum and not identified. So much as I would like to praise their skill and interpretive acumen, I cannot. All praise is awarded to the entire ensemble, and on Thursday the Balboa audience greeted the conclusion of every piece with roaring, unstinting approval.
On the other hand, the technical expertise behind the performance and the tour management is generously listed in the program. So kudos to Director Yuichiro Funabashi for such a vibrant, streamlined, fast-moving production and to Lighting Designer Kenichi Mashiko for dramatic and evocative lighting throughout.
This concert was presented by the La Jolla Music Society on February 6, 2025, at the Balboa Theatre in downtown San Diego.