WASABI, The Spirit of Japan: The Sound of Traditional Instruments

Ryoichiro Yoshida, Naosaburo Biho, Shin Ichikawa, Hiromu Motonaga

Featuring:

Ryoichiro Yoshida, tsugaru-shamisen

Hiromu Motonaga, shakuhachi

Naosaburo Biho, taiko

Shin Ichikawa, koto

The events for the 40th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation kept on rolling and one of the most awaited was WASABI, The Spirit of Japan: The Sound of Traditional Instruments held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino (CCP Little Theater). This concert that was presented by the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines and the Japan Foundation, Manila featured the four man band WASABI composed of Ryoichiro Yoshida (tsugaru-shamisen), Hiromu Motonaga (shakuhachi), Naosaburo Biho (taiko) and Shin Ichikawa (koto) in their first ever performance outside Japan as a group.

A cocktail reception for the Japanese Embassy’s guests was held at the lobby prior to the show. Welcome remarks from CCP President Raul Sunico and Japanese Ambassador Toshinao Urabe were delivered before the performance started. WASABI then went on to the stage and enthralled the audience with a unique blend of music featuring traditional instruments of Japan. WASABI had a fun time greeting the audience in Filipino which was highly appreciated by the crowd. Hiromu Motonaga acted as the spokesperson for the band introducing pieces prior to performing them. He also explained that the tsugaru-shamisen and the taiko are normally associated with folk music while the koto and shakahuchi that he plays are used in classical pieces. And having these four instruments on one stage performing all together is something that isn’t commonly done even in Japan. So despite the instruments being traditional, the resulting sound is new. I guess that it was not just only the configuration of the instruments that was new to the audience but also the pieces as well. Songs like Shinonome (Dawn), Eleven, Guren (Crimson), Kokiriko, Sakura Sakura, and Shigure (Autumn Rain) among others were totally unfamiliar to me and very likely to the rest of the people at the theater too. The tunes might’ve been unfamiliar but that didn’t mean that the audience wasn’t able to enjoy the music. In fact, each member was showered with generous applause during the number after each did their solos that showcased their virtuosity and their improvisational skills with their respective instruments.

I had to note that I was extremely pleased to hear the very soothing song Furusato, which is actually familiar to me, performed on that night even though it wasn’t listed in the program. Equally pleasing as well was the band’s final encore which was the popular Filipino folk song Sitsiritsit which had the audience delighted seeing a Japanese band perform a local tune. It was curious to witness the meet and greet which was by far one of the quickest that I’ve ever seen. Many were probably disappointed not to be able to have their photos taken with them or have their autographs. People were only allowed to shake the band members’ hands and after that, WASABI left the CCP. But despite this mild disappointment of not being able to interact more with the band, I’m pretty sure that the people had a great time with the concert and learned more about Japanese music and culture in the process.