Toronto’s Nagata Shachu will open their 2025/26 season with special guest Jiro Murayama in a concert titled BEATS-BREATH on October 4. It’s the 28th season of performance for the Japanese taiko drumming ensemble, and the first return visit for Murayama since 2016.
The collaborative performance on October 4 will include traditional Japanese folk pieces as well as brand new compositions that bring the art form into the 21st century. Highlights will include a duet with master shinobue player Jiro Miuyrama and Nagata Shachu member Kevin He on the shakuhachi, and a folk song performed by Nagata Shachu member Aki Takahashi on shamisen and vocals, Jiro Murayama on shinobue, and Kiyoshi Nagata on taiko.
Nagata Shachu and special guest Jiro Murayama (shinobue) perform Tozan Bayashi (traditional). Harbourfront Centre, Toronto on June 4, 2016:
Nagata Shachu
Kiyoshi Nagata founded the ensemble based on the Japanese drum or taiko in 1998. Based in the traditional folk drumming of Japan, Nagata Shachu’s goal is to both preserve the instrument’s legacy and rejuvenate it as a 21st century instrument.
Performing on the taiko is physically as well as artistically demanding. The group has become renowned for their exciting performances, and has toured throughout North America and in Italy, Mexico, and Lebanon. They have also recorded five albums of original music, along with five DVDs of performance.
Among other accolades, they received the Japan’s Foreign Minister’s Commendation in 2019 for the promotion of cultural exchange through art between Japan and Canada, and they are the only taiko group outside Japan to have been sponsored by four major Japanese drum makers.
Along with the taiko (including the massive O-Daiko drum), Nagata Shachu members play bamboo flutes and the three-stringed shamisen, along with gongs, cymbals, shakers and wood blocks.
BEATS-BREATH will feature Nagata Shachu founder Kiyoshi Nagata, and ensemble members Aki Takahashi, Andrew Siu, Kevin He, Tatsuki Shimoda, Brian Liang, Eriko Murata, and Sakura Ariga.
Jiro Murayama
Murayama began his musical career at the age of 15 playing the saxophone. In a 2015 interview with Japan Times, Murayama said that he, “originally dreamed of becoming a jazz musician”.
He later made the switch to African roots music, but then he discovered the practice of matsuri bayashi, or the type of traditional Japanese drumming typically performed at festivals. It connected his interest in music with his own heritage, and he decided to pursue it.
Jiro Murayama joined the renowned Kodo drum troupe in 1989. Today, he’s the only original member of Tokyo Dageki Dan, a professional Japanese drumming group in Tokyo formed in 1995. On joining the group, he continued to play the drums, but later transitioned to the shinobue, a bamboo flute, and became a master performer.
With the ensemble, he’s toured the world and performed at many prominent events, including the FIFA World Cup in France (Closing Ceremony), Hannover EXPO (Germany), and the Japanese Culture Festival in Russia, Caribbean, Southeast Asia, and Mexico. The ensemble also appeared in the stage musical Touken Ranbu.
As a soloist, Murayama has built an international career that sees him perform with equal aplomb in both traditional and modern music. He’s performed across the globe, and recorded several releases. He’s also written several instructional books on shinobue technique and performance.
His shinobue and taiko performance can be heard on Final Fantasy XIII-2 Original Soundtrack.
- Find performance details for BEATS-BREATH with Nagata Shachu and Jiro Murayama at Toronto Harbourfront on October 4 [HERE].
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