{"id":67449,"date":"2020-03-12T11:26:22","date_gmt":"2020-03-12T15:26:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=67449"},"modified":"2020-03-13T18:55:59","modified_gmt":"2020-03-13T22:55:59","slug":"primer-torontos-taiko-drummers-nagata-shachu-return-raise-roof-esprit-orchestra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2020\/03\/12\/primer-torontos-taiko-drummers-nagata-shachu-return-raise-roof-esprit-orchestra\/","title":{"rendered":"PRIMER | Toronto’s Taiko Drummers Nagata Shachu Return To Raise The Roof With Esprit Orchestra"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Taiko
Taiko Drummers Nagata Shachu (Photo courtesy of the artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Presented by Esprit Orchestra<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Many Esprit fans will recall the bone-chilling ice storm that brought Toronto to a standstill on April 15, 2018. That wintry blast also prevented dozens of audience members from getting to Koerner Hall to hear Taiko drum group Nagata Shachu<\/a><\/span> raise the roof with the Canadian premiere of Maki Ishii\u2019s Mono-Prism<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Fast forward nearly two years later and the seven-piece ensemble helmed by founding artistic director Kiyoshi Nagata returns for an encore performance of the thundering work composed in 1976 for Japanese drums and orchestra, that promises to enthrall listeners with its heart-pounding rhythms and dazzling East-meets-West ethos.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people wanted to hear this work in 2018 but were stuck at home because of the ice storm. And the audience that was there wanted to hear it again because of the fantastic artistic nature of the work, performed by fantastic artists,\u201d Alex Pauk, Esprit Orchestra conductor and founder reveals over the phone. \u201cIt\u2019s also a clear encounter of musical poetics between Eastern and Western traditions that creates a special kind of musical reverberation, with an intoxicating energy that builds to a feverish excitement where the drummers are almost in a trance at times, embraced by the orchestra and its interjections. It\u2019s a thrilling piece and deserves to be heard again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taiko drums were traditionally used to communicate with the gods, with a variety of sizes ranging from the smaller, higher-pitched \u201cShime\u201d drums, to the powerfully dramatic, massive \u201cO-Daiko\u201d drums struck by two players at opposite ends. A battery of Japanese drums will be used in Mono-Prism<\/em>, titled for the monochromatic tones of the instruments, while prism reflects the rainbow hues of orchestral colours and timbres that underpin the smaller ensemble.<\/p>\n

But listeners expecting only a loud \u2018n\u2019 proud performance will be surprised to hear the quieter, more sensitive voices of the drums, including the piece\u2019s breathless opening that ultimately builds to a crashing crescendo.<\/p>\n

During its central section, players also tap out intricate rhythms with tapered sticks that evokes sounds of falling raindrops or gentle winds \u2014 demanding utmost precision and control by the musicians trained to learn Taiko music not by memorizing a score, but via the oral tradition, and sans conductor.<\/p>\n

And then \u2014 of course \u2014 there are other moments described by Nagata as, \u201cstructured chaos,\u201d in which the players perform interlocking rhythms freely among each other that further gets the blood pumping.<\/p>\n

\"Taiko
Taiko Drummers Nagata Shachu (Photo courtesy of the artist)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cPlaying Taiko drums is a combination of all three physical, mental and spiritual aspects,\u201d Nagata explains. \u201cIn order to create a big sound, you need to play with a lot of power, a lot of muscle, and a lot of strength. But you also need to play mindfully and with purpose so you would never just hit the drum for the sake of it. There\u2019s also a belief that within every drum a spirit or a God exists, so you play with a lot of respect,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

\u201cAudience members will be amazed by all the different kinds of sounds from Japanese drums that they\u2019ve never heard before with this piece,\u201d says Nagata, who met the renowned late composer in Japan while apprenticing with a local drum group nearly 30 years ago. \u201cThe audience should prepare to come to the concert with open ears, expect the unexpected, and be awed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The eclectic program described by Pauk as a \u201cvery sophisticated, diverse and complex concert,\u201d also features Barbara Croall\u2019s Mijidwewinan (Messages)<\/em> written in 2008 for Anishinaabekwe soloist and orchestra. The work notably showcases the artist, who is Odawa First Nations in her Esprit debut as a performer, with her violin concerto The Four Directions<\/em> heard during a prior EO concert.<\/p>\n

\u201cBarbara brings her Indigenous culture into the framework of the orchestral world and is also an exceptional performer,\u201d Pauk says of the piece that seamlessly blends Odawa vocal and flute tradition with a Western sensibility. \u201cThe piece is a cry or calling out to take care of the natural environment, with references to the teachings of indigenous elders in relation to the elements of nature, including the animals and birds and the early morning star and times of the day,\u201d he adds of the deeply spiritual piece that suggests visionary messages being received from ancestors and elders.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a transcendental aspect to Barbara’s performance, as if she\u2019s entering another spirit world,\u201d the conductor shares. \u201cBy the end, she\u2019s nearly bursting from despair but the message is not one of gloom, but of moving that despair forward while reflecting on all of the wonderful things there are around us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Listeners will also be treated to two world premieres: Christopher Goddard\u2019s Piano Concerto<\/em> and Eugene Astapov\u2019s A Still Life<\/em>, based on Russian writer Polina Barskova\u2019s poetry, and featuring JUNO award-winning Canadian soprano Shannon Mercer.<\/p>\n

\u201cA policy I\u2019ve been developing more intensely lately is to work with composers in successive years to help them develop their craft and ensure that they’ll have fine performances of their work,\u201d Pauk affirms. \u201cChris\u2019s piano concerto is a monster work with an incredibly difficult piano part that he’s written for himself to play as soloist in this premiere.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also sings praises for Astapov, another artist being nurtured through Esprit\u2019s Creative Sparks mentoring project, as well as the annual New Wave Composers Festival for emerging composers.<\/p>\n