Kodo
Kodo
Mon 05 Feb 2024 & Tue 06 Feb 2024
Mon 5 February 2024 *SOLD OUT*
Tue 6 February 2024 *LIMITED TICKETS REMAINING*
Exploring the limitless possibilities of the traditional Japanese drum, the taiko, Kodo is forging new directions for a vibrant living art-form. Since the group’s debut at the Berlin Festival in 1981, Kodo has given over 6,500 performances on all five continents.
In Japanese, the word “Kodo” holds a double meaning. It can be translated as “heartbeat,” the primal source of all rhythm. However, Kodo's group’s name is written with different characters, which mean “drum” and “child.” This reflects Kodo’s desire to play the drums with the simple heart of a child.
For their 40th anniversary, they created two works based on their name: “Tsuzumi” takes its name and theme from the drum character, and “Warabe” from the child element. In “Warabe,” Kodo looks to its classic repertoire and aesthetics from the ensemble’s early days. This production blends simple forms of taiko expression that celebrate the unique sound, resonance, and physicality synonymous with Kodo - forever children of the drum at heart. Come and experience the soul-stirring rhythm of life first hand.
"Indeed, if there is such a thing as perfection in music, Kodo comes as near to it as any group in the world."
Boston Globe, USA
"Dynamic, electrifying vision [...] Nothing will prepare you for the 1,000 lb. drum assault, the precise timing or the wall of sound. An essential experience."
TimeOut
"Balancing a deadly aggression with utter tranquility, their sound stretches from the lightest of rainfall to cataclysmic thunderclaps, from pleasant laughter to discordant fear and from silence to - just once here - a wall of sound, as high, frightening and impregnable as a mountain. Musicians, theatre directors and all interested in the sheer power of sound to feed emotions should take note."
The Guardian
