Japanese group Bachi Atari’s drumming is as influential and engaging as its movements and postures. Members speak to Shrabasti Mallik about reinventing the instrument in every performance

They strive to expand the boundaries of the existing Japanese classical drum format. They create their own kind of music using different kind of drums and why they want to portray the singular uniqueness of the drum. The traditional Japanese drum wadaiko (also called taiko) sounds like rumbling thunder. It is this quality of the instrument that brought three friends together in Tokyo to explore their creativity in the art of drumming. In 2009, they formed group Bachi Atari to revolutionise the traditional image of the Japanese drum wadaiko and give it a new ‘shape’.

The name Bachi Atari has a two-fold meaning. When translated, bachi means sticks and atari means to hit a target. But the name also suggests bad boys in Tokyo. Yuhei Motoyama, a member, explains, “It is a sort of negative and therefore catches attention. We want people to remember us. It is a common human tendency to remember the evil more than the good. We are trying to rebel by welcoming bad luck.”

The tradition of drumming dates back to centuries in Japan and there are innumerable drummers and groups there. But the forte of the group lies in creating beats which are new. Mashashi Okawa, another member says, “The drumming culture is visible specially in cultural events and during festive occasions. But we intend to create a special kind of music through drums. We want to move out of the traditional and produce sound that can attract the general audience at all times.” The members specialise in various music styles which helps them capture the essence of drum beats and blend it with a special kind of fine perception which does not exist in their respective worlds. “We aim to bring forth a novel musical experience never before seen in the world of traditional wadaiko,” he adds.

And for that the group uses as many as 15 varieties of drums that vary in shapes, sizes and also the material with which it is built. Each drum produces a different kind of sound. They mix the sounds emanating from the different kind of drums and create their own type of music.

Although they could not bring in all 15 of them to India, they carried a few popular ones. “We have the Shime daiko, whose drum head is made of animal skin. It is small and is suspended on a stand. Being small, it has a higher pitch than normal taiko (drums),” says Yuhei and goes on to add that the other drum known as Nagado daiko is long bodied and that each drum is carved out from a single solid piece of wood. They also had the Odeko daiko, which is small, light weight and comes with a shoulder strap.

Another member Tetsu Minegishi adds, “We are also carrying the Tsuzumi, which is a drum of Chinese/Indian origin.” The small instrument consists of a wooden body shaped like an hourglass, similar to the Indian damru. “It is taut, with two drum heads and cords that can be squeezed or released to increase or decrease the tension of the heads respectively. This mechanism allows us to raise or lower the pitch of the drum while playing,” he says.

And their performance is not just restricted to the beating of the drums; they use a lot of movements. They change their positions, almost like Japanese Ninjas, playing every drum in rotation. “If we only beat drums, people will not find it interesting. Movement and synchronisation makes a performance interesting,” points out Mashashi. Their costumes, a black outfit with intricate silver threadworks, are inspired by the Ninjas too. He adds, “We cannot wear  the original samurai outfit, covered from head to toe. We have taken the idea and have modified it in our way.”

They also train kids. Tetsu says, “We give drumming lessons to children. We also have our standalone events  where we accompany other groups. But as a team we can produce the best and we aim to take our music to places where the drumming culture has not penetrated yet.”

It is the group’s second time in India, but their first time in Delhi. “We have travelled all the way from Japan to see how the Indian audience reacts to a performance which solely depends on drums.

We are confident that it will a show  that they will be witnessing for the first time. Every musical band in India have drums, but what we want to portray the brilliance of drums when it is played individually,” Mashashi rounds off.

photos Sanjeev Kumar