On Ensemble describes its on-stage instrumentation of Japanese drums, flutes and chanting as a post-modern musical reality that transports the audience into a realm of total artistic honesty.
Western students will have the chance to experience this reality when On Ensemble visits campus as part of its upcoming Northwest tour. The group will perform at 7:30 p.m. May 16 in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) Concert Hall.
Media and PAC series Manager Courtney Hiatt said she believes the performance will attract people of all ages and backgrounds, especially those who enjoy world music and musical collaborations on stage.
“I immediately was attracted to the innovative sound of the ensemble, specifically their use of live electronics with traditional instruments and how it would appeal to younger audiences that are used to electronic manipulations in their music,” Hiatt said.
The quartet consists of Masato Baba, Kristofer Bergstrom, Shoji Kameda and Kelvin Underwood. The foundation of their music is the use of Japanese drums, a style called “taiko,” which means drum in Japanese.
The group’s name, “On Ensemble,” is derived from the Japanese character for sound, pronounced “ohn.”
The quartet formed in 2002 in Northern Japan after their first performance in Hakodate, Japan in 2001. All four members studied music extensively in Japan, as well as the United States.
Kameda said the band has an enormous range of musical influences, but their main influences come from their teachers.
He said he learned taiko as well as jazz from fellow band member Baba’s parents while growing up together. Kameda said he also studied music last summer in Bali and brought those teachings to the group’s current performances.
“We love everything, whether it’s hip-hop, rock, jazz, electronica or blues,” Bergstrom said. “We’re trying to be true to all of that by reflecting our love for traditional Japanese music and also reflecting our love for things like turntable scratching.”
On Ensemble released its first studio album, “Dust and Sand” in 2005 and is currently working on their second album.
Kameda described their new music as sounding rhythmically dense, with interlocking notes that build intricate musical passages.
On Ensemble's music is difficult to describe, but it sounds like a mixture of jazz, blues, folk, rock and electronica, Hiatt said.
“I feel that all of their songs are very high in energy, even if it is underlying,” Hiatt said. “They all have unexpected elements that delight the listener.”
Bergstrom said although the band’s performances have an auditory focus, they also have a visual emphasis.
“Our focus is on our voices and the musicality of the drums,” Bergstrom said. “That being said, from our stances when we play to how we hold the sticks when we’re drumming, it’s a very visual experience.”
Hiatt said the PAC series brings different types of world music to Western’s campus by featuring artists who are established in culturally traditional forms of music
“On Ensemble utilizes traditional components but reformats them into a forward-thinking sound that reaches out to a modern audience,” Hiatt said. “Part of the mission of the PAC Series is to provide access for everyone to professional artists and genres of performing arts that may not otherwise travel through our community.”
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