“Any sound has an expression and a sense of color, and you can feel that color if you listen carefully”
This is a quote from an aricle in The Japan Times today by Rei Sassaguchi about a young drummer named Eitetsu Hayashi who helped start the wadaiko (Japanese drums used in festivals) boom that has lead to the formation of more than 3,000 taiko groups in Japan.
I love the music color connection and after reading this am going to try to see him or at least get one of his recordings and then do my best to channel Mr. Hayahsi’s talent for “hearing color”.
You can read the entire article here but here is an excerpt of Mr. Hayashi commenting on hearing color during a performance with the Boston Symphony–
Hayashi says. “While trying to work on the number, I felt that my entire body became my ears. In the sounds of the drum I was beating, I could hear various expressions and feel the light and dark in the sounds. I even saw the possibility of feeling the colors in the sounds I made with my taiko.”
He confesses, however, that it took him a long time to really express subtleties of sound with the varied ways and strengths that he strikes the drums. It was 20 years later that his interest in feeling the colors in sounds brought about a group of fascinating works dedicated to renowned artists such as Ito Jakuchu, Man Ray and Fujita Tsuguji. In the suite “Jakuchu no Tsubasa (The Wings of Jakuchu)” (1999), Hayashi depicts the life of Jakuchu and his unique paintings, rendering rich, dynamic and delicate tones in drumming to suggest Jakuchu’s colors. The piece could be said to reflect Hayashi’s youthful dream of becoming a graphic designer.
And speaking of color and sound, next week I’ll be attending the CAUS 7th annual color symposium.
It is open to both members and non-members so if you are interested I believe there is still time to register. To find out more go to CAUS website…
