KODO HISTORY

�@photo : Susumu Yoshida

1981

Formation of "Kodo". Debut at '81 Berlin Festival performing Maki Ishii's "Mono-Prism" with Berlin Symphony Orchestra. World premiere - Maki Ishii's "Dyu-ha", Koln International Percussion Festival. Tour - Italy, San Marino, West Germany, Japan.

1982

Tour - America, Canada, Mexico, Japan. World premiere - Tokuhide Niimi's "Waving", Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Kenichiro Kobayashi.

1983

Tour - Japan.

1984

Tour - Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Italy, France, Switzerland, Britain, Sweden, Denmark, West Germany, Holland, America. World Premiere - Maki Ishii's "Kaguyahime" suite with Deutsche Oper Berlin percussionists. Sold-out performances at Los Angeles Olympics Arts Festival.

1985

Tour - America (incl. Kennedy Center), Canada, Britain (incl. Edinburgh Festival), Holland, Italy, Switzerland, France, Japan.

1986

Tour - Taiwan, Hong Kong, Turkey, ("Japan Week" festival), Indonesia (Bali Arts Festival), Malaysia, Japan.

1987

Tour - America , Canada, Britain (incl. two weeks sold-out Sadler's Wells, London), France, West Germany (incl. Berlin Philharmonic Hall), East Germany (Berlin 750th ann.), Holland, Japan.

�@photo : Masakazu Sakomizu

1988

Tour - America (incl. one week sold-out New York City Center Theater), Trinidad &Tobago, Venezuela, Brazil (80th ann. of Japanese immigration), Colombia, Japan, Australia (200th ann. celebrations). Opening of Kodo Village. Ist annual "Earth Celebration" international arts festival on Sado Island. CD "Ubu-Suna" on Sony Records.

1989

Tour - America, Canada, West Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Japan. First "Kodo Juku" drum workshop. CD "Blessing of the Earth" on Sony Records.

1990

Tour - America (incl. one week sold-out New York City Center Theater), France, Britain (incl. two weeks sold-out Sadler's Wells, London), Japan. CD "Irodori" on Sony Records receives Gold Disc Award for Japanese classical music

1991

Tour - America, Canada, Japan. Special small group "Kodo San'nin Gurui" performs in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal. Kodo Juku drum workshops held in Northern Ireland as part of UK "Japan Festival". 1st annual "Gathering" 3-day concert series Orchard Hall, Shibuya, Tokyo. Live CD's "Gathering", "Mono-Prism" on Sony Records. BBC Television "One World, One Voice" recording.

1992

Tour - America, Canada, Germany (Mitsui sponsored "Close-up of Japan" festival), Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, Japan. CD "Kaiki" and Video and LaserDisc "Kodo" on Sony Records.

1993

Tour - America, Canada, Portugal (Mitsui sponsored "Close-up of Japan" festival) Britain, Taiwan, Japan incl. Okinawa. CD "Best of Kodo" on Sony Records. Production of Maki Ishii's "Kaguyahime" suite with Nederlands Dance Theatre. Cirque du Soleil taiko instruction project. Soundtrack recording for Universal Pictures "Hard Target".

1994

Tour - America incl. joint-performance with gospel singer Lecei Wright in Los Angeles, Japan. "Kodo" receives the MIDEM Music Video (Long Form) Award at the 3rd International Visual Music Festival in Cannes. Japanese Foreign Ministry award for contribution to exports through Earth Celebration and overseas tours.

�@photo : Cliff Watts

1995

Tour - America incl. sold-out 1st Carnegie Hall appearance, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy, Greece, Japan.Worldwide release of 'Nasca Fantasy' CD with Isao Tomita on Sony Records. Release of Universal Pictures 'The Hunted' film and soundtrack CD with Motofumi Yamaguchi score and Kodo performance. 1995 Tour - America incl. sold-out 1st Carnegie Hall appearance, Belgium, France (1st Theatre de la Ville appearance - sold out 5-day concert), Switzerland, Italy, Greece (Herodeon Theatre at Acropolis - sold out 2-day concert with 9000 audience), Japan. Release of Universal Pictures 'The Hunted' film and soundtrack CD with Motofumi Yamaguchi score and Kodo performance.

Special prize of "The37th Nihon Record Taisho", for 'KODO - Live At Acropolis'.

�@photo : Kiyokazu Onishi

1996

Tour - Belgium, Holland, France, Germany, Britain (incl. two weeks sold-out Sadler�s Wells Theatre, London), Israel (sold - out performances in Tel Aviv, Emek, Jerusalem) , Japan.

Special tour to Cuba & Dominican republic (conducted by photographer George Hashiguchi / incl. Yoshikazu & Yoko Fujimoto, Ryutaro Kaneko, & Yasukazu Kano from KODO ). Worldwide release of 'IBUKI'(produced by Bill Laswell)

1997

Tour - America and Canada incl. 2 day concert at Carnegie Hall, Japan.
Release of CD "Ibuki" on Sony Records, ranked the 7th position of Billboard World Album Chart. Establishment of Kodo Cultural Foundation. The 10th Anniversary of 'Earth Celebration'.

1998

Tour - Switzerland, France (sold-out 5-day concert at Theatre de la Ville in Paris), Croatia, Greece, Turkey, Ireland, Portugal, Germany, Belgium, Britain (1st Royal Festival Hall appearance sold-out 5-day concert), Japan.