Official Wagakki Band Thread

[izanagi]

INFO

 

The Wagakki Band (和楽器ãƒãƒ³ãƒ‰, lit. traditional instrument band), which consists of seven musicians and the singer Yuko Suzuhana, deftly fuses traditional Japanese instruments with contemporary rock. Though the stage may get a bit crowded with a drummer, a guitarist, a bassist, a tsugaru-jamisen (Japanese lute) player, a koto (Japanese harp) player, a shakuhachi (Japanese flute) player, a taiko drummer, and a fan-swinging singer, they manage to put on a surprisingly dynamic and cohesive performance. They record covers of vocaloid songs

MEMBERS



Vocalist: Yuko Suzuhana

Yuko began studying the piano at age three and shigin from age five. She graduated from the Tokyo College of Music’s Piano Program. Yuko is currently active as a shigin instructor, singer-songwriter, and pianist. In December 2011 she won the Grand Prize at the Nationwide Contest of the Nippon Columbia Japan Poem Recitation Competition. At present, she is in charge of vocals, shigin, and piano for Hanafugetsu, a Japanese-style band. She was also selected as Miss Nico Nama 2011 in the Niconico Douga Festival, and performed at Niconico Cho Party 2012. Yuko currently hosts Ibakira?NIGHT, a program on Ibakira TV.



Koto: Kiyoshi Ibukuro

Kiyoshi was born in Tokyo. During high school he began performing in China when he was dispatched there by the Agency for Cultural Affairs. He has performed in a total of eight countries outside of Japan, including Vietnam, Iran, Qatar, Kuwait, and South Korea. In Japan, Kiyoshi’s performances have been covered in a wide range of media, and he has also published a collection of arrangements from ZEN-ON Music Company. Kiyoshi explores the possibilities of the koto as a Japanese instrument. In addition to traditional Japanese music.



Shakuhachi: Daisuke Kaminaga

Daisuke was born in Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture. He began to play the Shakuhachi at the age of 18, then he was awarded a master license of Tozan-style Shakuhachi and got a master name called “YoZan.†Daisuke appeared on the stage in more than 10 countries and of numerous large-scale events including the world biggest music convention, SXSW Texas, USA) and Japanese cultural event, Japan Expo (Paris, France). Since Daisuke loves video game music, he conveys its charm through “Playing Works" series, the collaboration project with the well-known composers. Daisuke has his own school in Tokyo, and teaches in several colleges and universities. He also enjoys the activities for young people through the performance in local schools in Iwaki, Fukushima.



Tsugaru Jamisen: Beni Ninagawa

Beni was born in Kyoto. She began studying the Tsugaru Jamisen and minyo (Japanese folk singing) at the age of four. After working as a model and actress, Beni currently participates in many performances as a Tsugaru Jamisen musician. She is renowned for the videos she has uploaded of her performances of anime and Vocaloid songs under the “Played It†category.



Wadaiko: Kurona

Kurona encountered the wadaiko at age three, and joined a professional wadaiko group in Tokyo at age nine, where he studied traditional performing arts. Afterwards, he became an independent musician. In addition to performances in more than 15 countries, Kurona is active in a wide range of fields inside and outside Japan including magazines, TV, and stage performance. Kurona uses the wadaiko, a traditional instrument, to create new types of music. He also collaborates frequently with other musicians and artists. Kurona has served as a judge for the Central Competition in the Tokyo High School Culture Festival’s Folk Entertainment Division sponsored by the Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education. In addition, Kurona takes part in performances and recording with a variety of artists, including wadaiko choreography guidance for the Blazing Rhythms, Countdown, and The Legend of Mythica events at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea.



Guitar: Machiya

Guitarist Machiya enjoys overwhelming popularity in Niconico Douga’s renowned “Played It†category. The masterful video of his performance of “Night of Nights,†a famous song from video game Toho Project, has been viewed more than 1.3 million times. Machiya is also the guitarist and vocalist of m:a.ture, a tremendously popular band in the Indie music scene.In addition, Machiya participates in performances and tours with a diverse range of artists, such as serving as the guitarist for the nationwide tour by Tsutomu Ishizuki (formerly of FANATIC?CRISIS).



Bass: Asa

Asa is gaining ever-greater popularity on Niconico Douga as a user of Vocaloid. The video he posted in July 2012 of “Yoshiwara Lament,†a Vocaloid song, has been viewed more than 800,000 times. This song has also been performed by different artists on Niconico Douga. Moreover, it has been turned into a novel (published by AlphaPolis) that has drawn great praise. A member of EXIT TUNES, Asa also participates in its EXIT TUNES ACADEMY festival. He took part in a nationwide tour this summer that stopped at five Zepp venues throughout Japan.



Drums: Wasabi

Wasabi was born in China. His father is Chinese, and his mother is half Chinese and half Japanese. This drummer is hugely popular on Niconico Douga’s renowned “Played It†category. Wasabi is the youngest member, but he is a sophisticated musician. In particular, his fast-paced double bass drum—in collaboration with Kurona’s wadaiko—is one of the most recognizable parts of this band.

 

PV

 

 

Edited July 11, 2014 by izanagi

[izanagi]

 

 

[Rio Watanabe]

lead singer looks like matsumura sayuringo from ngzk46

[izanagi]

1st album preview

 

[pudding]

1st album preview

 

 

I'm glad I found this thread    

 

 

I'm looking forward to this album

4/23 right?   

[izanagi]

 

I'm glad I found this thread    

 

 

I'm looking forward to this album

4/23 right?   

 

yes, 2 days left

[GENOSAID]

Introduced by Asian Junkie.

I am now a fan.

[pudding]

Introduced by Asian Junkie.

I am now a fan.

this article?

 

 

a friend of mine showed me the MV's in Youtube

Now I'm a fan

(I'm not so into in j-rock)  

[shenvx]

Chanced upon the Senbonzakura vid of theirs on avex YT, found it interesting and amazing, but had no idea the members background would be so interesting (amazing, more like). Their 'sound' is different to what I usually listen to, but I think I'll be keeping an eye out for these guys! 

[GENOSAID]

this article?

 

 

a friend of mine showed me the MV's in Youtube

Now I'm a fan

(I'm not so into in j-rock)  

 

Yeah. I don't necessarily follow them, but I am a fan of J-rock in general. L'arc-en-Ciel, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, Beat Crusaders, UVERworld, and One OK Rock are some of the bands I do like. With the recent developments, I'm probably going to add Babymetal and Wagakki band.

[pudding]

on YESASIA!

 

 

VOCALOID Sanmai(Normal Edition)(Japan Version)

 

 

 

VOCALOID Sanmai (ALBUM+BLU-RAY)(First Press Limited Edition)(Japan Version)

 

 

VOCALOID Sanmai (ALBUM+DVD)(First Press Limited Edition)(Japan Version)

Edited April 26, 2014 by pudding

[izanagi]

1st album

so far, my favorite is ã„ã‚ã¯å”„ (Iroha uta)

[izanagi]

 

 

 

[parasyte]

Yuko is beautiful. love this band. they're performing at Japan Expo in Paris this July.

[izanagi]

Japan Expo 2014 @ Paris

 

 

New MV teaser - Hanabi

 

[Wade-kun]

Here’s the short version of “Hanabiâ€.

 

 

The full song and pv will be released on August 27. 

[parasyte]

they remind me of kagrra, one of my favourite v-kei band. but this band feels so complete with those traditional japanese instruments.

[Wade-kun]

[AtlantisPrince]

I just discovered Wagakki Band yesterday as I wanted to listen to some new japanese music to end the day and because I didn't listen to japanese music for a long time now. 

A nice birthday gift to myself I'd say. They captured my full attention instantly. This unique sound is just awesome! Their PVs are fantastic as well. No fancy stuff, but just those great musicians making amazing music. 

[RE!]

 

I'm new fan 

Just found it through Asian Junkie

 

I love how they incorporated traditional instrument perfectly with band

aaaah, my love for j-rock resurface again

[Black Alien Oppa]

Eargasm with this band!!!!

[Maks.K]

Came to state deep respect to this group. They are amazing!

[Siare]

I've always liked music that mixes traditional and contemporary. I feel like I probably found out about them because of Rin's Sakura Sakura, though of course Wagakki Band's way more prolific.

 

Love the music. Love the concepts and visuals. I also try to keep up with Yuko's solo projects and Hanafugetsu.

[kimsguardian]