In its choreography and its vigor taiko becomes almost a martial art, one in which violence has been sublimated into disciplined exultation…a blend of high-decibel virtuosity and songful shakuhachi solos…Precision and energy are paramount here and the product, for me at least, was medicinal. It is a combination narcotic, stimulant and vitamin pill. It left one listener feeling better on exit than entry.
Something strange and wonderful is coming your way. There was thunder and there was lightning and there was the sea crashing against a cliff, and there were birds, and volcanoes spitting fury at mortals, and festivals...For a few utterly transporting minutes … there was expressed in the metaphors of merciless rhythms and fluttering melodies, anything a listener had experienced, would experience, could imagine experiencing.
Few adjectives can explain the sound, emotion, and overall experience of the pounding drums of a live performance….my senses were rattled.
“Taikoza has moved the drums into the foreground and into an exciting visual explosion”
The concert was full of stirring music….from the most delicate and mournful bamboo flute song to the loudest and most pulsating beat, the dedicated passion of the group was inspiring.
Magical
Marco Lienhard review
From article by Mr. Kishi appeared in Hogaku Journal, Tokyo Japan:
“ An amazing shakuhachi player Marco Lienhard has come out with a new CD, truly a very gifted and wonderful sense of musicality. Not since Yamaguchi Goro’s rendition of Kinko Honkyoku music have I felt the need to listen to more of his music. His rendition of Honkyoku form the Watazumi school is incredible and everyone studying the style should listen to it. His powerful and heartfelt rendition of Amazing grace reminded me of such gospel singers as Mahalia Jackson.