Incense

/ˈinˌsens/
1) a gum, spice, or other substance burned for the sweet smell it produces.
2) make (someone) very angry.

The solo performance features taiko drums, shinobue flutes, and vocals, mixed with electronic loops and samples as Watanabe explores the dual uses and meanings of the piece's title—burning and calming, smoldering and healing, provocation and release—as they relate to personal ritual, social conflict and rising above the tumultuous moment.

Developed during the pandemic and premiered live at Joe’s Pub in NYC, Watanabe has since performed the work at Dartmouth College, Lincoln Center and excerpts at Hirshorn Museum, Centre Musique de Monde in Montreal, Antenna Cloud Farm and elsewhere.

Artist bio:

Acclaimed composer and instrumentalist Kaoru Watanabe’s melodic, authentic and engaging music focuses on points of connection: the joints between Western jazz and Eastern traditional, Japanese theater and political action, the ancient and the all-too-contemporary. Born into a musical family, Watanabe began his training at a young age, eventually graduating from the Manhattan School of Music, then devoting a decade overseas performing with and ultimately leading the world-renowned Taiko drum performance group KODO. His ten years in Japan profoundly influenced Watanabe's practice, and his signature skill of infusing Japanese culture with disparate styles has made him a much in-demand collaborator. Watanabe’s impressive list of creative works across different media reflects his ever-curious ear and wandering eye. He advised and contributed to film director Wes Anderson’s Oscar-nominated score for Isle of Dogs; tours regularly with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad; has supported numerous dance companies and movement artists, including Mikhail Baryshnikov; and has composed with and performed alongside Laurie Anderson, Jason and Alicia Hall Moran, Vernon Reid, Bando Tamasaburo, Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Zakir Hussain, among many others. As a composer, Watanabe writes for various, often unconventional instrumentation, utilizing a wide variety of compositional and performance techniques. Thematically, he regularly explores social justice, history, and heritage issues. Watanabe's newest pandemic-era creation, INCENSE, uses live-recorded sample loops of flute, drums, and vocals, providing him the technical means to perform ensemble compositions as a solo artist.