Ishida Gumi Gets Its Budokan Concert, in Rarity for a String Ensemble

By Ayako Hirayama / Japan News Staff Writer

12:00 JST, November 22, 2024

Violinist Yasunao Ishida is not to be deterred.

A decade ago he formed a string ensemble, and on Nov. 10, they performed at the Nippon Budokan hall in Tokyo, achieving their long-cherished goal. It is rare for a string ensemble to perform alone at such a large venue, and one that some call a “holy ground for rock.” For years at concerts, Ishida voiced this ambitious goal for his group, Ishida Gumi, but at first he was met with laughter from audiences. People apparently thought he was joking.

Ishida Gumi, which draws its members mostly from various leading orchestras nationwide, has seen its fan base grow and grow, thanks to a wide repertoire that ranges from classical music to film scores to tango to rock. The ensemble now gives about 30 performances a year across the country, many of them selling out at venues such as Suntory Hall in Tokyo. The Budokan concert attracted about 8,300 people, and tickets sold out months beforehand.

With glaring lights and grandiose staging, like nothing you would expect from classical musicians, the concert opened with “Battle Without Honor or Humanity,” a score by rock musician Tomoyasu Hotei that was used in the film “Kill Bill.” The ensemble also played such rock pieces as Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” as well as Astor Piazzolla’s tango pieces, while changing up the mood with classical pieces, including Ravel’s “Pavane for a Dead Princess” and Bizet’s “Farandole.” The excitement grew heated when they performed Deep Purple’s “Burn,” the stage bursting with pyrotechnics. The concert ended with Oasis’ “Whatever,” an encore, with numerous gold and silver streamers showering on the audience.

“From the beginning, including the reactions of the audience, it was truly wonderful,” Ishida said of the concert.

The show was something special for fans, too. “I was waiting for this concert. I’m about to burst into tears,” said Nobue Mikami, 57, a Tokyoite who has seen Ishida Gumi perform “countless times.” “Their sound is amazing. I want more people to listen to their music.”

Ishida may look tough, but really he is mischievous, keen to entertain people, which you can tell from a T-shirt he wears that reads, “I’m the best.” A growing number of young people make up his audience, and the ensemble seems to have more fans than ever.

Besides leading the group, Ishida is also solo concertmaster for the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra and a special guest concertmaster for the City of Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, and he plays as a member of other musical groups as well. He is one of the most sought-after violinists in Japan, as he performs around 150 concerts a year.

Even the Budokan concert was not his end goal. For him, this was a waypoint. Ishida now aims to appear on NHK’s program “Kohaku Utagassen” (“Red & White Year-end Song Festival”), and perform at Osaka-Jo Hall, which can hold more people than the Budokan, as he tries to transcend the bounds of classical music.

“I believe Ishida Gumi will evolve even further, so I hope people will continue to support us,” Ishida said.