Bringing music and warmth to forgotten places.

The Ishinomaki Symphony Orchestra is the oldest active amateur orchestra in Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture. During the Great East Japan Earthquake, however, many of its musicians lost their family members or had their homes or instruments washed away in the tsunami. Their primary concert hall was destroyed. And yet, within two weeks the group was back to playing music. “Music is important in tough times as well,” explained Takeshi Adachi, the leader of the group. Looking back, he remembers that everyone was preoccupied with finding any way at all to help. The group had violins and cellos, and around five of the members started by going around and playing in the evacuation shelters. They selected familiar pieces, like Pachelbel's Canon and the famous enka song “Like the Flow of the River”. The sight of the audience surrounded by futons and daily supplies, staring intently as they leaned in to hear the music, is still etched deeply in Adachi’s mind.
“When we got assistance from Toyota, we did it with the idea that we were temporarily holding people’s thoughts and feelings for safekeeping”, Adachi said. “The experience of abundance comes from coming in contact with beautiful things. We want to keep contributing to the community by giving people these precious thoughts and feelings back through music.”
There are thought to be nearly 2,000 amateur orchestras across Japan, giving them a popularity that is unmatched anywhere else in the world. When tragedy strikes a community, the Ishinomaki Symphony Orchestra is the first to rush out to the citizens and bring them the soothing sounds of live music. It goes without saying that by touching the hearts of the local people, delighting in the act of creating music and continuing to bring the joy of listening to music to more people, amateur orchestras undoubtedly play a powerful role in forging the bonds that keep communities together.