Three Drumbeats, Layered for the First Time — Fukagawa Park Hosts First Joint Performance by Three Clans

Three drumbeats, layered together for the first time. Fukagawa's dog- and bear-lineage neighborhood associations and Kameido's fox-lineage association, who have been rehearsing jointly for next year's previously reported "Three Clans Autumn Festival," gave the public its first look at their joint routine at Fukagawa Central Plaza on the 31st, drawing roughly 300 onlookers.

As previously reported — an agreement on the 17th, individual rehearsals from the 19th to the 22nd, and a joint committee meeting on the 26th — the dog-lineage association (led by Koji Inui), the bear-lineage association (led by Toru Marukoshi), and the fox-lineage association (led by Jo Saotome) have been building a joint drumming routine toward next year's festival. They had initially considered a "drum-off" format with each clan taking turns, but rehearsals built momentum for "layering rather than competing," shifting toward a routine where the dog lineage's fast rolls, the bear lineage's low, heavy tones, and the fox lineage's light, shifting rhythms are layered in sequence — a direction already noted in the editorial desk's planning document. The 31st's public showing was the first time this new format was performed before an audience.

The public performance ran for about 20 minutes starting at 3 p.m. at Fukagawa Central Plaza. The dog-lineage drums struck first, joined about a minute later by the bear lineage's low tones, with the fox lineage's shifting rhythm added last so all three sounded together. When the performance ended, the roughly 300 people gathered broke into loud applause. Koji Inui, 56, said, "Honestly, I wasn't sure until the very end whether the three would mesh well. Today, the moment they did, I could tell from the crowd's reaction." Toru Marukoshi, 58, recalled, "Bear-lineage drumming has traditionally been built to stand on its own. Playing in time with others' sound was new for us this time, and we found something we hadn't expected." Jo Saotome, 54, said, "For next year's actual festival, I want to decide the routine's length based on today's reaction."

The food-stall and carnival-corner idea Saotome proposed on the 28th, as previously reported, also got a trial run, with a few stalls set up around the performance. A bakery connected to the Kameido fox-lineage association sold baked sweets, and a fried-food stall run by an acquaintance of the Fukagawa dog-lineage association also took part; both sold out within about an hour. Next year's official program, dates, and venue are expected to be decided at the joint committee's meeting on November 14, and organizers say today's trial outing will factor into that decision.

Families spanning multiple lineages were a visible presence in the crowd. A man, 39, married to a woman of the fox lineage, laughed: "Our kid seemed to have been unsure which drum to call 'my sound.' Today, seeing all three play together, she just said she liked all of them." A grade-school girl who lives with her bear-lineage grandmother said, "Grandma's drum was the first one I felt in my chest." A shopping-district representative in Fukagawa said, "I have a feeling joint events across lineages take root in small settings like this before they take root in the festival itself."

The joint committee's formal decision on the program is set for November 14. All three association leaders say they want to finalize their proposal based on today's performance, and today's reaction will reportedly be reported to the committee as is. Saotome said, "A single idea — that layering would be more interesting than competing — has come this far. I'm already looking forward to next year's festival."