The Band: The Rock to Come

I graduated from the Department of French Literature in the Faculty of Letters in 1984 and worked for a publishing house. While I was working as an editor, perhaps due to some psychological mechanism, I never felt the urge to write anything. However, as soon as I left the editing job, I felt a desire to write "something."

However, much like Futabatei Shimei, I found that I had nothing I "wanted to write." Having no other choice, I consulted a friend, who advised me, "Why don't you write about The Band, since you like them so much?" So, I decided to write a discourse on The Band.

The Band was a so-called American rock band that was active from 1968 to 1978. They are generally known as Bob Dylan's backing band, and their farewell concert was made into the film "The Last Waltz" directed by Martin Scorsese. I first heard The Band's album "Northern Lights – Southern Cross" when I was a high school freshman, and I have been captivated by the charm of their music, listening to it almost every day for over 45 years.

That said, it is not as if I particularly like "rock" in general; for the past 10 years or so, the only concerts I have attended have been classical and contemporary music. I prefer the Ensemble Intercontemporain, my favorite conductor is Marek Janowski, and my favorite orchestra is the Staatskapelle Dresden.

The Band is a mysterious group that is often not very well-liked by people who enjoy typical rock music. Just recently, when I recommended my book to someone who likes The Beatles, they told me, "Sorry, but The Band just doesn't resonate with me."

However, once someone is captivated by their charm, they will undoubtedly continue to listen to The Band for the rest of their life.

The 2023 performance of the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Kirill Petrenko in Japan was a wonderful performance. I was particularly moved by Berg's "Three Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6." However, when I returned home, what I listened to that day was once again The Band's "Northern Lights – Southern Cross." I went to sleep reaffirming that while the Berlin Philharmonic is certainly amazing, they still cannot compete with The Band.

If you would like to know the reason why, please do read this book.

The Band: The Rock to Come

Haruyuki Ikegami

Sayusha

280 pages, 1,980 yen (tax included)

*Affiliations and titles are those at the time of publication.