UCSB Arts & Lectures presents Japan’s drum ensemble Kodo on its One Earth Tour 2019, exploring the Japanese taiko drum through its energetic, and meticulously choreographed performance, Evolution, 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 9, at The Granada Theatre, 1214 State St., Santa Barbara.

Kodo is the world’s foremost professional taiko company, forging new directions for this vibrant living art form. The company’s rigorous training and tireless dedication gives these drummers their unique edge.

Directed by Tamasaburo Bando, Evolution marks the 35th anniversary of Kodo. The production is a culmination of Kodo’s ever-evolving artistic voyage, which displays the future of taiko on stage.

For decades, Kodo has led the genre of taiko performance with dedication and innovation. With Evolution, Kodo promises to drive its next generation to new heights of creative expression.

Bando has crafted a program that places Kodo’s best-known work alongside some of the latest core repertoire Signature pieces such as O-daiko and Monochrome, which have been synonymous with Kodo since the days of its antecedent group, are now integrated among more recent work such as Kusa-wake and Color.

The combination of classic and current is complemented by new compositions created especially for this production. Ayaori is intricate and uplifting, while the climactic Rasen (Spiral) features motifs of an array of Kodo pieces from various eras of the ensemble’s history.

Bando is a leading Kabuki actor and the most popular and celebrated onnagata (actor specializing in female roles) currently on stage. He has demonstrated his aesthetic across numerous platforms, receiving the highest acclaim for his many artistic endeavors.

In September 2012, Bando was recognized as an Important Intangible Cultural Property Holder (Living National Treasure), and in 2013 he was decorated with the highest honor of France’s Order of Arts and Letters, Commander.

In Japanese the word “Kodo” conveys two meanings:

First, “heartbeat,” the primal source of all rhythm. The sound of the great taiko is said to resemble a mother’s heartbeat as felt in the womb, and it is no myth that babies are often lulled asleep by its thunderous vibrations.

Second, read in a different way, the word can mean “children of the drum,” a reflection of Kodo’s desire to play the drums simply, with the heart of a child.

Since the group’s debut at the Berlin Festival in 1981, Kodo has given more than 6,000 performances in 50 countries under the banner One Earth Tour, spending about a third of the year overseas, a third touring in Japan and a third rehearsing and preparing new material on Sado Island.

Kodo strives to preserve and reinterpret traditional Japanese performing arts. Beyond this, members on tours and research trips worldwide have brought back to Sado a kaleidoscope of world music and experiences which now exerts a strong influence on the group’s performances and compositions.

Since 1971, Sado Island has been Kodo’s home and the platform from which the group reaches out to the world. This island is the inspiration for Kodo and the guiding force behind the group’s creative lifestyle. Their goal is to find a harmonious balance between people and the natural world.

Each time Kodo ventures off the island, the ensemble encounters new people, customs and traditional performing arts that are ingrained in the lifestyles of each locale.

Thanks to the support of friends, the Kodo Cultural Foundation was established in 1997 to increase Kodo’s capacity for outreach projects on Sado Island. Its primary mission is to carry out nonprofit activities focused on social education and the notion of giving back to the local community.

The Kodo Cultural Foundation is committed to the cultural and environmental preservation of Sado Island and oversees ambitious projects.

From the conservation of local habitats to the revitalisation of rare craft traditions and Noh theaters throughout Sado Island, the collaborative Kodo Cultural Foundation supports vital initiatives.

Its activities include holding workshops, planning the annual Earth Celebration, creating a research library, managing the Kodo Apprentice Centre and the Sado Island Taiko Centre, and carrying out research in the performing arts.

Kodo is presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures. Event sponsors: Jill and Bill Shanbrom. Wine sponsor: Potek Winery.

Tickets are $35-$65 for the general public; $19 for students with valid ID and and youth age 18 and under. A Granada facility fee will be added to each ticket price.

For tickets or more information, call UCSB Arts & Lectures, 805-893-3535 or buy online at www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu. Tickets also available through The Granada Theatre, 805-899-2222 or granadasb.org.

UCSB Arts & Lectures acknowledges its Community Partners the Natalie Orfalea Foundation and Lou Buglioli, and corporate season sponsor SAGE Publishing for support of the 2018-19 season.

— Caitlin O’Hara for UCSB Arts & Lectures.