Introduction of clubs and circles : Light Music Circle "Yosegani

Yosegani" is a large circle with about 180 members at the Tama Campus. The group enjoys playing music, mainly Japanese rock, while performing cover versions of songs by popular artists in a variety of genres.

Due to the Corona disaster, the group was almost inactive in FY2020, but resumed its activities around June of 2021. While using the classrooms and the halls of the EGG DOME, we are vigorously performing once a month. The large number of students means that 50 to 60 bands appear at the regular monthly gigs, and the excitement continues for four days.
We recruit members for each artist we want to cover and organize the bands in a flexible manner. As a result, we often have multiple bands at one show," says guitarist Kurihara. If an artist is very popular, we sometimes have different bands play the same song at the same show. The charm of Yosegani is that people who want to play the music they want to play can get together and enjoy it freely," he smiles.

In addition to performing, the band also takes charge of behind-the-scenes work. To ensure the smooth operation of live performances, the group is divided into the PA group*, which is in charge of sound equipment; the lighting group, which is in charge of lighting; the decoration group, which decorates the live venue; the recording group, which records videos of the live performance; and the information and advertising group, which handles publicity activities, all working together for the success of the live performance.

The Lighting Group is in charge of decorating the live concert venue, the Recording Group is in charge of recording videos of the live performance, and the Information and Publicity Group is in charge of publicity activities. I participated as a representative of the circle in my sophomore year, and it was a valuable stage experience," says Mori, the group's representative. I participated as a representative of the circle in my sophomore year, and it was a valuable stage experience for me," says Mori, the group's representative. I would like to deepen interactions within the club and devise ways to make musical activities more enjoyable at Corona Disaster," says Mori, with a sense of responsibility for leading such a large group.
Unlike club activities in high school, we can think about what we want to do and take the initiative, which is fun and rewarding," says Abe, a drummer. One of our seniors performed one of his own compositions at a live concert before graduation, and I was impressed by how cool he looked. I would like to write an original song and perform it at a live concert as the culmination of my time as a student before graduation," he says.

PA: Abbreviation of "Public Address," which refers to sound equipment.

(First published in the November/December 2022 issue of Hosei, a public relations magazine)

*This interview was conducted online.