From left to right, Roberto Hernandez (keyboard, vocals), Matt (bass guitar), Toto (drums), Jane Ramas (vocals) and Frank Ganalon (lead guitar, vocals). About 10 meters from this stage is the Celestial Bar where Roberto used to play the white grand piano on Mondays (Band's day off).
(Photo by Frank Ganalon)
The HEART BEAT and
the DRUM BEAT
of Toto in Japan
A few weeks before going to Kagoshima City, Japan in early 1982, I always bring my 2 Japanese dictionaries and reading those while on a bus/jeep going to Toto's house, where we are practicing our songs and were given updates about the 6-month trip.
Toto is our band leader and drummer, who can speak fluent Japanese. His wife, Lisa is also leader of folk dancers performing also in a hotel in Kirishima (a province in Kagoshima).
Learning any language faster is not by theory or reading dictionaries but not applying it in actual conversation. Our singer Jane Ramas didn't bring any dictionary but she always talks to our Japanese friends even in 'broken' Japanese language just to practice the tongue in uttering words. SHE LEARNS THE FASTEST AMONG 4 OF US!
The band's day off is Monday. The management ask me if I can play on our day off at Celestial Bar where a Japanese lady pianist is also off on Monday. I agreed and the time of playing is night time only and during the time of the band --7:00-7:30pm (30 minutes break); 8:00-8:30 (30 minutes break) and 9:00-9:30.
There are some Monday nights that the other members are having bar hopping. They will call me and ask me to come to that bar by walking during my break time. Many times that our friend Kimiko Iwagawa are treating us to bars with karaoke. When I come, they will ask the karaoke operator to play "Wakaretemo Sukinahito" (a Japanese duet song) and me and Jane will sing it even though the characters in the karaoke are all written in Japanese. We memorize the song so the other customers thought that we can read Japanese.
After 25 minutes, I will leave them again to play for another 30 minutes at Celestial Bar. I will go back again to their bar/hotel where they are drinking during my break again. At 9:30, I will stay with them till midnight.
If they are not drinking on Monday night, I spent my break time window shopping around the hotel's perimeter, mostly in place where there are musical instruments and electronic shops to figure out how to save in buying electronics items. Toto gave us a hint for a real bargain -- when the item is the last one, the price is half.
There's one night in Celestial Bar that a Japanese guy requested me the Italian song "Volare" and put a music score at the music stand of the white Yamaha Grand Piano. I know the song by ear by about 70% and he noticed that I can't read notes very fast.
During one of our evening performance, Jane is singing a slow American song. Toto is doing steady slow beat because the song is slow. But when a beautiful and sexy Japanese lady (in shorts!) passes by near Toto, his heart beat become faster and so is his drums beating!
Jane shouted at Toto, "Hey, Toto! The song is slow. Slow down! Forget about the sexy lady."
I told this story to a Japanese guest at Breeze Bar of Palau Royal Resort 3 years ago, who is a drummer in Japan. I asked him, "Are you like Toto?"
He denied it by saying, "No, No, No, No, No, No!"
I brought a medium size chess board when I come to Japan in April 04 - September 28, 1982. It was used only thrice in 6 months. I teach the kids of Kimiko and Masato Iwagawa chess for some basic of chess but the interest of the kids (Masaki and Kikuko) are not encouraging.
Source: Chess and Music (Perfect Combination)
The Beginning of Chess in Palau
By Roberto Hernandez
April 04, 1982 --April 30, 2015
To be published as a book in the future
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