Abstract
The Amami islands 奄美群島 in southwest Japan are known as a location that produces a distilled liquor called shōchū 焼酎 . One company, Amami Ōshima Kaiun Shuzō 奄美大島開運酒 造 , which is located in Uken Village 宇検村 to the southwest of the island of Amami Ōshima 奄美 大島 , showcases two distinct types of musicking. One is ensemble Japanese drumming (taiko 太 鼓 ) played by the company’s employees and incorporating a dynamic performance practice standing for traditional Japan; and the other is mediated Western classical music, which is played against the tanks of one of the company’s brands of shōchū labelled Rento れんと (slow) to aid the distillation process. Unlike the taiko, the classical music is not actually played for an audience per se, nor for or by the factory workers, but to the shōchū itself. Both styles of music represent contrasting musical traditions and express cultural flows in different ways, including across continents, islands, cultures, and performance contexts. This paper reflects on these musical practices, giving particular attention to the place of music in and for the factory, but with contrasting purposes, and illustrating a process of product branding through audience-less performance and community music making.