2025.03.06
Hamamatsu U-18 Rock Festival, “Tonosama, Tone on Summer”
This event was the first ever rock festival for high school students in Hamamatsu, hosted by Creative City Promotion Council and the city government as co-host, aiming to promote the city’s music culture. The festival was originally scheduled as an open air event on September 2024 at the Aoi Square, Hamamatsu Castle Park. However, due to poor weather conditions, organizers had to reschedule the event for another day at an indoor music venue.
Nonetheless, the high school students put on electrifying performances that seemed to dispel any previous disappointment of the changed venue, energizing the crowd with their passion and skill. The event welcomed twelve bands and a several soloists to the stage, serenading the audience with their youthful vitality from the afternoon well into night.
The young audience, consisting of students from all over Hamamatsu, looked content and felt a new connection to the performers who had done their best to deliver their original sound. It was an invaluable opportunity to show off the results of their hard work in front of an audience of their peers. I’m sure it will be an experience that they will never forget.
▲Performance at a live music venue
In preparation for the event, students from each high school had been getting together since May 2024 to work on planning and management. They all have been exploring ways to host a better and more exciting event. The executive committee included members from 11 local high schools (OISCA Hamamatsu International, Clark Memorial International, Seirei Christopher, Daiichi Gakuin, Hamamatsu Kaiseikan, Hamamatsu Gakugei, Hamamatsu Kita, Hamamatsu Technical, Hamamatsu Shugakusha, Hamamatsu Johoku Technical, and Hamamatsu Seisei). Each school shared responsibilities such as sound, design, and promotion, and carried out their roles responsibly.
▲The Executive Committee’s planning and management meetings
Before the event, some committee members said, “Hamamatsu is famous for being a city of music, but there are few events that focus on genres outside of classical music” “We will make it a success and hold a second and third concert in the future.” Unfortunately, the event could not be held outdoors as was originally envisioned, but it will be a landmark for the future as the first step of a music event involving the younger generation.
The committee members holding the event posters
One of the objectives of the Tonosama music event was to nurture the talents of the younger generation. In order to further increase Hamamatsu’s presence as a city of music, we will need to get the younger generation involved and the next generation too. Their contributions are also necessary to generate vitality in the region. It is hoped that efforts linking young people and music will promote inheriting and developing the music-related culture that Hamamatsu City has historically cultivated.
