5 things to do at Yamaha Ginza

Upon entering the building, you’ll spot the cutting-edge piano, named Key Between People, which was designed to break the barrier between the audience and performers via circular benches surrounding the  instrument itself. Everyone is allowed to play the piano – no prior reservations needed – and your performance will even be projected onto a massive screen right in front of you through a camera trained on the keys.

Feel free to record yourself on your phone, or ask the staff to take some Instagram-worthy photos of your performance. If you’d prefer to listen, take a seat around the piano and enjoy a cup of steaming hot coffee from the on-site café.

Head up to the second floor to sample food and drink inspired by famous musicians, such as Chopin's favourite tarte flambee (¥1,000) or the Dummy Daisy mocktail (¥950), a combination of homemade lingonberry syrup and alcohol-free gin, inspired by Brahms’s favourite lingonberry jam.

The highlight of Notes by Yamaha, however, is the small stage equipped with a piano, bass and drum set, where live performances are reproduced virtually via Yamaha’s Real Sound Viewing system. Every 30 minutes (Sat, Sun & hols every hour after 2pm) you can enjoy a live performance reproduced by the instruments themselves, which are synchronised to videos of the actual performers. Even with no musicians on stage, it still feels like a real concert – you’ll find yourself applauding at the end of the show. 

The Yamaha Hall occupies floors seven to nine of the Yamaha Ginza building and has space for an audience of 333 people. The concert hall is entirely made from wood and each part uses a material representing a classical instrument. For example, the side walls are covered with Sapele mahogany, which is used in pianos.

You’ll need to book a ticket for a concert here to have a chance to appreciate the acoustics. Thanks to the high ceiling, sound travels easily and, through rich reverberation, even music played pianissimo (that’s very softly) can be heard clearly. Performers are always impressed by the way the wooden interior harmonises with their instruments. 

Yamaha Ginza is not only fun to explore from the inside, but its exterior is also worth a look. Its shimmering glass façade is made from glass panels which have been infused with gold leaf dust by craftsmen from Kanazawa, Ishikawa prefecture.

For the best shots, head across the street to see the building in all its glory. Its appearance changes throughout the day based on the sun and surrounding lights, so it’s even Instagrammable during evening hours, when the street lights are reflected in the golden glass tiles.

If you’re visiting for a concert in the Yamaha Hall, you can get a closer look of the exterior from the hall’s lobby on the seventh floor. Admire the detailed patterns in the different shades of gold, each designed to symbolise waves of sound and changing rhythms.

Before leaving Yamaha Ginza, make sure to pick up a dorayaki at the Café Lounge Notes by Yamaha. The traditional Japanese treat comes in three flavours – red bean paste and candied chestnuts, white bean paste and matcha cream, and strawberry bean paste and butter cream – sandwiched between two pancakes (¥330 each).

The snacks are embossed with Yamaha’s distinct tuning fork logo, and the package features an image of a gong, called dora in Japanese. You should get one of each flavour to increase your chance of getting your hands on the café’s special dorayaki that’s embossed with a brand new image instead of the Yamaha logo. The special dorayaki goes on sale from mid-April. You can also get the dorayaki to-go – they make for a great edible souvenir.