Yamaha Corp. and Yamaha Motor Host Joint Design Event

Yamaha Corporation
Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.

Yamaha Corporation (hereafter "Yamaha") and Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (hereafter "Yamaha Motor") announce that they will be holding the joint design event "Yamaha Design Exhibition 2018 – Tracks" at Roppongi Hills O-YANE PLAZA from Friday, October 12 to Sunday, October 14, 2018.

As companies that share the "Yamaha" brand, Yamaha and Yamaha Motor have collaborated on a variety of projects based on joint design themes. A notable example is the "&Y" project, where the design departments from both corporations worked together to create concept model designs. This project has delivered a series of concepts, beginning with the &Y01, an electrically power-assisted wheelchair that performs music, and continuing with the &Y02 "auditory movement experience device" which have been actively displayed at design events both within Japan and overseas.

Based on the theme of "Tracks," this third exhibition features the première of the &Y03 eMotion Tracks (hereafter "&Y03") music device made of vehicle parts, as well as a total of 11 concept models and products from Yamaha and Yamaha Motor. The exhibition will also include the first demonstration of music playing by the &Y03, player piano, and special automatated drums together with the MOTOROiD automated riding mobility system showcased at the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show.

In addition, the exhibition period starts from Friday, October 12, which coincides with the inception date for Yamaha Music. This is now being touted as a "Yamaha Day" related event to commemorate the beginning of the Yamaha brand with a range of celebrations planned from this year forward for the two companies.

• *Yamaha Motors anniversary of its establishment is July 1.

Yamaha and Yamaha Motor plan to continue with a variety of collaborative initiatives in the future.

"Track" means a "path" or a "way," and is a widely-used word in the vehicle and music worlds, such as in the terms "track race" or "soundtrack." For this exhibition, the two companies have together - by overlaying and interweaving representations of both the path taken by a vehicle and a musical score - reconceptualized "Tracks" to express the "ideal time and setting" that the two companies jointly envisage.

This is the third creation of the "&Y" project, which develops works embodying the unique style of Yamaha shared by the two companies, through delving into the possibilities of fusing musical instruments and audio equipment designs with motorcycles and other mobility designs.

The &Y03 is a music device made of vehicle parts also created based on the concept of connecting with the entire venue space surrounding it. It evokes the enjoyment of operating devices together with friends while sharing time and space with them, a spirit inherent in the culture of both companies, and expressed through jam sessions and group motorcycle touring etc.

Left: The &Y01, an electrically power-assisted wheelchair that performs music.
Right: The &Y02, an auditory movement experience device.