The drumsticks Sakura uses are Pearl Maple 160M model. According to his own words (if you don't believe me you can go take a look at S.O.A.P.'s site) they are very light but solid, and they have a very good grip. He also advised that drummers who want to adopt this kind of drumsticks should try their different versions (different lengths, etc.) before and find the ones best suited for them. You will see a larger pic of these drumsticks by clicking on the pic above.
These are the same kind of drumsticks he used when he was ZIGZO's drummer; and they can still be bought online from many online music stores in Japan. The rough price is around ¥ 1 200. The newer ones he's using recently have the S.O.A.P. logo on them and his signature. The ones in the picture have his signature, the ZIGZO logo & his trademark handwritten illustration on the shaft. The ones we see have white lacquer finish, but they are also available in black. (I'll scan the black ones later, sorry) These drumsticks have a round tip (drumsticks may have round, barrel, teardrop, acorn, oval, mushroom or triangular tips) and they measure 14.5×398mm. Round (or ball) tips produce a bright, clean sound.
Sakura
used to have black drumsticks when he was playing in l'arc en ciel. I have included
a little pic of Carnival of True Eve live... I know the pic isn't very high
quality and I apologize for the scruffy screen-cap, however, if you look closely
you will see Sakura's drumsticks are dark colored. A-ha... yes, they are black.
If you have carefully read the rest of the report, you can tell what the other
parts of the drumset in the picture are. And if you are a very careful person
who likes point out detail, you will also notice that this drumset is not like
the one he has nowadays. That's right! You won a cookie! O.O
I suppose the third part of this report will be about Sakura's older equipment.
Here
you can see a picture of Sakura holding those drumsticks during zigzo's last
tour. This picture comes from the official
zigzo site, and yeah... no comments about the hairstyle. >.<
You might believe that all drumsticks are alike, and there isn't much difference
among them, except for fancy stuff like color or logos... Ne... that's not true.
The two most common differences in drumsticks are size (thickness) and tip.
Size is based on a number system from one to ten. One being the biggest/thickest
(marching band sticks) and ten the smallest/thinest (timbali sticks). Size can
also vary slightly depending on the manufacturer.
Most drumstick Tips are made of wood or some kind of plastic. Wood tips have
a mellow sound on drums and cymbals. The decay of the drum or cymbal is more
pronounced. Plastic tips have a brighter sound. The attack is much louder. The
decay of the drum or cymbal is pushed to the background. Attack is the sound
of the stick hitting the drum or cymbal. Decay is the sound of the drum after
the stick strikes the drum or cymbal.
Sakura
uses maple drumsticks. That is the kind of wood the drumsticks are made of.
The most common types of wood used for drumsticks are hickory, maple and oak.
Hickory: is the most popular wood used for making drumsticks. it is denser, heavier and more rigid than maple. Hickory can also absorb a great amount of shock, which reduces hand and wrist fatigue. About 85% of all wooden drumsticks are made of hickory.
Maple: is a much lighter and less dense wood than hickory. Maple can provide
the feel of a big stick without the extra weight of a hickory stick. Maple sticks
are primarily used for light, fast playing in low volume situations. About 14%
of all wooden drumsticks are made of maple.
Oak: is the biggest, heaviest wood. It sounds very bright on the cymbals, and
is very heavy and very un-flexible. It is a very durable stick. Just a few wooden
drumsticks are made of oak.
(info on this came from http://home.iae.nl/users/nuenen/drumsticks.htm
I recommend that you visit the site if you are interested in more info about
different kinds of drumsticks.)
I would like to point out that most drummers use different types of drumsticks, according to the effect and sound they want to achieve. The ones discussed in this article are simply Sakura's signature drumsticks.
Other stuff he uses:
Brushes:
instead of a wood or plastic tip, it has lots of thin, metal threads. This produces
a very special sound on the cymbals, an it can be used 'as a brush', by brushing
it over the snare drum.
You can find tons of more comprehensive info about drumsticks and brushes at the pearl site.
Timpani Mallets: On a drum-set they can be used to play the cymbals for a special effect. If you hit a cymbal with this soft-headed stick, it doesn't produce immediate sound, the sound comes after a few moments.
I'll add pictures when I go home and scan them. ^^
So far... the second part of this report is sorta finished.
Next part is Sakura's older drumset (and no... it is not ready yet).
Otanoshimi ni!