In the movies "Ghost in the Shell" and "Macross Plus" they have music
that I think might be called Japanese drum music, but I'm not sure. It
consists of no instruments except drums. While the drums are playing,
some females are singing in harmony in high pitched voices. I think
they're singing in Japanese, but that's just a guess based on the fact
that these are Japanese-made movies.

Is that music called Japanese drum music? Whether it is or not, where
can I get recommendations on what I should get? Or better yet, where
can I listen to samples? I tried searching amazon.com for japanese
drum music, but after searching around I was unable to find any cds
that had samples so that I actually know what it is that I'm buying.

It's called "Taiko". 
   
"Roughly translated, the word taiko means big drum. It is generally
used to describe a particular kind of Japanese drum that is hollowed
out from a solid piece of keyaki wood (zelkova wood) and skinned by
stretching and tacking a rawhide over each end of the body. The word
applies to other types of drums and to the art of Japanese drumming
itself. Taiko has been associated with many aspects of Japanese
culture since ancient times. It is said that taiko was used to drive
away the plague and evil spirits. In the Shinto religion, it was used
to call upon and entertain the gods, or kami, and in Japanese
Buddhism, its sound was the manifestation of the voice of the Buddha.
Both noblemen and commoners played and listened to taiko which could
be found in imperial court orchestras in Kabuki, Noh theatre, on the
battlefield, and in the rice fields. Fifth-century clay dolls holding
drums and seventh-century poems and paintings are evidence that taiko
was an integral part of the Japanese culture for the past fifteen
centuries. The taiko drum originated in China, where it still bears
the same form as in Japan, even though the music played on it is
different.
  
Although taiko is still featured in various festivals throughout
Japan, the art form in its present manifestation is a very recent
phenomenon. Modern groups have blended tradition and interpretation
with a wide array of percussion instruments, synthesizer, and rhythms
leading to a powerful, yet graceful mix of sound and motion. The
spirit of the performers, combined with the pulse of the drums, has
created a dynamic and highly visual art form that has become quite
popular in Japan and in the world."
http://www.ccet.ua.edu/nihongoweb/taiko.htm
  
  
  
The following CD's on Amazon do have samples for you to hear:
  
Drums of Tokyo -- Oedo Sukeroku Taiko
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB000005G3I%3Fv%3Dglance
  
Live at the Acropolis -- Kodo
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=ASIN%2FB0000020C5%2Fqid%3D1098612440%2Fsr%3D2-2%2Fref%3Dpd_ka_b_2_2
  
Soh Daiko Taiko Drum Ensemble -- Soh Daiko
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB0000022A5%2Fqid%3D1098612440%2Fsr%3D1-3%2Fref%3Dsr_1_3%3Fv%3Dglance%26s%3Dmusic
  
Taiko -- Ian Cleworth, Rebecca Lagos, Colin Piper, Synergy, Michael Askill 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB000003P17%2Fqid%3D1098612440%2Fsr%3D1-4%2Fref%3Dsr_1_4%3Fv%3Dglance%26s%3Dmusic
  
Live: Les Tambours De Tokyo -- Oedo Sukeroku Taiko 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB000267J4C%2Fqid%3D1098612440%2Fsr%3D1-10%2Fref%3Dsr_1_10%3Fv%3Dglance%26s%3Dmusic
  
    
The "Ghost In The Shell" Original Soundtrack (no samples):
   
Ghost In The Shell: Original Soundtrack -- Kenji Kawai 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB0000076D8%3Fv%3Dglance
  
   
  
About "Kenji Kawai" and the music used in "Ghost in The Shell": 
  
"Composer Kenji Kawai is no stranger to the world of animation. Having
previously worked on series such as Vampire Princess Miyu, Devilman,
and Patlabor, he already knows how to create just the right
atmosphere. Additionally, he and director Mamoru Oshii have worked
together on several occasions as well. So, it was no real surprise
that the two should team up once again on Ghost in the Shell.
Ghost features a quite different approach to the world of animation
and his soundtrack is actually quite a testament to the film. Whereas
it blended two schools of though to create a perfect creation, so does
the soundtrack.
Similar in many ways to Akira, Ghost in the Shell combines older
instruments with modern. The soundtrack has a heavy use of taiko drums
and gongs, but it can easily fit in ambient keyboards to create a
wonderful mix. The soundtrack also features vocals that are performed
in an older form of the Japanese language."
http://www.phantasmagoriaonline.com/reviews/music/ghostintheshellsoundtrack.htm
  
  
The music in "Ghost in the Shell" is discussed in this thread:
  
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&threadm=5a29is%24fd5%241%40opihi.aloha.com&rnum=4&prev=/groups%3Fq%3D%2522Ghost%2Bin%2Bthe%2BShell%2522%2Btaiko%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26selm%3D5a29is%2524fd5%25241%2540opihi.aloha.com%26rnum%3D4
   
   
Here you can hear the sounds of various Taiko drums and download music:
    
Taiko Resource: Music and Sounds
http://www.taiko.com/resource/musicarchive.html
  
   
You might also like the AKIRA soundtrack...
  
"Their taiko-like drumming and powerfully resonant masculine choral
musical depiction of 21st-century Neo-Tokyo fits Otomo's
technologically advanced imagery, yet ties it into a seamless Japanese
cultural gestalt stretching into the ancient past.  Dynamic percussion
and chanting are the most memorable aspects of Akira's score."
http://www.geneonanimemusic.com/products/akira.htm
   
Akira: Original Soundtrack [SOUNDTRACK] [IMPORT] -- Geinoh Yamashirogumi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB00000116S%2Fref%3Dpd_bxgy_img_2%3Fv%3Dglance%26s%3Dmusic
(you can hear samples)
  
  
  
I hope this information is useful to you.
  
Best regards,
  
Jackburton
Google Answers Researcher
  
  
  
Search terms: 
[ taiko ], [ "ghost in the machine" taiko ], [ "Kenji Kawai" taiko ]

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Clarification of Answer by jackburton-ga on 24 Oct 2004 05:57 PDT

A couple more you may like...
   
The Hunted: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack -- Kodo
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB000005D8L%3Fv%3Dglance
   
Tataku: B.O. Kodo 2 94-99 -- Kodo
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=moneysavingga-20&path=tg%2Fdetail%2F-%2FB000056T6T%2Fref%3Dpd_bxgy_text_1%3Fv%3Dglance%26s%3Dmusic%26st%3D%2A

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Request for Answer Clarification by mxnmatch-ga on 24 Oct 2004 20:04 PDT

Those examples are all drumming, but they don't have any "ambient
choral" (that's how it was referred to in the ghost in the shell
thread you pointed to). The examples of Taiko I listened to were all
drums only.

If I could find samples from Ghost in the Shell or Macross Plus then I
would point to the specific songs that I was referring to.

I've ordered soundtracks for both of those movies, so I'll add a
clarification to this question as soon as I receive them and find out
what the names of the songs are. I suppose I could also rip 10s from
the beginning of one of the songs and put it somewhere as an example.

I'll let you know as soon as I get the CDs.

Thanks for your help!

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Request for Answer Clarification by mxnmatch-ga on 07 Nov 2004 15:16 PST

Ok, I've put up short clips.

Here is a clip from Ghost in the Shell. The song is called "Making of Cyborg".

http://g42.org/temp/Ghost%20in%20the%20Shell%20-%20Making%20of%20Cyborg%20(clip).mp3

Here is a clip from Macross Plus disc 2. The song is called "A sai ën".

http://g42.org/temp/Macross Plus disc 2 - A sai en (clip).mp3

As soon as this question is closed I'm going to delete those 2 clips.
(just in case making a 10s clip still runs afoul of copyright
infringement.)

Please let me know if there is other music that I could buy which is
similar to those 2 clips.

Thanks!