Kodo is a troupe of musicians who, for the most part, pound on an array of drums.

That brief description, while true, doesn’t begin to describe the spellbinding experience of Kodo’s performance at the Peace Center Saturday night.

What proved particularly stunning was the remarkable precision and discipline exhibited by this 13-member Japanese ensemble, which has been performing in major venues worldwide now for 32 years.

The musicians, clad (or, sometimes, barely clad) in traditional Japanese attire, performed long pieces with a seemingly infinite variety of rhythmic patterns, all carefully memorized and rendered with consummate accuracy.

The show featured considerable choreographed movement as well. The drummers swung their arms and moved from instrument to instrument with athletic grace and agility. Each face was a mask of utmost concentration.

The performance also included some singing, and folk songs played on Japanese flutes, but the drum-beating — on instruments ranging in size from small to very large — was the centerpiece of the show called “Legend.”

Clearly, what Kodo aimed for — and achieved — was a hypnotic atmosphere. The music had a transporting effect. Drums are, after all, humankind’s first musical instrument. Perhaps the driving rhythms evoked, in some minds, an ancient landscape. The simple tunes played by the four flutists on a pentatonic scale, meanwhile, conjured an Asian Arcadia.

Granted, the show was not for everyone’s taste. It most likely left some mystified, perhaps even annoyed. I overheard comments to the effect that the show seemed repetitive.

To each his or her own.

I thought Kodo’s performance a marvelous display of artistry and athleticism.

It was great also to see a diverse audience at the Peace Center, with many young people in attendance, thanks to the Place for Everyone series, which offers tickets at half the usual prices.