Taiko

Taiko (太鼓) is Japanese for large drum and is a centerpiece in the performance art of Japanese drumming. The style played, today, is called kumidaiko, a style of ensemble taiko performance. What is seen in Taiko performances is a combination of movement and sound, and each group has their own uniqueness. Ho Etsu Taiko focuses on bringing a high youthful energy everytime we hit the stage.

History

The exact early history of taiko performance is unknown; there have been reports that taiko was used in times of battle and in Japanese Imperial court music (gagaku).

Modern day taiko performance, however, is attributed to Daihachi Oguchi, a jazz drummer, who created kumidaiko in 1951. Oguchi used different drums varing in pitch and size to create musical compositions that added flair to traditional taiko music. Oguchi assisted in the creation of several taiko groups throughout Japan and the world and essentially created a new performance art. Other groups began to form and add their own personal style, flair and touch to this new style of playing taiko pioneered by Oguchi. Taiko has become popular throughout the world with such groups as Kodo and Za Ondekoza, both originating on the Sado Island in Japan.

Although the taiko itself was previously introduced in North America during the time many Japanese started to immigrate to the United States, the new modern or kumidaiko style of playing the taiko was introduced by Seiichi Tanaka who formed the San Francisco Taiko Dojo – the first taiko group in North America. Shortly thereafter many other groups began to form in the US and Canada, including Kinnara Taiko from Los Angeles, which first introduced taiko to the Midwest Buddhist Temple, and the world renowned San Jose Taiko group.

These groups along with others became the “pioneers” of the North American Taiko movement, showing a new sense of style and innovation to the wide spread audiences. Today, there are hundreds of Taiko groups around the world, all continuing this traditional art form and further evolving the dynamic into the next generation.

The Art of the Taiko

There are many types of taiko in various shapes and sizes that produce many different sounds. All of the sounds come together to form an amazing and exciting taiko piece.

Different instruments include:

Odaiko (大太鼓)
Chu-daiko
Shime-daiko
Okedo-daiko

and various Narimono (accessories) such as:

Choppa
Atarigane
Uchiwa-daiko

The primary components of a typical drum are the ko (body), kawa (skin), byo (tacks holding the skin onto the drum) and the hara (center of the skin). The players use bachi (a wooden stick varying in length and diameter) which is used to strike the taiko to produce an array of sounds.

For more information check out the following resources:

Taiko at wikipedia.org (English)

Taiko at ja.wikipedia.org (Japanese)

Information on taiko at taiko.com