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Contents 1 The Early History of Taiko 2 Modern Taiko 3 The Instruments of Taiko 4 Elements of Basic Taiko Rhythms 4.1 Bibliography

[edit] The Early History of Taiko

The Japanese stylized drumming called Taiko has captivated the audience all over the world. Taiko has also begun to set roots throughout the United States too; in college campus clubs, and other forms of training facilities across the nation. Each of the developed forms of Taiko came from a very rich and deeply rooted history of the music style’s origin in Japan. Some even dates back thousands of years. Even with the staunch similarities that the Taiko drums share with their Chinese and Korean counterparts, the Japanese style of drumming has certainly evolved into a class all of their own.

The story of the early beginnings of Taiko is one that is shrouded in mystery. What is known is that some of the earliest recorded uses of the Taiko drums were on the battlefields of ancient Japan during the period of Warring States. These massively sized drums served many purposes to the Japanese fighting on the battlefield. Firstly, the drums were massive in size and could sound a loud boom that could echo across every expanse of the battlefield. This would scare the opposing side’s soldiers providing a very useful advantage. However, along with the moralizing effects of the drums, the fact that they had such and ability to cover long distances with their rolling sounds, many army generals used the drums to aid in commanding their men over wide open battlefields. An example of a typical battlefield style Taiko drum would be a large drum that was more than likely carved from a single log, with several precisely drilled holes along the sides of the drum to maximize the thunderous sounds they produce.

Along with the martial use of the Taiko drums, they also held a strong foundation in the court style music called Gagaku. You would expect to find this style of music held in the castles and shrines across ancient Japan. Gagaku alone is one of the oldest styles of court music that is still being played in the world today.

As the use of the Taiko drums began to expand in popularity across Japan, they also found a place within the two major religions of Japan: Shinto and Buddhism. Soon the Taiko drums were commonly used in villages to signal the residence of the danger of oncoming storms, or when the beginning of a new harvest was to start. The long the use of the drums persisted in the villages did they soon believe that the drums were inhabited by a god. So with the religious framework being built around the drums, it wasn’t soon afterwards that only holy men were allowed to play the drums. Many of the drums that were used for their ceremonies and rites are still inside of the shrines and temples to this day. In fact, the drums were so large that many of the temples have been modeled around the drums so there’s no real way to get them out of them temples without tearing them down. It was in the depths of the religious practices of the Taiko that the modern framework was built around the rhythms provided by the various rites and ceremonies. An example of that would be the Buddhist summer Bon dance which happens to feature a performance from the Taiko drums.

[edit] Modern Taiko

Modern Taiko is recognized as being established until the 1960’s, by Daihachi Oguchi. He is accredited for being the first actual Taiko ensemble referred to as kumi-daiko, and the very beginning of the modern Taiko boom. Daihachi Oguchi was originally known for his jazz drumming performances. As the story goes, he was going to play a drumming piece for one of the local shrines and decided to add somewhat of a jazz style flare to the piece. Coming from a jazz background, Daihachi Oguchi speculated why the Taiko drums had never previously been played as an ensemble before. From this simple idea Daihachi Oguchi put together various Taiko of all different shapes, sizes, and pitches to be included in his ensemble. The drums were also arranged in the same type of manner that a jazz drum set would be expected to look like. Since an actual Taiko ensemble had never really performed together and the people he had playing with him were in no way professional musicians, he based the rhythms of their performance on the simplistic arrangement of the shrine music that had been previously played; which allowed for nearly any person with the interest in Taiko could play along. It was from the foundation of the first Taiko ensemble that Daihachi Oguchi continued on to lead the successful Taiko group named Osuwa Daiko.

Around the same time as Daihachi Oguchi’s Taiko ensemble was beginning to take off, another pioneer in the field emerged. Sukeroku Daiko essentially set the original performing standards of many of the Taiko groups today. His performances consisted of speed, fluidity, and power. They also brought flashy choreography and solos too. Despite the group’s eventual break up, one it’s members, Seido Kobayashi, went on to form the group Oedo Sukeroku Daiko; which is credited for being the very first professional Taiko group.

Another Taiko ensemble that set the framework for one of the most popular groups began on Sado Island. The group Tagayasu Den was founded in 1969 by a man named Za Ondekoza. He set out to make Taiko more than just entertainment but a way of life. He collected a group of youths from rural areas across Japan so that they would be uninfluenced by the big city way of life. With this mindset, the students practiced a very rigorous training regime that typically consisted of marathon running and communal living. It was from these initial students that they went on to form the Taiko ensemble Kodo, after splitting off from Za.

Kodo has gone on to be one of the worlds most popular and recognized performance ensembles. The group consists of about twenty members who tour all over the world. They typically spend about a third of their year at their headquarters in Sado Island. The other two thirds of their year are spent touring the rest of Japan and the world. Since 1988, the group has also hosted the Earth Celebration International Music Festival, which brings music enthusiasts from all over the world to their headquarters.

[edit] The Instruments of Taiko

Taiko ensembles are groups that are nearly completely drum instruments, with a couple of exceptions. Each from the drums plays a very specific role to the overall aspect of the ensemble. Of the many different styles and shapes of Taiko drums, the most common drum found in an ensemble would likely be the nagado-daiko. The nagado-daiko is an elongated drum that can be shifted in many different ways that affect the sound of the instrument. The drum can also be played by more than one performer at the same time. This style of drum also signifies the family of drums that are made from a single piece of wood. Another popular drum that fits into the nagado-daiko family is the chu-daiko. The chu-daiko is a medium sized drum.

Among some of the smaller drums in the Taiko world are the tsuzumi. The tsuzumi are a smaller, hourglass shaped drum. Two popular drums that fall into this category are the ikko and the slightly larger sanko. Both originated from the traditional Japanese theater. They are also eloquently decorated with a drum head on either side that are supported and tuned by tension cords.

One of the most defining drums of any Taiko ensemble would be that of the O-daiko. The O-daiko is the biggest drum in all of Taiko if not the entire world. The “o” in the name signifies the shape of the character of the drum as being big, fat and round. Some of the drums are so large that they cannot even be moved so they’ve taken up residence inside of a temple or shrine. It also comes from the nagado-daiko family of drums made from a single piece of wood, meaning than some of the O-daiko can come from trees that are hundreds of years old, the drums alone could even be thousands.

Not all of the drums in Taiko come from a single piece of wood. The materials to make such drums can be overly expensive or hard to find all together. So many Taiko players have created drums out of barrels or a variety of other cylindrical objects. The practice of making Taiko drums from barrels is especially more wide spread in North America, where Taiko is increasing in popularity. Most of the barrel made drums comes from one of you categories: oke and taru.

Oke is used to describe the typical Japanese barrel drum. The drum is constructed from narrow staves and has roughly a cylindrical shape. The taru, on the other hand, has a slightly different shape that the oke. It has a more tapered body, and is constructed with much wider staves than the oke. They come typically from wine and whiskey barrels.

Drums are not the only instruments played in the ensemble. They also incorporate a wide variety of other Japanese instruments to their ensembles. Common string instruments found with many different Taiko groups would be the biwa, koto, and the shamesen. Of the woodwinds used the bamboo flute known as the shakuhachi is a popular item.

[edit] Elements of Basic Taiko Rhythms

From the earlier years of the more simplistic Taiko rhythms, to the complex bastions of modern performance groups like kodo, a more basic look at the framework of these rhythms. The most common rhythm seen in a Taiko performance would is called ju-ichi. The ju-ichi is somewhat of a bouncing beat that is similar to what you might expect to hear from a riding jazz symbol. Another rhythm that is typically played on top of the ju-ichi rhythm is o-uchi. The o-uchi is essentially the phrasing of the combinations of rhythms, like the ju-ichi for instance. This phrasing is considered to be more natural when counted in eight beats than the traditional four that we’re used to. This also allows the Taiko players to syncopate their sticking to do more interesting things within these rhythms as well.

The last element of many Taiko performances is the kakegoe. The kakegoe is simply a verbal shout that takes place at a precise time during the performance. In the martial arts realm, they use a similar style shout called a ki-ai. However, there is a great difference between the kakegoe and the ki-ai. The ki-ai is more of a spontaneous action, where the kakegoe is placed in a specific place and time. It is typically used to mark a change in the beat or tempo, and can be used for a variety of other transitions. Another common placement of the kakegoe is the call and response method that is used in countless other music and cultures.

Even from its early beginnings on the battlefields of Japan, Taiko has always been a powerful dynamic of the Japanese culture. Now that Taiko has made it across the oceans to places all over the world, audiences can see the dedication and depth the performers provide on the stage.

[edit] Bibliography

Varian, Heidi Title The way of taiko / Heidi Varian ; foreword by Seiichi Tanaka ; with a taiko glossary by David Leong Publisher Berkeley, Calif. : Stone Bridge Press, c2005

Martial artistry. By: Di Menna, Jodi. Canadian Geographic, Jan2006, Vol. 126 Issue 1, p92-93, 2p, 1c; (AN 19475626)

A Heartbeat of Rumbling Thunder. By: Oestreich, James R.. New York Times, 3/2/2003, Vol. 152 Issue 52410, p36, 0p, 1bw; (AN 9263158

“The Thundering World of the Taiko” Takeshi Takata Editor in Chief, Taikology Magazine 1998

“Anything But Quiet” Samuel Fromartz Natural History, March 1998

http://www.taiko.com/taiko_resource/history.html#research