Kiyoshi Nagata Ensemble
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Japanese Taiko Drumming

Taiko (a word that in Japanese means simply “big or fat drum”) is a musical form firmly associated with Japanese cultural heritage; for some it is considered the heartbeat of Japan.   Its origins are uncertain but it is known that it dates back as far 600 A.D. and was originally brought to Japan with the introduction of Buddhism.   In Japan the taiko drums have been used in a variety of settings: agrarian, sacred, military, theater, and the royal court. During the 1970s, taiko drumming saw a resurgence as the Japanese government allocated funds to preserve Japanese culture.   Although taiko had been brought to North America by Japanese immigrants in the early 1900s, its growth in popularity was spearheaded in the early 1960s and 1970s primarily by master taikoists in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. Today it is estimated there are as many as 8000 taiko groups in Japan, 1000 groups in North America, and hundreds more around the world. Weeklong festivals attract thousands, it is taught in taiko schools and university programs, and there is even a video game—Taiko Drum Master.  

              Taiko is usually performed today as an ensemble, including an array of shapes and sizes of drums. Gongs of various size and shape add musical depth, a bamboo flute occasionally offers a melody, and vocals provide additional punctuation and texture. Typically each performer carries a particular rhythm on one or more drums; together the musicians rotate around the drums in very athletic, highly choreographed arrangements. It is no wonder that many contemporary taiko performers are also dancers and athletes. While taiko in North America has become a rich and varied form of drumming, as idiomatic as jazz or American Indian forms, it nonetheless continues to be an important component of Japanese identity and culture.

              At the 2005 Great Lakes Folk Festival the Kiyoshi Nagata Ensemble will include Kiyoshi Nagata, Scott Kusano, Heidi Chan, Eddie Kishibe, and Aki Takahashi.   Kiyoshi Nagata (taiko, shinobue and shakuhachi), the ensemble's artistic director, is Canada's pre-eminent taiko soloist who has been performing in a career that spans over two decades. His principal studies were with taikoists Daihachi Oguchi and Kodo and classical percussionist Paul Houle of the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Since 1998 Nagata has taught taiko at the University of Toronto, at the World Music Centre in Toronto, and for two community groups he helped establish. He has composed and performed taiko music for dance, theatre, film and radio and continues to collaborate with artists from all genres of music including traditional Japanese instrumentalists.

              Scott Kokichi Kusano (taiko, shinobue and shakuhachi) first began playing taiko as a child with the Suwa Daiko drum group in Toronto. He currently teaches a children's taiko class at the Toronto Buddhist Church.

              Heidi Chan (taiko and shinobue) is a versatile musician who originally studied taiko for two years as a member of the Isshin Daiko drum group and has since studied various styles of percussion, including jazz and West African drumming. She is currently earning her second degree in York University's Music Program, with a focus on percussion and digital composition.

              Aki Takahashi (taiko, shamisen and voice) was born in a small fishing village on Shodoshima, a small island in the Inland Sea of Japan. As a young girl, she had weekly piano lessons and developed a secret passion to become a musician thanks to her grandmother who was always singing folksongs. In Kyoto she studied the three-stringed Tsugaru shamisen and traditional singing. Since moving to Canada three years ago, she has continued to share her music with audiences in a wide variety of venues ranging from street performing to festivals and concerts.

              Eddie Yuji Kishibe (taiko) was first introduced to taiko through lessons at the Toronto Buddhist Church in 1995. He later undertook private studies with Kiyoshi Nagata in 2001. In 2000 Eddie lived and studied in Japan on a scholarship, at Osaka University of Economics and Law, in an exchange program and is currently earning his degree in Japanese studies at the University of Toronto.

Links

http://mgam.com/artists/nagata / biography.html

http://www.kiyoshinagata.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiko

http://www.taiko-center.co.jp/english/history_of_taiko.html

http://www.fromartz.com/Pages/taiko1.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Japan#Taiko

http://www.stanford.edu/group/StanfordTaiko/history.html

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