Spirit of Rice, a piece by Kenny Endo, and was originally composed for the Honolulu Festival's Omikoshi (portable shrine) which is dedicated to the spirit of rice. It was performed by his contemporary ensemble during the Ten Ten Concert at the Hawaii Theatre on October 10, 2015. This performance ...

Composed in 2001 by Chizuko Endo,Yamamba is a female mountain spirit who embodies both love and beauty but appears as a haggard demonic being. When the full moon rises and snow begins to fall, Yamamba appears. Her dance symbolizes her endless solitary journey through the mountains. She represents...

Ai Matsuda performed EDO KOTOBUKI JISHI (江戸寿獅子), the Lion Dance of Edo in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Japanese lion dance, or shishimai, is used in Japan during festivals to bring good luck, especially at the beginning of a new year. The art form has been popularized in North America in the past decade...

Uchiage
by Elias Chanteloup, Kelsey Kua, Misato Muraoka, and Tony Salatino

The name, Uchiage, comes from the term Uchiage-Hanabi (Fireworks). All of the movements are meant to mimic the explosive nature of fireworks and the unexpected nature of where the next one will appear. Uchiage also transl...

Lively, raucous, and fun, Izakaya Groove weaves together simple rhythms in complex ways, creating a whole that's more than the sum of its parts. Written in 2012 and now played by groups across the US and internationally, the song invokes the almost, but not quite, out of control atmosphere of an ...

On May 11, 1986, San Jose Taiko presented Eitetsu Hayashi for his very first tour in the United States. This monumental concert was held at the Calvin Simmons Auditorium in Oakland, California, and featured performances by Eitetsu Hayashi’s Ensemble (which included Kenny Endo), San Jose Taiko, an...

Kokyo was composed by Stuart Paton, 2006. On Ohmisoka (New Year’s Eve), families all over Japan travel to their kokyo, “old homestead,” to arrive in time to greet the new year with relatives. The piece reflects sights, sounds, and other memories from life in Japan as well as a sense of time, mete...

“Ikusa: The Battle” is an original composition by taiko artist Walter Nishinaka. Conjuring the power and strengths of the warriors during the Genpei Wari (1180-1185), calligrapher artist Kuniharu Yoshida moves with the taiko beats to paint the character for “battle”, or ikusa 戦. The Genpei War wa...

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Watch the trailer for HERbeat: Taiko Women ALL-STARS! This historic concert features an all-female ensemble of taiko performers from North America and Japan, celebrating the power and artistry of women in taiko. While we’re unable to host the ...

The 2022 Los Angeles Taiko Festival, a concert was that was held on August 26, 2022 at the Aratani Theater in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles.
The concert featured several performing groups, including the Original LA Matsuri Taiko, San Fernando Valley Mugen Taiko, Venice Koshin Taiko, El Marino Rainbow...

In Return – East Coast Taiko Conference 2024 Final Concert was held February 17, 2024 in Providence, RI. This concert, hosted by Gendo Taiko, was a celebration of the East Coast Taiko Conference's return after the pandemic. The concert included community and collegiate groups, as well as an “All-...

International Taiko Concert EXTASIA in Los Angeles, a celebration of Asano Taiko U.S.'s 10th Anniversary, held July 16, 2023 in Redondo Beach, CA. The concert featured: LATI-Gumi (from Asano Taiko U.S.), Asano Taiko U.S. Youth Groups, UnitTwo (from Asano Taiko U.S.), Soh Daiko (New York, NY), San...