http://www.taiko.org/main.html
Taiko group from
San Jose, CA,
USA. It was founded by third-generation
Japanese-Americans (
sansei) in
1973 and is still going strong, although today's lineup has members of assorted
ethnic origin. In addition to traditional
Japanese matsuri rhythms, they also incorporate
African,
Balinese,
Latin, American
rock and
jazz beats. They have far more
female members than do most teams; the last
concert I saw had only one male
drummer involved. The women are
fiercely good at both the
physical and
musical demands of
taiko. SJ Taiko is highly recommended. They tour all over and you can get their
e-mail or
paper newsletter for free from their website.