Come see Fort Wayne Taiko perform at the ATA Black Belt Academy Regional Taekwondo Tournament on Saturday Feb 4th at 10:30 AM.  We will be at the Grand Wayne Center Convention Hall B2C.  What could be better than the martial arts and taiko!

Have you ever wanted to get a chance to play the taiko drums? Here is an opportunity for you.  A few members of Fort Wayne Taiko will be at the Avilla Library to do a lecture/demonstration on Wednesday July20th at 6PM    Come and experience the  drums and learn some of the basic elements of taiko.

 Join FW Taiko in Kendallville this Saturday, June 18th, at 10:30 am as we perform and invite audience members to join us on-stage to play the drums and to explore stance, strike and rhythms.  Come see us at the Childrens Stage, Main St. Kendallville, IN.

 Three Rivers Festival is just around the corner and so is another opportunity to see FW Taiko up close and personal  at  1PM on  Saturday July 9th in Freimann Square.  Meet us at the corner of Main and Clinton; follow the sound of the  drums if you don’t see us.

  http://www.trfonline.org/

The artistry of Hono-O-Daiko

  Hono-O-Daiko of Japan put on an amazing performance of raw intensity, blazing speed and sheer mastery last night in Novi, MI. The four-woman group performed in conjunction with Great Lakes Taiko Center’s first anniversary celebration.

These four amazing women in their bright red gowns were nature unleased; quiet as a light rain, graceful as a gentle breeze, powerful as a thunderstorm and wild as a hurricane. No words can truly describe the experience of the vibration of the drums rumbling your entire body while the drummers are fully immersed in the union of drum and rhythm.  It was raw, intense and incredibly beautiful.  After a very powerful piece that had us on our feet in awe, Akemi Jige, founding member of Hono-O-Daiko shared “the drum gives energy back” to the performer and that exchange of energy between the living drum and the performer was evident to the audience.  Chris and I are deeply grateful that we made the trip to see them.  They have significantly changed our vision of taiko and our connection to the drum.

L.A.’s On Ensemble teaches taiko drumming workshop at FWDC

The On Ensemble. Photo by Ayumi Kameda

Fort Wayne Taiko and the Fort Wayne Dance Collective are keeping the beat alive with a workshop with the On Ensemble, an LA-based taiko performance and teaching group, Wednesday, January 5.

On Ensemble, (pronounced “Ohn”) takes the ancient instruments of taiko into new realms. Infusing the powerful rhythms of ensemble Japanese drumming with elements of hip-hop, rock and electronica, On Ensemble’s unique sound has been praised as “completely original and brilliantly conceived.” Modern Drummer magazine calls On Ensemble “an exciting taiko ensemble looking at new ways to apply traditional Japanese drums.”

Masato Baba, who was in Fort Wayne in April with TAIKOPROJECT, will be returning with On Ensemble, along with Kristofer Bergstrom, Shoji Kameda and Kelvin Underwood.

From 10 AM to 12:30 PM, particiants will explore basic slant drum form and technique with On Ensemble’s detailed exploration of the basic strike.

The afternoon workshop, from 1:30-4, will explore Bon Taiko, or Matsuri Daiko, which is one of the most fun and exciting forms of Japanese drumming. Bon Taiko Bonanza teaches an engaging solo structure including oroshi, kakegoe and the innovative “glitch ji” that can be looped repeatedly for multiple soloists.

Each workshop is $50, or participants can attend both for $90, saving 10%.

Call (260) 424-6574, or email info@fwdc.org for more information or to register today! Space is limited, so register soon!

This can be a stressful time or it can bring a cohesion to the group.  And it can be a mixture of both.  We draw on each other’s strengths and use that to our advantage.  Where one person is weaker, usually someone else can step in and take up the slack.  That is what makes a group stronger.  It is also a gift in our group that it is a collaborative effort to put this show together.  Each one of us contributes what we are comfortable with and we all take a risk to do a little something out of our comfort zone.  After all, taiko is a way of life that stretches our bodymind and helps us grow.

I hope you all come to witness our next Knock on Wood at the Fort Wayne Allen County Public Library, Main Branch Theatre, Saturday, November 20 @ 7 p.m.  It will be a great show!!!!!

The Fort Wayne Dance Collective (FWDC) is pleased to present Fort Wayne Taiko’s fourth annual Knock on Wood performance on Saturday, November 20, 2010 at 7 p.m. The performance will be held at the Allen County Pubic Library’s theatre, located at the main library at 900 Library Plaza in downtown Fort Wayne.

Knock on Wood will feature a playful collage of sound and images performed by a diverse group of local talent. The collection of songs will include traditional and contemporary taiko drumming pieces as well as original compositions featuring chants, body percussion, language and dance.

Pre-sale tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for students 12 and under. At the door, adult tickets are $15 and children tickets are $12. Call the Fort Wayne Dance Collective at 424-6574 for tickets or information.

Taiko, which means “big drum,” is a drumming and movement form based on Japanese tradition. Taiko is played on big drums, skinned both ends and placed in vertical, horizontal and diagonal positions. In taiko, the movement is as important as the rhythm–drummers play rhythms with sticks using choreographed arm movements and/or while ”dancing” from drum to drum.

Fort Wayne Taiko, the only performing taiko group in Indiana, has provided Northeast/Central Indiana with taiko performances and instruction since 2000. Fort Wayne Taiko members have studied with Japanese taiko masters in California and have brought guest taiko drummers to Fort Wayne to teach skills and repertory to local drummers. A program of the Fort Wayne Dance Collective, Fort Wayne Taiko honors the tradition of taiko as it equally strives to integrate taiko with other art forms to create experimental performance art. Weekly taiko classes are offered at the Fort Wayne Dance Collective. Children’s classes, outreach programs and performances are available upon request. For more info, go to their website, FWTaiko.org. To see several photos from recent FW Taiko shows, including Knock on Wood 2008, see below.

Fort Wayne Taiko is a program of the Fort Wayne Dance Collective, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. FWDC receives funding from Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne, the Indiana Arts Commission, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Partial funding for this event provided by the Downtown Improvement District.

3-Rivers Festival is always a fun time to perform up close and personal with our audience.  We usually save a little time for spectators to join us in making music so check us out at 1PM in Freimann Square.