About Us
What is Taiko?
Taiko began as a Japanese artform used mostly for religious, spiritual or territorial purposes. Through a relatively recent evolution, a style called Kumidaiko (group taiko) came about in Japan. Pioneered by a man named Daihachi Oguchi, Kumidaiko evolved from influences in both taiko and jazz. Now taiko has spread over large regions in North America and has even become part of many students' college experiences. Taiko can mean many things to each different person who plays it. For some, taiko is an embodiment of Japanese-American culture; something to help people find their place in a community. For others taiko is a free form expression of music and drumming to which they devote their creative outlet. Keep in mind that taiko is something not limited to any person or any definition and that it is an expression of one's inner spirit that is passed to an audience through the drum. We all play with many causes, however the one effect we want to have is for those who listen to understand why we play through our music.
Feel free to offer suggestions and ammendments to this definition. It is only one person's opinion at this time. In the future there may be a wiki style "add your own definition" of taiko.
What is Collegiate Taiko?
As taiko in North America began to spread, many collegiate groups began so sprout up across the United States. Some of the larger and older California collegiate teams are associated with the universities of Stanford, UCLA and Irvine. Often times collegiate players begin taiko with little to no experience and through an average of about three to four years, become performing members as well as the people who help shape the direction of the group and collegiate taiko as a whole. So what is collegiate taiko then? It is whatever the person and group makes it to be. Just as taiko has many definitions, collegiate taiko holds a multitude as well. Every player has their own definition and reason when they start playing and it evolves over their short tenure within the groups. In fact it is these collections of dreams and ideals what spawned both the annual Invitational gathering and the ITC council itself and it is these collections of dreams that help make up the future of North American Taiko as well.
What is the Intercollegiate Taiko Council?
Inspired by the want to form a more solidified connection between the collegaite taiko groups, Caifornia collegiate groups have held discussions at their annual Invitational about forming a taiko council. During the summer of 2007, eight schools sent representatives to a meeting in the Los Angeles and drafted the Constitution of the Intercollegiate Taiko Council. Now the council stands as a collective body of group representatives that discuss issues relating to inter-school interactions focusing around the point of the annual Invitational. The council also manages a forming archive of electronic taiko information to better help the progression of existing groups as well as a guiding hand to any group that wishes to form.