Japan drumming

Taiko is an ancient Japanese form of percussion using large drums. The drums range in size from roughly a snare drum "shime" , to drums as large as a car the "o-daiko". The most common drum size in taiko is the "chu-daiko" which is the size of a wine barrel. During the 's, Taiko drumming became a musical art form that involved a music ensemble and tightly choreographed movements.

There are Japanese percussion instruments that sound like rumbling thunder and lend themselves to powerful and dramatic stage performances, filling listeners with excitement. Wadaiko , or taiko for short, are traditional Japanese drums. They are used to perform at festivals and other events, infusing them with energy and listeners with excitement. Today, Japanese taiko performances with other instruments and spanning various genres, such as classic and jazz music, are thriving as the instrument finds fans across the world. Participants show off a spectacular wadaiko performance at the taiko festival in Saitama. A primary school student team at the taiko festival beats powerfully on a nagado-daiko.

In Japanese, taiko literally means "drum," though the term has also come to refer to the art of Japanese drumming, also known as kumi-daiko. Taiko has been a part of the Japanese culture for centuries. Centuries ago, taiko was used predominantly in the military arena. As it evolved, Japanese Buddhist and Shinto religions gradually began to take it on as a sacred instrument.

This entertainment spectacular fuses traditional Japanese drumming with futuristic projection technology. Over the years, taiko has taken on extra meaning and now also refers to various Japanese drums known collectively as wadaiko, or an ensemble drum performance, such as MANGEKYO. We are looking at a few sources that provide information about the different views on this art form. Humans have been banging on drums for thousands of years and percussion instruments are usually the earliest musical remnants of ancient civilizations.