Taiko Jam 2019

San Francisco Taiko Dojo (San Francisco, CA)

San Francisco Taiko Dojo was founded in 1968 by Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka, who is considered the father of modern taiko in North America. In the school’s history, over 15,000 men, women, and children from all walks of life have studied under Tanaka Sensei. These students have gone on to establish over 250 other taiko groups throughout the United States and Canada, and further around the world. Tanaka Sensei and San Francisco Taiko Dojo have collaborated with a number of renowned artists, including Art Blakey, Tito Puente, Tony Bennett, and Dave Brubeck. They have also been featured in the movie soundtracks for Apocalypse Now, The Right Stuff, Return of the Jedi and Rising Sun. San Francisco Taiko Dojo currently offers classes for students of all levels and ages in San Francisco’s Japan Town and in their South San Francisco Dojo.

Kinnara Taiko (Los Angeles, CA)

Kinnara Taiko is a Japanese American drumming ensemble based at Senshin Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles, California. They began playing taiko in 1969 when a few third-generation Japanese Americans gathered after an Obon festival and had an impromptu session on their odaiko, big drum. Kinnara Taiko takes its name from the celestial musicians of Buddhism. As a Buddhist group, emphasis is placed on participation, self-awareness and discovering the joy in “just” playing. Kinnara is based in the tradition of Japanese and Japanese American festival drumming, which blends traditional Japanese rhythms with American musical influences from rock to jazz to reflect the experience and lifestyles of its members. For 50 years, Kinnara has shared their distinct philosophy of Japanese American Buddhist Taiko with generosity and humility, spreading their contagious spirit of taiko joy.

Kenny Endo and Taiko Center of the Pacific (Honolulu, HI)

A leading persona in the music world, Kenny Endo is at the vanguard of the taiko genre, continuing to carve new territory in Japanese drumming. Originally trained as a jazz musician in the Asian American cultural renaissance of 1970s California, Endo began his taiko career first with L.A.’s groundbreaking Kinnara Taiko, then with the renowned San Francisco Taiko Dojo. A performer, composer, and teacher of taiko, he has received numerous awards and accolades, including recognition in Japan as the first foreigner to be honored with a natori, a stage name and master's license, in Japanese classical drumming. In 1994 Kenny and Chizuko Endo established the Taiko Center of the Pacific, a school of traditional and contemporary Japanese drumming to preserve traditional Japanese drumming and to create new music for taiko.

Chieko Kojima (Sado, Japan)

Chieko Kojima first encountered Japanese folk dance when she joined Sado no Kuni Ondekoza on Sado Island in 1976. In 1981 she was a founding member of Kodo and recognized in 2012 as a Kodo Distinguished Member. Chieko is a founding member of female song-and-dance trio Hanayui. Initially recognized for her original dance contributions to Kodo's taiko-based performances, she has developed an active solo career with global impact, seeking new encounters and collaborations with artists and taiko groups within Japan and throughout the world. She has collaborated with taiko groups in Japan, North America, Europe and Australia and toured Europe as Cultural Envoy from Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. This year TCA is honored to have Chieko as the 2019 Summer Intensive Instructor, teaching her distinctive Hana Hachijo style.