[Source: taiko.org]
On Friday, March 20th, an Asian Japanese-American group named San Jose Taiko played at Juniata’s very own Halbritter Center. Originating in San Jose’s Japantown, San Jose Taiko came to rock their audience with traditional Japanese drumming and a twist of modern funk.
Taiko are Japanese percussion instruments, specifically drums. The group uses music as a form of portraying to their audience their cultural and ethnical diversity. Specifically during their performance at Juniata College, they incorporated dance choreography along with their drumming.
They began their performance with blue lights. The deep bass that was produced from the musical instruments vibrated into the bodies of their audience. Simultaneously, the performers included facial expressions from witty to serious that can be seen from the top rows of seating.
Ultimately, the pieces that San Jose Taiko performed blew me away. They were extremely moving. It is hard to believe that these instruments came to life and were able to speak to their audience. With their tour continuing around the US, I would definitely check them out if you didn’t have the chance to already!