Japanese Taiko Drum Culture in Hawai' i : The Birth and Development of Hawai' i Matsuri Taiko

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Japanese Taiko Drum Culture in Hawai' i : The Birth and Development of Hawai' i Matsuri TaikoThis study reports the results of my three-year research project on wadaiko(Japanese taiko drum) culture in Hawai' i. The following are a summary of my research:1. To date, research on wadaiko ensemble drumming outside Japan has concentrated on activities on the US mainland. This study is the first to focus on wadaiko performance activities in Hawai' i. It demonstrates that characteristics of Hawai' i as being midway between the US mainland and Japan and as having unique musical cultures are revealed in Hawai' i wadaiko culture.2. As part of my research project, I have converted 200 videotapes covering performances of Hawai' i Matsuri Taiko and other wadaiko groups in Hawai' i, their interaction with Japanese and mainland US groups, and taiko workshops, into DVD format, and made an inventory of them. This serves as valuable documentation on the birth of taiko performing groups in Hawai' i and their development up to the present through technical interactions with Japanese and mainland groups.3. I have also recorded the Hawai' i performers' repertoire, detailing their characteristics, their collaborative activities with other individual and group performers, and their compositional methods. The groups in Hawai' i have their own compositions in addition to the repertoire shared with Japanese and US mainland groups. While the creation of new pieces is based on their own unique ideas, the compositions use rhythms and techniques which cross geographical boundaries and musical genres, and yet also maintain common expressions of wadaiko ensembles. This suggests the possibilities of wadaiko as an expressive medium.