Taiko Drumming

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• Taiko literally means 'fat drum' in Japanese.

• Taiko drumming has been part of Japanese culture for many centuries.

• Its roots lie in the countless temples and shrines scattered all over Japan where they are played in religious festivals and ceremonies.

• It is said that the furthest point at which the village Taiko could be heard marked the edge of the village.

• Taiko also found a home in warfare, making sounds big enough to scare the enemy.

• But it is only in the last forty years that Taiko has become a performance art in itself. Groups like Ondekoza and Kodo regularly bring Taiko to a global audience

World's biggest drum O' Daiko

• The ōdaiko is the largest drum in all of taiko if

not the entire world.

• The largest ōdaiko are too big to move and

permanently reside inside a temple or shrine.

• It is made from a 4 ton block of wood

weighing over 9 feet in diameter! It took 12

people over a year to make it.

• Made from a single piece of wood, some

ōdaiko come from trees that are hundreds of

years old.

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