This year, I spent the holidays with family and friends. It turned out to be filled with reflection of the past and appreciation for the simple things we have in life. In these moments of reflection, I often refer to the impact taiko drumming has had on me since I started playing nearly nine years ago. In that time, I have taken on numerous challenges that have both stretched my limitations and grounded my spirit so that I can be a more humble individual. If someone were to ask me what I would be doing had I not been drawn to taiko, I can say with sincerity that I do not know. I do know, however, that the thought terrifies me. Without taiko drumming, much like without family, I feel incomplete.
Christmas spirit is all about the spirit of kindness and giving. It’s also about the spirit of appreciation and forgiveness. In this case, spirit is unseen. Spirit is based off of morality and emotion. The humility we all feel during this time of the year is temporary. With this said, there is a connection to taiko drumming that I have begun to realize can flow into our daily lives, encompassing the many elements of life, nature, love and humanity. I feel that taiko drumming impacts our spiritualistic realm more than we realize.
Far too often we get caught up in the material world. We tend to forget that our nature is to love and be loved by our fellow man. We utilize technology to not only connect with others, but we also use it to breed negative slander and a look into the world from a darkened perspective. This often promotes a continuous cycle of drama and an all too familiar scene that the world we live in is steeped in despair and ruin. Essentially, technology can be our downfall.
Before I started playing taiko and really taking culture seriously, I was surrounded by the wonders of technology and to this day I am still fascinated. With this said, however, I now have taken notion from the land of Japan to try and live a life connected to nature. Accomplishing a healthy balance of our world’s technology and the nature that houses it, allows for me to understand how it benefits us as a society but ensure that it does not force us to forget what this planet has been able to offer us as a species.
To me, the taiko as an object—an instrument—is alive. The body, carved from a single log, has lived a life exceeding the lives of many generations of our species. The skin has been given by a cow, which in some ways has had the biggest impact on our society. Without this animal, our way of life would be much different. The metal used to construct the drum was once formed by rocks and minerals and then refined by skilled craftsmen. Again, these elements have all come from the Earth itself. There is one more aspect, though, that cannot be left out. Air. The gas that holds so much significance in our daily lives is responsible for producing friction and sound of the taiko that we all can enjoy. When you add all of the elements that make up the taiko, it is easy to deduce that what we have come to enjoy is actually alive! Every beat is like taking a breath. Every breath fuels our innate desire to play with vigor and devotion. We smile and continue to drum with our entire being. By playing, we give life to the taiko. In turn, the taiko gives us life. It is a cycle that I have come to enjoy every time I play.
Taiko has instilled, for me, a new fundamental understanding of appreciation for the smaller things in life. A way to disconnect from the world outside and reconnect with the natural world that has harbored our way of life for so long. It allows me to step outside of myself and contrast the world in a different way of thinking. Understanding the elemental properties of the drum, the discipline of the people, and the culture of the land—I feel more than ever that I must continue to dedicate my life to a sole purpose of learning and teaching others with the ambition that they too will see things from a new and different perspective.
Creating a new way of thinking with the taiko as the catalyst has implemented me to take life as a precious gift. To live simply and peacefully. Instead of wallowing in the negativity of the world, I have to accept it for what it is, change what I can change, and spread the joys of taiko drumming to others in a hope that they will also create value in their own lives and the lives of others.
Taiko is much more than an art form. For me, it is a way of life. It is the ultimate way of connecting my passion for music, my love for culture and my hope for creating a harmonized community. In hindsight, I try not to take for granted what taiko has given me. I try to make sure that I continue to learn and grow as an artist, practitioner, and teacher so that I can respect and nurture with the purpose of preserving and cultivating taiko drumming for the future.
This holiday season, I wish you all the best. 2015 is looking to be an amazing year. I hope that each and every one of you are able to accomplish all that you set out to do. With one act, the world can change. It is a string of hope that is easily severed. I look to the future when this string is reinforced and stronger than ever so that our world can live in complete harmony. Taiko is great way to cultivate harmony between complete strangers. For this, I am eternally grateful.
Here is to peace on Earth! Happy New Years!
Jason S.
Christmas spirit is all about the spirit of kindness and giving. It’s also about the spirit of appreciation and forgiveness. In this case, spirit is unseen. Spirit is based off of morality and emotion. The humility we all feel during this time of the year is temporary. With this said, there is a connection to taiko drumming that I have begun to realize can flow into our daily lives, encompassing the many elements of life, nature, love and humanity. I feel that taiko drumming impacts our spiritualistic realm more than we realize.
Far too often we get caught up in the material world. We tend to forget that our nature is to love and be loved by our fellow man. We utilize technology to not only connect with others, but we also use it to breed negative slander and a look into the world from a darkened perspective. This often promotes a continuous cycle of drama and an all too familiar scene that the world we live in is steeped in despair and ruin. Essentially, technology can be our downfall.
Before I started playing taiko and really taking culture seriously, I was surrounded by the wonders of technology and to this day I am still fascinated. With this said, however, I now have taken notion from the land of Japan to try and live a life connected to nature. Accomplishing a healthy balance of our world’s technology and the nature that houses it, allows for me to understand how it benefits us as a society but ensure that it does not force us to forget what this planet has been able to offer us as a species.
To me, the taiko as an object—an instrument—is alive. The body, carved from a single log, has lived a life exceeding the lives of many generations of our species. The skin has been given by a cow, which in some ways has had the biggest impact on our society. Without this animal, our way of life would be much different. The metal used to construct the drum was once formed by rocks and minerals and then refined by skilled craftsmen. Again, these elements have all come from the Earth itself. There is one more aspect, though, that cannot be left out. Air. The gas that holds so much significance in our daily lives is responsible for producing friction and sound of the taiko that we all can enjoy. When you add all of the elements that make up the taiko, it is easy to deduce that what we have come to enjoy is actually alive! Every beat is like taking a breath. Every breath fuels our innate desire to play with vigor and devotion. We smile and continue to drum with our entire being. By playing, we give life to the taiko. In turn, the taiko gives us life. It is a cycle that I have come to enjoy every time I play.
Taiko has instilled, for me, a new fundamental understanding of appreciation for the smaller things in life. A way to disconnect from the world outside and reconnect with the natural world that has harbored our way of life for so long. It allows me to step outside of myself and contrast the world in a different way of thinking. Understanding the elemental properties of the drum, the discipline of the people, and the culture of the land—I feel more than ever that I must continue to dedicate my life to a sole purpose of learning and teaching others with the ambition that they too will see things from a new and different perspective.
Creating a new way of thinking with the taiko as the catalyst has implemented me to take life as a precious gift. To live simply and peacefully. Instead of wallowing in the negativity of the world, I have to accept it for what it is, change what I can change, and spread the joys of taiko drumming to others in a hope that they will also create value in their own lives and the lives of others.
Taiko is much more than an art form. For me, it is a way of life. It is the ultimate way of connecting my passion for music, my love for culture and my hope for creating a harmonized community. In hindsight, I try not to take for granted what taiko has given me. I try to make sure that I continue to learn and grow as an artist, practitioner, and teacher so that I can respect and nurture with the purpose of preserving and cultivating taiko drumming for the future.
This holiday season, I wish you all the best. 2015 is looking to be an amazing year. I hope that each and every one of you are able to accomplish all that you set out to do. With one act, the world can change. It is a string of hope that is easily severed. I look to the future when this string is reinforced and stronger than ever so that our world can live in complete harmony. Taiko is great way to cultivate harmony between complete strangers. For this, I am eternally grateful.
Here is to peace on Earth! Happy New Years!
Jason S.