On Saturday Feb. 18 the Kaminari Taiko of Houston Texas came to the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center as a part of the Tarleton State University Percussion Festival and Concert.

According to ilovetaiko.org, “‘Taiko’ is a Japanese word for drum. It can also refer to the modern style of kumi-daiko, in which multiple performers play different varieties of drums in an ensemble,” and that  “Samurai warriors also used taiko on the battlefield to signal commands and frighten their enemies. Townspeople warned of danger by beating on taiko, and priests used taiko at religious ceremonies to communicate with the gods.”

The stage was set with different drums of various shapes and sounds. The group came on to play “Hiryu Sandangaeshi” which is a song written by Grand Master Daihachi Oguchi. I thought this song was cool because of the energy that the band brought to the stage.

The next song played was “Fuujin” which was written by Kaminari Taiko. The band explained that “Fuujin” is the Japanese god of wind and that it was a tribute to him. I liked this one, because once again, the band brought a strong presence to the stage with their drumming.

Next was “Yoshin,” which like the past two songs, was written by Kaminari Taiko. Before this song started, one of the band members explained the history of taiko and how in one town in Japan the townspeople would have a festival that incorporated taiko. She went on to say that the drums would be played in a river on a boat and the drummers would have to sit in a “half-sit up position” while playing. I liked this song, because it showed the amount of strength that the drummers had when they were required to sit like that while playing.

The last song that the band played was called “Tsunami” by Grand Master Selichi Tanaka. A band member explained that the song was written as a tribute to the tsunami victims from Japan, and how tsunamis are a big part of Japan’s history. The band broke out their biggest drum for this song and one member played a conch shell, which was the only non-drum instrument that they played. This was my favorite song they played because it had a very cool sound that made me visualize a tsunami.

When going into the show, I did not know what to expect, but Kaminari Taiko was a very cool show. From the history of the music, to the reason why they played it, to the energy that the band brought to the stage, I as well as the crowd loved it. I would definitely see them again.