“Workshop in Berkeley” by Yosuke Oda

Feb. 4, 2015

Hello, everyone! This is Yosuke Oda. I’m in Berkeley, California, with the “Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery” North America tour.

I was invited to lead a workshop for the members of Raijin Taiko at UC Berkeley today.

First, we all introduced ourselves and then we had time to do stretches together. Everyone shouted loudly to count “ichi, ni, san … (one, two, three…), and so did I. Then, they performed their piece Kazoku (Family) for me. They were so upbeat and their cheerful sound echoed throughout the hall. After that, I gave my own performance demo. It felt good to play taiko supported by their energy.

Just as we started to feel at ease with each other, the workshop started! The theme for this workshop was “Create your own sound.” Everyone caught on to what I taught so quickly, so we progressed at a good pace. Kate, who interpreted for me, did her best, too. Thank you, Kate!

At the end of the workshop, I asked them to play their piece Kazoku once again to show what they had learned today. They began with amazing power and volume, and the rhythm was livelier than the first time they played it. They all helped each other like a real family and it was an awesome performance.
Seeing their performance made me think how good it is to be natural. Being natural and your own sound are directly related.

At the end, we took this picture and they gave me a lot of presents, too. Thank you very much for today, Raijin Taiko! Let’s play taiko together again!