Sounds of taiko recall festive spirits of their home in Fukuoka
Cultural News, January 2008
Fukuoka prefecture-born Eiji Shishido, center in the photo, is using his whistle and cymbals as a pace-setter at a practice of the Kogenkai Taiko Club in West Los Angeles. Members of this new taiko group formed within a prefectural association devote themselves to recreating the festive spirits of their native prefecture, Fukuoka. (Cultural News Photo)
By Gavin Kelley and Shige Higashi
Using his whistle and jangara (cymbals) as a pace-setter, Fukuoka prefecture-born Eiji Shishido, 54 years old, would repeatedly speed up the performance of taiko, then slow it down as if coming to a close, then push the pace again, each time getting smiles out of the members of the Kogenkai Taiko Club of the Fukuoka Kenjin Kai (The Association of People from Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan) at an automotive garage in West Los Angeles every other Saturday afternoon.
The harmony of the group can be seen in their practice. After warm-up, each member comes up with one routine exercise, then the group goes over the basics of stance and the grip of bachi sticks, then the forms of the stroke.
The members then spread themselves out in front of their taiko: real and simulated practice plastic containers and follow their instructor in his voice of “Yassa Yare Yare….” They use the double-side batting style of taiko. One side is batted as “Doro” and the other side is hit as “Kan.” Doro is the basic rhythm and Kan is the melody part. Kan stroking employs full motion of a player which would culminate in famous Abare-uchi stroke of the Kokura Gion Taiko.
Born in Kokura, Kita-Kyushu city, Fukuoka prefecture, Shishido was raised by his parents who were enthusiasts of the 400-year-old Kokura Gion Festival held in July every year. He had lived through the sounds of drums and cymbals at the summer festival. He learned the unique striking method of Kokura Gion Taiko from his neighbors and continued participating in the hometown festival every summer until his graduation from a university.
After graduation from a university, Shishido started to work at a global logistics company in Japan, was transferred to the U.S. and Europe, and assumed top management positions. So he was too busy at work and missed opportunities to play Kokura Gion Taiko until September 2005 at a Fukuoka Kenjin Kai event for seniors in Los Angeles.
In 2003, Shishido voluntarily left the worldwide transport company after near 30 years to avoid a separation from his family. He moved from Germany to Los Angeles and started to work in a local logistics company. He felt the need to spend more of his own time to fulfill his life. Shishido’s taiko debut with his son at the September 2005 event led to the formation of the Kogenkai Taiko Club within the Fukuoka Kenjin Kai in January 2006.
“Members of the Kenjin Kai are getting older, and the younger generation are no longer joining,” Shishido said. “But since the taiko club was started, a lot of young people are not only joining, but have become very active in the association.”
Despite Shishido’s high-level training skills, Kogenkai Taiko Club is not so much a training program, but a social gathering, where friends gather and play taiko under Shishido’s direction before taking a break for refreshments and going back to the drums for about another hour.
“We are not a regular taiko group that is for performance,” Shishido explained. “This is taiko from matsuri festivals in Fukuoka prefecture, so it is meant for festive occasions in Los Angeles, and the club members rather devote themselves to recreating the festive spirits of our home, Fukuoka.”
The Kogenkai Taiko Club soon became popular in the circle of people from Fukuoka, and as a result, the Fukuoka Kenjin Kai started to financially support the program by ordering top-of-the-line taiko equipment from Japan. Among the 17 members of the taiko club, there are 7 new members who have joined the Fukuoka Kenjin Kai since January 2006.
While the club’s main focus is a social one, there is no doubt that the audience reaction for the events they perform at is positive. Shishido sees this as a good sign that the group will be ready to perform at the 100th Anniversary of the Fukuoka Kenjin Kai of Southern California in September 2008.
“We are expecting more than 600 guests at the ceremony from Fukuoka and other Fukuoka Kenjin Kai from around the world,” he said. “The taiko club’s performance at this event is our top priority.”
Shishido stated that they may even venture out to the Nisei Week Parade in August 2008 to show Los Angeles a taste of authentic Kokura Gion Taiko.
For information about the Kogenkai Taiko Club, contact Eiji Shishido at (310) 971-1502 or email eshishido@live.com.
Gavin Kelley is a Los Angeles-based writer. Shige Higashi is the publisher and editor of Cultural News.