San Jose Taiko has become such a staple in the community’s cultural fabric that as the group celebrates its 50th anniversary, it’s easy to take for granted the amazing performance ensemble we have right in our backyard.
The rhythmic beat of the taiko drums is a familiar sound not only at festivals in the historic Japantown district but at events at City Hall and throughout the city. Nowadays, the idea of San Jose without taiko would be like San Jose without mariachis, fruit cocktail or microchips.
Fortunately, San Jose will get a chance to show its appreciation when San Jose Taiko performs its 50th Anniversary Concert, with two shows — a matinee and an evening performance — at the majestic California Theatre downtown on Oct. 14.
The concerts will showcase new compositions and classics and include a few guest artists, all reflecting taiko’s roots in Japanese and Asian American culture. Franco Imperial, San Jose Taiko’s artistic director, said the group is “humbled and excited” to reach the milestone.
“This 50th Anniversary Concert is a testament to the dedication of our artists, staff, supporters, and the communities who have been our pillars of strength throughout the years,” he said.
San Jose Taiko traces its roots back to the early 1970s when Rev. Hiroshi Abiko of San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin turned to Roy Hirabayashi, a church youth adviser then in his early 20s, to create a youth taiko group like one he’d seen in Los Angeles. With Dean Miyakusu, Hirabayashi raised money for equipment and the group had its first performance in October 1973.
In an interview with the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress in 2017, Hirabayashi said the group’s creation also was very much tied into the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s and the search for identity that many Asian Americans were experiencing at the time.
“When I discovered the taiko, the Japanese drum, I discovered or found that this was a voice that was missing in my life, because growing up there was no musical voice for me that really connected to my heritage as a Japanese American,” said Hirabayashi, who established San Jose Taiko as a nonprofit in the early 1980s. Later that decade the group went on its first tour and started a junior taiko class.
As a performance group, San Jose Taiko evolved over the years, maintaining its traditions while introducing new compositions and exciting new collaborations with groups like the Bangerz and Abhinaya Dance Company. The group toured North America and in 1987 became one of the first American taiko ensembles to be invited to perform in Japan.
Executive Director Roy Hirabayashi and Artistic Director PJ Hirabayashi — who received the Cornerstone of the Arts Award from the city of San Jose in 2016 — retired from their leadership positions in 2011, handing over the reins to current Executive Director Wisa Uemura and Imperial, the artistic director. Of course, they have remained supporters and advocates for the organization ever since.
Tickets for the concerts can be purchased at www.taiko.org/50th for a suggested ticket price of $50 each. Visitors should note that the 2 p.m. show is “COVID-cautious,” requiring proof of vaccination and that masks be worn inside the theater.
FASHION FORWARD: The Bellarmine Mothers’ Guild Fashion Show, a tradition for nearly 70 years, is returning to the Santa Clara Convention Center on Oct. 21 after two years of holding the event on campus. Also returning to direct the show is Russ Marcel, a 1991 Bellarmine College Prep grad and a longtime drama and English teacher at the boys Jesuit school in San Jose. The luncheon and dinner shows, chaired by Jana Blastos, benefit the school’s program for tuition assistance, which is used by 27 percent of this year’s students. Get more details at www.bcp.org/fashionshow.
VISIONARY STUDENTS: The semester is well underway at San Jose State, and that has been good news for the 41 Lions Clubs in the South Bay who sort donated eyeglasses at Vista Center for the Blind every six weeks or so. At the last sorting on Sept. 30, the group got help from 51 San Jose State students, led by members of the Delta Gamma sorority and Sigma Chi fraternities. All told, more than 36,000 pairs of eyeglasses were checked out, cleaned and prepared for distribution. Lions Club member Gayle Kludt called out the work by Delta Gamma’s Mahtab Jafary and Sigma Chi’s Colin Scioscia for their organizing efforts.
The next sorting party is Nov. 4, and if you’re interested in volunteering, you can contact her at kludtgayle70@gmail.com.
MUSICAL NOTE: The season-opening Cinderella Ball on Sept. 30 was a big success for Symphony San Jose, raising nearly $70,000 for its arts education and community programs. And the theme was a perfect match for the opening “Myths, Fairytales and Legends” concert at the California Theatre. Symphony General Director Robert Massey is following that up by turning the California Theatre courtyard into a beer garden for “Bachtoberfest!” the Oct. 21-22 concerts showcasing J.S. Bach and two composers influenced by him. Prost!
