San Diego’s Naruwan Taiko Becomes First Overseas Group to Perform at Japanese Drum Fest

Performers Naruwan Taiko of San Diego will make their international debut Saturday at the annual Earth Celebration’s Big Little Taiko Fest.

The fest, hosted by famed Japanese group Kodo on Sado Island, Japan, is focused on taiko, or Japanese drumming.

Kodo will open Big Little Taiko Fest, followed by four community taiko groups and closing with Naruwan Taiko. For a finale, all the groups will perform Kodo’s One Earth piece “Haruka” together.

The concert will be livestreamed, but due to the 16-hour time difference, watch at 6 p.m. PST Friday.

Taiko groups applied from throughout Japan to participate; Naruwan Taiko was specifically invited and is the first and only overseas group to ever participate in Big Little Taiko Fest.

Twelve members of Naruwan Taiko will travel to Japan for the fest – Diana Wu, Jimmy Nguyen, Devin Tani, Kristen Taketa, Kathy Tanaka, Elizabeth Rouse, Jessica Woods, Ruth Lucas, Lori Mullen, Melanie Uhl, Rebecca Morgan, and Kelly van den Heuvel).

They will perform Naruwan’s signature pieces “Rakurai” and “Release,” both written by founder Wu. 

“I am proud and excited for my team to experience this rare and first-time opportunity to share the Naruwan Taiko style in Japan,” Wu said. “They’ve all worked so hard to challenge themselves not just as musicians, but as group members who look after one another and share their own time to better each other and their community.”

Since the 1980s, Sado Island has been the home of Kodo Village, where Kodo maintains its headquarters, workshop, rehearsal space, recording studio, apprentice center and residential building for 60 members and apprentice. 

Naruwan Taiko’s relationship with Kodo dates back to 2009, shortly after Naruwan Taiko was founded.

Commonly in taiko studios, guest teachers and performers share their skills and experiences in master classes, and the first of these at Naruwan featured distinguished members of Kodo, Yoshikazu and Yoko Fujimoto, who visited San Diego to share voice and odaiko (giant drum) skill sets.

In 2011 Diana Wu met Kaoru Watanabe, former Kodo artistic director, who became one of Naruwan’s first teachers on taiko and fue (flute). Over the following years, many more current or former Kodo artists shared their skills with Naruwan members in classes and workshops.

Earlier this year, Kodo performed in San Diego under the auspices of the La Jolla Music Society.

“Looking back at the history we have with Kodo, I realize just how influential it has been for Naruwan’s journey as a taiko organization and for so long. Taiko has truly been a wonderful and effective tool for connecting people globally,” Wu said.