Taiko Kai Spring Concert

Taiko Kai’s third annual Spring Concert aims to provide a cultural and educational experience for individuals of all backgrounds through musical performance. Taiko Kai at the University of Washington is a Japanese drumming club that was founded in 2013. Led by students, the club teaches individuals how to play and perform taiko (drums) and various narimono (percussion). The experienced students pass on the movement and the style that was taught to them to continue the expression of this artform in the UW area. The club has grown into a 30-member performing ensemble and is one of the only groups on campus to perform Japanese art. Because of its ever-increasing size and musical ability, Taiko Kai saw the need to put on their first spring concert in 2017. This year, Taiko Kai is continuing the tradition with the third annual Spring Concert. The main goals of our Spring Concert are not only showcasing taiko skills that members have learned this year, but also it is an opportunity for members to plan and participate in a formal performance that will share Asian cultures with UW students and the general public. With so many members, it is difficult to involve all of them without a performance of this scale, making this event a vital part of keeping members engaged with learning the artform.

The primary performers of Taiko Kai’s 2019 Spring Concert will be members of Taiko Kai. The show will feature three other Asian drumming ensembles: Dekoboko Taiko, Seattle University Hidaka Taiko, and UW’s Hanwoollim (Korean drumming). The event will be open to the UW community as well as the general public to attract a variety of audiences. The other drumming groups will not be paid, they are friends of our club and we enjoy helping and including each other in our events.

We will begin promotion at the beginning of spring quarter (4/1/19), using paperless strategies like online videos and banners as well as flyers and posters to garner attention in the UW community. We will table outside the HUB to promote our show from then until the event, selling both student and adult tickets. While we promote our show in the weeks leading up to the big day, we will be preparing goods to sell at the concert. These include Taiko Kai buttons, stickers, and t-shirts, as well as homemade treats like mochi. We will have a dress rehearsal at our venue, Kane 130, on Saturday, April 27, 2019. This will give performers a chance to be on the stage. The following day, Sunday, April 28, is our concert which will be 3:00pm to 5:00pm.

Our club will have to pay Kane Hall for the two reservations (rehearsal and performance), which will cost $2430. We are also expecting to pay ~$450 for printing costs of promotional material and audience material. The grant would be used to help us afford Kane Hall and some of the printing fees.

With your help, we would like to continue the tradition of the Taiko Kai Spring Concert in order to facilitate personal growth of members and to promote cultural diversity in the UW student body and beyond.