Caldwell Fine Arts Past Performances

May 8
Wednesday 7:30 pm
$8-12; $2 student discount

Is that thunder? Witness the drama and artistry of this award-winning Asian American drumming ensemble. They weave together rhythm, melody, and humor into an exhilarating musical experience. The concerts enthrall audiences with the power of the Japanese drum, the subtlety of the violin and bamboo flute, the beauty of choreographed movement, and the laughter of storytelling. “Only a curmudgeon or a corpse could watch Portland Taiko and remain unmoved.”

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About Portland Taiko Ensemble

"Only a curmudgeon or corpse could watch Portland Taiko and remain unmoved." The Oregonian

Established in 1994, Portland Taiko Ensemble is an award-winning Asian American drumming ensemble. The performers weave rhythm, melody, humor and movement together into an exhilarating musical experience. By combining traditional and contemporary compositions and choreography, Portland Taiko Ensemble takes Asian American music into unexplored territory with its innovative and provocative creations.

The first professional taiko company in the Pacific Northwest, Portland Taiko Ensemble was honored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the American Composers Forum to represent the state of Oregon in a national music project celebrating the new millennium, entitled Continental Harmony. The culminating performance was enthusiastically received by sold-out audiences and featured on National Public Radio and Oregon Public Broadcasting. The ensemble is also widely recognized as a leading group in the North American taiko community.

Taiko, the Japanese word for drum and the name of the art form, has its roots in ancient Japanese tradition and was used in religious ceremonies, community festivals and theater. The boundaries of villages were defined by the distance from which the community taiko could be heard. American taiko was bom in the late 1960s and early 1970s in the midst of the civil rights movement and efforts to establish ethnic studies on college campuses. Taiko became a powerful symbol of voice during the struggle for redress of the Japanese American internment during World War 11. Today, the art form of taiko combines rhythm, culture, movement, and energy into a single dynamic art form.

Portland Taiko Ensemble proudly joins this continuously evolving Asian American performing art. The ensemble brings its own unique, contemporary style and innovations in taiko to over 50,000 people a year at festivals, schools, theaters, colleges, and fairs.

Performers:
Ann Ishirnaru (Co-Director)
Zack Semke (Co-Director)
Naoko Amemiya, Rachel Ebora, Teresa Enrico, Kristy Oshiro

No photography or recording of this performance is permitted.
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Portland Taiko Ensemble Concert Program

Tatsumaki "Whirlwind" By Hiroshi Tanaka, Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble
Whirling movements evoke the dynamic energy and sheer power of Nature's whirlwind forces.

Fusion By Teresa Enrico and Toshiko Tanaka
Inspired by the traditions of taiko, hip hop, and R & B, this piece blends East and West to make a uniquely Asian American creation.

Salmon Ghost Song By Zack Semke
Dedicated to the memory of Dick Semke and Ola Marsef and their Salmon Ghost Ranch.

Akatombo "Red Dragonfly" By Naoko Amemiya
Red dragonfly at sunset/ A sight I saw while held as a baby./ How long ago was it?
Picking mulberries in the forest field/ Was that an illusion?
Incorporating movement, taiko, fue, and voice, this piece is inspired by a well-loved Japanese children's song, Akatombo. "When I sing the song, I see scenes from my childhood. I am reminded of my family and my grandmother, who suggests steeping tea for the length of one song." Akatombo melody: Kosaku Yamada. Lyrics: Rofu Miki. Portland Taiko

Oyakodon-don! By Zack Semke
This piece explores the relationships and interplay between the large Shoji Odaiko (mama drum) and the small okedo-daikos and shime-daikos (children drums). Featuring free solos built on a loose framework, the work highlights the risks and rewards of improvisation.

Amaterasu "The Sun Goddess" By Ann Ishirnaru and Zack Semke
Our own irreverent version of the ancient Japanese story of the sun goddess and her mean-spirited brother, Susano. Only lively antics and animated taiko can coax Amaterasu out of her dark place. and celebrate the return of the sun!

To Fly By Am lshimaru
"A whitehorse stepped intothe courtyard where I was polishing my armor. Though the gates were locked tight, through the moon door it came - a kingly white horse. It wore a saddle and bridle with red, gold and black tassles dancing. The saddle was just my size with tigers and dragons tooled in swirls. The white horse pawed the groundfor me to go. On the hooves of its near forefoot and hindfoot was the ideograph 'to fly.' Inspired by Maxine Hong-Kingston's ground-breaking Asian American novel Woman Warrior and the legendary tales of heroic Asian women, this piece explores possibilities for voice - both the musical voices of different instruments and the oft-silenced voice of Asian Americans and their stories.

Pacific Voices By Zack Semke with Ann Ishimaru
A piece inspired by the breathy sounds of the shakuhachi flute, an instrument whose depths express both the serene and the turbulent. The introduction is based loosely on the melody Lion.

Confluence Bv Ann Ishiinaru with Zack Semke Inspired by a Native American phrase that conceives of cultures as currents in a river, this work explores contemporary sounds and rhythms (in five) through the varied tones of the Japanese taiko. Through taiko, we create a confluence of cultures to see what we may become.

Soliloquy By Rachel Ebora
With fue and shakuhachi performer George Abe's solo playing in mind, Soliloquy is based on the Okinawan pentatonic scale.

From the Village By Naoko Amemiya, Teresa Enrico, Am lshirnaru and Zack Sernke
The three-woman ensemble Hanayui hosted Portland Taiko Ensemble last November for a series of workshops at Kodo Village on Sado Island in the Sea of Japan. Moved by Hanayui's graciousness and generosity, this piece is inspired by them and their teachings. The piece includes the folk song "Machi de" as well as taiko movements derived from the traditional drumming of Hachijo Island.

Lima "Five" By Rachel Ebora
A mischievous, playful work named for the Tagalog word for "five", this piece reflects its composer's kooky sense of humor and thoughts of her homeland, the Philippines.

Taikokinesis By Teresa Enrico, Ann Ishirnaru, and Zack Semke
Inspired by the dynamic movements and energy of Oedo Sukeroku's Yodanuchi, this piece embraces the power of taiko to be a catalyst for transforming ideas into action.

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