View source for Oto-Wa Taiko

==History==

Oto-Wa Taiko was started by members of the [http://asiancanadianwiki.org/wiki/Ottawa_Japanese_Community_Cultural_Centre Ottawa Japanese Community Association] in 1989. After gathering together several interested members of the community, a group was formed that fall. For the first two years, the group didn't have any drums, and had to practice on car tires (this is quite common for beginners in Japan).

The name Oto-Wa Taiko, while phonetically reflecting its community of origin, Ottawa, uses two Japanese characters, oto and wa. Oto means sound while Wa means harmony. Taiko means drum. The character wa was chosen to symbolize the harmony among the group members as well as the harmony of spirit between the players and their drums as they make oto together.

Our repertoire has been built from a selection of pieces learned at workshops, as well as videos from Japan. We have had most of our instruction from the Montreal group [http://asiancanadianwiki.org/wiki/Arashi_Daiko Arashi Daiko] and the Toronto group [http://asiancanadianwiki.org/wiki/Yakudo Yakudo], as well as some workshops from members of other taiko groups such as Soh Daiko, from New York, and Burlington Taiko from Vermont. We also try to participate in taiko conferences in the United States and across Canada where there is a gathering of groups from all over the world. As a result, we now play in a variety of styles.

Over the years, Oto-Wa Taiko has performed many times each year in and around the Ottawa area, as well as a few occasions in other cities like Montreal, Toronto, and Winnipeg.

{{From|http://www.otowataiko.ca|http://www.otowataiko.ca}}