Drumming to different beats

Not satisfied with just rattling away at a drum, the Taiko Project brings new meaning to the word rhythm.

It isn’t just the beats they create that bring style to the Japanese drumming performing arts group, it is the dynamic movements in their choreography, the grace in an arm movement, and the power in a step or yelp that breathes contemporary life into the ancient cultural art form.

And the group was able to display its modern style of Taiko — Japanese for drumming — to patrons of the Orange County Fair on Tuesday night.

The group of 16, but performing in groups of eight, performs at 6:15 and 8:15 nightly at the fair, bringing with them their assortments of drums, drumsticks and style.

“It is to the eye as it is to the ear,” said the group’s founder Bryan Yamami.

The group infuses hip-hop, jazz, rock and other elements to create its unique sound. The style comes from something of a contradiction of training from the strict, traditional stylings and the open-minded teachings of others, Yamami said.

“We are lucky because of the Taiko groups we have learned from,” Yamami said. “They gave us the impetus to do whatever we want.”

The group’s members come from assorted backgrounds, some learning Taiko at a young age because of pressure from their parents — such as Yamami’s — others learned through their cultural upbringing. But Yamami said a lot of this generation’s Taiko players are getting into it at the college level as Taiko’s popularity has grown.

Taiko first came to America in the late 1960s, brought by a Japanese player who established a following in San Francisco. In the last 10 years, Taiko has become popular among Japanese youths who have added their own style to the music that originated as religious practice.

The Taiko Project performs as a Kumidaiko, or group Taiko, with various performers and drums. Almost like a painter’s brush, the players stroke the drums with broad arm movements that glide up and down and side to side across the drum’s canvas.

At the fair the performance usually lasts about 30 minutes as the group performs four songs.

For more information on the Taiko Project, go to www.taikoproject.com.

DANIEL TEDFORD may be reached at (714) 966-4632 or at [email protected].