TAO is Wow

TAO: The Martial Art of Drumming filled the Haugh Performing Arts Center on February 14, with a stellar performance that was not suitable for the faint of heart. 

The nine men and four women that made up the group sweat and fought through the fatigue TAO percussion causes to bring its audience a bit of Japanese culture. 

The drummers, who were symmetrically placed all along the stage, performed every hit of their drum with accuracy and perfection to deliver their amazing tunes. Ichigo Ichien was one the crowd's favorites. 

During this specific song, one of the women performers stepped in front of a line of four men with her drum. As she played, the four men behind her beat the drums to their rights and lefts at different times, making it seem as if the woman drummer had many arms behind her playing different drums. 

Like true warriors out of a Samurai movie, the performers chanted and yelled while beating their drums, making the audience feel as if they were about to step into the battlefield to fight for their honor. 

Dressed mostly in red and black costumes made out of silk, the drummers took turns playing different sizes of drums in order to create specific sounds depending on the mood of the tune they played. 

Along with various kinds of black shiny drums, other instruments like flutes, trumpets, and cymbals were also used to perform this style of oriental Japanese music. 

Two of their songs, “Gin-No-Gaka” and “Souhi”, had the drummers battle each other to see who could play the loudest and fastest. 

Their coordinated movements flowed from one end of the drum line to the other, as if a ball was bouncing from one performer to the next. 

To close the first act, one of the drummers performed some very dangerous stunts with a weapon made out of steel while doing aerobatics, all without missing one step. 

The audience also had a chance to collaborate and be a part of this amazing experience when the drummers asked people to clap along with the music in order to set the tempo of the song. 

“Solo-Rhythm”, performed by Hiroaki Kishino, was proof of the dedication and practice required to be a TAO drummer. Kishino played four different drums over three minutes intensifying the tempo as the song went on. The velocity of this performer stunned the audience, who could no longer see his hands due to his quickness. 

At the end, the exhausted performers received a well deserved standing ovation by a crowd whose hearts were still bumping to the beat of their drums. 

The cast of TAO still has 32 more shows in the United States and is looking to share their culture with their audiences. Having performed in front of over 3.5 million people in 16 countries, their skill and passion grows with every show. 

For more information on shows, the cast, or culture and history of TAO please visit www.drum-tao.com.