The reason he came to the United States (Japanese)

The reason he came to the United States (Japanese) First taiko performance in the United States (Japanese) Differences in taiko style (Japanese) Originality of each taiko group (Japanese) Benefits of living in the United States (Japanese) Promoting group identity through taiko contests (Japanese) Taiko's sounds as Japanese cultural tradition (Japanese)

Transcripts available in the following languages:

(Japanese) I was looking to go overseas, like America or some place. One day, I read in the newspaper that Sukeroku daiko performed in Brazil and set up a branch in America afterwards. That news got me all excited. I thought, “Hey, there might be a chance to play taiko in America.“ At that time, there was a song Under the Blue California Sky that swept the country. I thought, “Boy, how cool is that to play the Japanese taiko under that California sky.“ So I came over here in 1973 and stayed ever since.

Date: April 1, 2005
Location: California, US
Interviewer: Ann Kaneko
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum.

california immigration migration taiko