Some of the Japanese terms you’ll come across when learning taiko
Note that these are used in Fukui in western Japan, and by people who have learned that style, and may differ from terms used in other taiko traditions.
yoroshiku onegaishimasu (the ‘u’ is barely pronounced) — ‘Yoroshiku onegaishimasu is a polite phrase used to solicit and engage in mutual goodwill with the person you are speaking to’ (as translated by my Japanese-French taiko collaborator, Yumi). A literal translation is ‘please take care of me’ and it’s often used when you’re about to embark upon something with other people. At Kurumaya-sensei’s dojo, one would say it before being granted entry to the dojo, while in other taiko gatherings people say it at the start of each session, as I do.
arigato gozaimashita — thank you, for something that has finished (past tense; in the present tense it’s gozaimasu)
taiko — big drum
bachi — drumsticks
nagado — ‘long body’, taiko with thick wooden bodies which in Japan are carved out of one piece of wood; also called miya daiko in some places
shime (tsuke shime daiko)— ‘tied taiko’, a smaller taiko with the skins stretched round metals rings which are laced together with rope
okedo — a tied taiko whose body is a barrel construction; lighter weight than a nagado but laced like a shime
There’s more detailed information on drum types at taiko-shop.com.
bachi sabaki — twirls and spins and flourishes with bachi, common in Fukui style
keai — catch-all term for the calls and shouts used during taiko to encourage each other and raise energy
verbal notation (kuchi shoga)
don — single beat (sometimes don if played with right hand, kon if played with left)
doko — double beat (do and ko are each half the length of a don, usually played right, left)
ka — a beat on the rims
kara — a double beat on the rims (as for doko but on rims)
ki— clicking the bachi together
su — a rest
ichi, ni, san, shi — one, two, three, four
sore — phrase used to count in to doing something (pronounced ‘soh-ray’)
ma — the space between the beats, which is given more explicit emphasis in Japanese than Western music; also the space between things more generally
base rhythms
ji uchi — a base-rhythm, any
mitsu uchi — don doko… (‘three hits’)
gobu gobu — don don… (‘five-five’ meaning right- and left-hand beats have equal emphasis)
shiburoku — mainly played in Fukui and Ishikawa (‘four-six’)
shichi san — don ko… (‘seven-four’, right-hand beat much heavier)
ippon uchi — don don… both hands played together (‘one hit’)
taiko apparel
These items are traditionally worn when playing taiko in Japan.
hachimaki — cool headband which one ties on before playing; aids concentration…
tekko — decorative wristbands
haramaki — a sort of apron with straps crossing at the back
tabi — the two-toed shoes; traditional footwear in Japan, usually black or dark; artists often wear white ones on stage but in Mugenkyo we wore black ones since taiko is folk music
happi coat — loose cotton coat traditionally worn by attendees of festivals in Japan, and now often by taiko players; happi coats are increasingly worn by taiko groups in the West due to Ondekoza and Kodo popularising them, though I’m personally not keen on blanketly copying Japanese clothing unless one is specifically aiming for a Japanese aesthetic for a specific purpose