Family special! - TAIKOPROJECT performs a one-hour show for families at 10 a.m. on July 8 at the Ford Amphitheatre (2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Los Angeles) as part of the Big!World!Fun! series. Kids are admitted free!

“Thunder of Drums” is a contemporary fusion of the ancient art of Japanese drumming and American taiko, which is a style formed by a combination of traditional Japanese taiko and cross-cultural music influences such as hip hop, pop and classical music. The concert features the Taiko Project’s signature piece Expanding, which blends hip hop rhythms with “interlocking patterns, improvisation, and the passing of energy from player to player.”

“Thunder of Drums” offers the audience small demonstrations between selections on taiko techniques, the oral tradition and the use of vocal notation, in addition to stories of the folklore and history behind the art form. The taiko performance ends with Omiyaga, written in 2003 by composer Shoji Kameda, one of America’s most promising young taiko artists.

For tickets, call (323) 461-3673

For more information: www.FordAmphitheatre.org