Interviews

1. Internship on a Native American reservation in Arizona

2. Differences between Kinnara and San Francisco Taiko Dojo

3. Being free of the tradition

4. Collaborating with non-taiko groups

Kenny Endo

(b.1952) Master drummer, artistic director of the Taiko Center of the Pacific

Being free of the tradition

The groups—not just in the U.S. but outside of Japan—are more free. So there’s something about being bound to the tradition. There’s something about being free of the tradition. My thing is using tradition, as a basis of innovation because, to me, lot of times the stuff that’s free doesn’t have a real foundation. Or…it needs to have some kind of real fundamentals that it’s coming from or some kind of foundation. And sometimes, the strict tradition really ties you into something and doesn’t allow you to really create. So, and this is not for everybody. For myself, having that tradition to use as a basis of innovation, as foundation, it’s been real, I found…a great way to create new music for this art.

drum taiko

Date: Mar 11, 2005

Location: Hawai`i, US

Interviewer: Sojin Kim, Arnoldo Hiura

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum.

Interviewee Bio

Kenny Endo, internationally renowned master drummer and artistic director of the Taiko Center of the Pacific (Oahu, HI), was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. His earliest musical experiences involved playing western drums and percussion in jazz, fusion, and rock and roll bands. After his introduction to kumidaiko in 1975, he studied and performed with Kinnara Taiko of Los Angeles and San Francisco Taiko Dojo.

In 1980, he traveled to Japan, where he spent ten years studying with masters in Sukeroku, Suwa, Gojinjo, and Chichibu drumming styles. He was the first non-Japanese national to ever receive a 'natori' (stage name) in Hogaku Hayashi (Japanese classical drumming). He continues to teach and perform internationally, working with musicians in various genres. (March 11, 2005)

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