Morgan Hill Haru Matsuri

It's been a long taiko weekend. On Saturday I was at the dojo early to assist the beginning class, then we had a rehearsal for today's performance in Morgan Hill. You would think that the hardest part about playing taiko is memorizing the songs or playing solos. But really, the hardest part about putting on a performance is getting all those drums from the dojo to wherever you're going. We have a giant van we call the Taikomobile, and believe it or not, we fit almost all of our drums and equipment in there. Everything you see in the picture was in that van, and all of it needs to be moved from the dojo, to the van, to that staging area there in the picture, and then it all goes on stage, and then we have to get it all back in the van and back to the dojo. Drums are pretty heavy--most people can carry them by themselves, but it can be exhausting sometimes. Usually after I move drums, I discover small bruises on my legs, but I never really know how I get them.

The performance itself was good. We were genki (spirited, lively) and we dropped bachi (drumsticks) and had fun. I don't have any pics of myself or the group playing because I was in all the songs, but maybe someone out there has something I can post later.

Oh, and not all the drums could fit in the van, so I decided to help out by giving a couple of shime a ride home. They get to stay with me until Tuesday. My fantasy would be to actually have a shime of my own, and here I am living out my fantasy:



Of course, I can't really play them in the house, but I can look at them. Look how pretty they are. I like the one on the right. That baby came all the way from Japan.