Southwestern College's African Drumming and Dancing Ensembles, directed by Todd Caschetta and Akayaa Atule, invited the San Diego Taiko to join them in their Fall 2007 concert.
Red lights bounced off drums like the bachi used to hit them with. With each meeting of drum and bachi, a deep boom resounded through the air. Guest performers from the San Diego Taiko hypnotized the audience at "Sounds of the World" with their intriguing instruments.
Taiko, which means "drum" in Japanese, has been a part of religious and secular ceremonies for thousands of years. The Japanese and Chinese tradition came to America about 30 years ago and is now performed across the nation as a means of entertainment.
San Diego Taiko performers had an energy that kept audience members at the edge of their seats. Perfectly synchronized performers jumped and kiaied as they beat their drums. To kiai is to yell words of encouragement to other performers to keep their energy going.
Thoughout their performance, John Iverson encouraged the audience to kiai with him then proceed to do so during the rest of the performance.
Unexpectedly, the audience was enthused and out came loud kiais and from then on the performers and the audience came together to create a enjoyable interactive show.
During one song, four performers who were previously playing drums began to dance with baton-like sticks, which had red streamers at the ends emulating flames.
Audience members clapped along with the beat to the last song the San Diego Taiko performed and some kiaied as well. Performers took the energy from the audience and brought their show up into overdrive. Eric Franchomme shook a gourd shaker with his whole body, jumping up and down, which added more excitement to the finale.
SWC's African Drumming and Dancing Ensembles were also a thrill to watch. From the back of the theater came the dancers, dressed in traditional African clothing. They danced down the aisle on to the stage to join the drummers. The dancers formed two rows and each dancer proceeded to the middle to perform a solo.
Natasha Thompson stole the performance. Her emotion was felt through her movements as she jumped high and waved her arms to the beat. Her liveliness was felt throughout the show. Which made her exhilarating to watch.
Drummers sat in a semi-circle to perform a Bembe rhythm. Caschetta led his students in a well-executed piece. Drummers kept up with each other and created a beat that was fun to listen to.
"Sounds of the World" had a sound of its own. SWC students along with the San Diego Taiko gave a stunning performance, which was able to introduce something new and refreshing to many.
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