HOW, one of Japan's premier taiko drum troupes, is visiting Union College on Saturday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m. in the Nott Memorial.
The performance is free and open to the public.
The troupe also will hold a free workshop for members of the Union College community on Saturday, Oct. 26 at 3 p.m. in the Nott Memorial. No musical experience is necessary.
The troupe has five members: Mr. Ryo Shiohara (leader), Mr. Koji Hada, Ms. Hiromi Hisase, Ms. Hikaru Hada and Mr. Takuya Kawabata (assistant).
The group was formed in 1999 by solo drummers Shiohara and Mr. Hada for various performances mainly in the Nagano Prefecture. Hada and Hiromi Hisase joined the group in 2000. Kawabata joined in 2001. All members in the HOW group are talented in not only taiko drums but also yokobue (Japanese horizontal flute), shamisen (Japanese banjo-like instrument) and shakuhachi (Japanese vertical flute).
Last year, the group did their first concert tour of Japan, and produced the album, “How, wandering drummers, Chapter 1: Departure.” This year, HOW is ranked 17th among over 1,000 registered drum groups in Japan, and is considered one of the best three drum groups in Central Japan (Aichi, Mie, Gifu and Nagano). This is their first U.S. concert tour.
This event is sponsored by College's East Asian Studies program and the Freeman Foundation.
For more information, call 388-6131.