Monday, June 20, 2011

Taiko Weekend Intensive 2011: Shime/percussion

For the last three days, San Jose Taiko offered another Taiko Intensive Weekend, this one with a focus on shimedaiko, hyotan/shekere, and chappa. How'd it go?

Pretty darned well!

Since this was our first TWI focused on shime and hand-held percussion, there was some feeling-out of agenda and scheduling, but after hearing all the feedback from participants, it felt like we did a really good job! Aside from our two auditioning members, we had 10 people attending; all but one of them had been to at least one other TWI in the past.

From Roy drills on shime to basic technique on shekere to how to clean chappa, we threw out a LOT of information. There were about six SJT performing members who taught or assisted sections, and a lot of one-on-one interaction and feedback in order to give people the most personal instruction.

For me, the most satisfying parts came in the little moments: watching someone implement a suggestion or figure out a new way to approach something familiar. Also, it's always fun to just chat around meals or breaks, hearing what people have been up to or asking and answering questions.

We really enjoy presenting this sort of focused, hands-on, intense material to those who want to take their training to the next level, but you know what? It's also a hell of a lot of fun. I hope to see some of you at future TWI!

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