Taiko drums, a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments, were introduced to Japan through Korean and Chinese cultural influence as early as the 6th century, and a mythological origin is mentioned in the Nihon Shoki, the second oldest book of Japanese classical history. They have seen use in Japan for communication, theatre, religious ceremonies, and festival and concert performances. In feudal warfare, taiko drums were used to summon troops, call out orders and set a marching pace. In modern times, they have played a role in social movements for minorities within and outside Japan. Taiko performances can vary in their rhythms, forms, stick grips, clothing, and instrumentation. Ensembles typically use different types of barrel-shaped nagadō-daiko drums, as well as the smaller shime-daiko. Many groups accompany their drums with vocals, strings, and woodwind instruments. The popular ensemble style called kumi-daiko was developed in 1951 through the work of Daihachi Oguchi, and has continued with groups such as Kodo. Kumi-daiko performance groups are active in Japan, the U.S., Australia, Canada, and Brazil.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiko
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
193:
Septimius Severus seized the throne of the Roman Empire after the death of Pertinax during the Year of the Five Emperors. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septimius_Severus
966:
After his marriage to the Christian Dobrawa of Bohemia, the pagan ruler of the Polans, Mieszko I, converted to Christianity, an event considered to be the founding of the Polish state. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Poland_during_the_Piast_dynasty
1865:
Actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth fatally shot U.S. President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Abraham_Lincoln
1935:
A massive dust storm swept across Oklahoma and northern Texas, removing an estimated 300,000 short tons (270,000 t) of topsoil. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sunday_(storm)
1999:
A storm dropped an estimated 500,000 tonnes of hailstones in Sydney and along the east coast of New South Wales, causing about A$2.3 billion in damages, the costliest natural disaster in Australian insurance history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_Sydney_hailstorm
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
hapax legomenon: A word occurring only once in a given corpus. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hapax_legomenon
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
I agree with Freydis that, for various reasons, nobody ever, quite, knew Manuel well. The hero of "The Silver Stallion" is, thus, no person, but an idea, — an idea presented at the moment of its conception... I mean, of course, the idea that Manuel, who was yesterday the physical Redeemer of Poictesme, will by and by return as his people's spiritual Redeemer. --James Branch Cabell https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Branch_Cabell