TAIKO WEST
We specialise in leading high-energy, hands-on Taiko Drumming workshops and performance projects across the UK Midlands.
CURRENT PROJECTS:
Weekly & Monthly workshops for adults at 5 different venues across the Midlands, including a minimum of 2 performance opportunities per year. These fun, friendly workshops are also focussed and developmental as, session by session, we build up our skills and learn new pieces with full arrangements. This process is backed up by a growing collection of tutorial videos.
In addition we run a weekly online evening course via Zoom for the majority of the year, as well as offering 1-2-1 online coaching. Our ongoing “Tekno Taiko” recording project is also gathering momentum in the background.
HISTORY:
Since our beginnings in 2001-2, we have worked in association with schools, colleges, local authorities, team building and corporate training experts, music & art therapists, disability groups, Japan-related educational and cultural organisations, festival organisers and martial arts groups.
Based in Shropshire, and led by James Barrow who has been teaching Taiko in the UK since 1993, we are keen to share our enthusiasm for Taiko Drumming as widely as possible. We aim to both honour the traditions that underpin Taiko Drumming while also developing new musical directions, especially through the use of digital technology.
From 2014 we built the Taiko West Schools & Communities Project into one of the most extensive ongoing educational Taiko projects around. Offering developmental weekly and monthly courses to children, teens & adults across the length and breadth of the Midlands, we ran 20 classes across 8 different venues, as well as coordinating numerous annual performance opportunities as a focus for our students to build towards.
From our main base at The West Midlands Taiko Centre in Newport, Shropshire we have also hosted Residential Taiko courses as well as the annual Midlands Taiko Day.
In Spring 2020 we launched the UK’s first online Taiko course – TaikoWest Online. These courses are ongoing as we also return to In-Person classes in 2022.
Taiko West: Proud to be part of the UK Taiko Community.
James Barrow
I’ve been playing Taiko since 1986 – my Taiko CV is here. My training has allowed me to appreciate both the traditional aspects of the art form along with the very experimental. Although not a fan of collaboration for collaboration’s sake, I do love it when the typical boundaries of Taiko are stretched a little.
As well as composing taiko pieces I’m also a bit of a singer-songwriter and even recorded an album of original songs with a close friend when I lived in Japan. I am also a rock music fan, performing guitar & vocals in various covers bands; unsurprisingly then, I like to explore the “commonalities” between Taiko and rock music in many of my compositions.
My enthusiasm for Taiko is largely driven by the way it gets me out of head and into my body. Moreover, I see Taiko Drumming and music in general as a force for good in the world. It is also my own personal joy. On one level we’re just humans hitting skins with big sticks. But from another perspective the positive, fun, collective energy we generate in our taiko workshops can be seen as a deliberate act of joyous resistance to the external pressures of modern life that might otherwise push us apart. However you choose to look at it, it’s great fun…
Michael de Groot
I started kit drumming shortly after I arrived in the U.K. from Amsterdam, in 1977. I enjoyed about 3 years of drumming in a London punk band, Islington, but gave it up it’s a long story!
In 2018, Chris Sanson from Devon showed me videos of him playing Taiko drums with his group and I was hooked. I joined James’ weekly group in Church Stretton, South Shropshire and started my journey back to drumming. I convinced James to come and teach Taiko in my local area, Wyre Forest and we successfully commenced Wyre Forest Taiko with monthly classes now from within The Bewdley School Bewdley, Worcestershire since February 2019.
In addition I support James with website development and assisted in moving all teaching online during the start of the 2020 Pandemic. I can definitely say that I have the Taiko bug and enjoy helping grow the Taiko community across the West Midlands.”
Barbara Townley
I am the Admin Officer for Taiko West. James and I have been married for over 20 years and it’s been great to watch him build his successful Taiko teaching and playing career over that time.
When I retired from teaching James asked me if I would do some admin work for him so he could get on with planning courses and other Taiko related creative projects.
I’ve participated in local Taiko drumming courses James has run over the years, and he was a regular visitor at my school, inspiring even the youngest children through his workshops.
I’m happy to be a part of the Taiko West family and help it to continue to grow and thrive.