Bored of the Midwest? Then perhaps it’s time for a little vacation — and what better destination is there than Japan? It can’t possibly be too hard to plan a little trip out east.
Well, it turns out that it is. There’s 6,000 miles and a vast ocean between Madison and the land of the rising sun, so get ready to splurge on plane tickets — and good luck fighting off the jet lag!
But all hope isn’t lost, for there’s a little pocket of Japan much closer to home than you might think. In fact, there’s a way to engage with authentic Japanese culture without leaving the Madison city limits — and it’ll be music to your ears. Get ready to meet Beni Daiko, Madison’s premier Japanese Taiko drumming group.
Beni Daiko, which has 15 members and regularly performs at elementary schools, libraries, festivals and more, offers their audience a perfect taste of Japanese culture through their mastery of the centuries-old art of Taiko drumming. Maybe seeing them perform isn’t quite as immersive as actually visiting Japan, but it’s the next best thing — and you can catch them at the Overture Center for the Arts Nov. 16, no plane tickets required.
Beni Daiko has been a Madison staple for over a decade and was born of one woman’s passion for music. Founder of Beni Daiko, Junko Yamauchi, immigrated to Madison from Japan at the turn of the century, first discovering that passion while attending elementary school in the Kansai region of Japan, where she grew up. Yamauchi was always enamored by music and devoted herself to learning as many instruments as she could.
“I don’t know if I was good at it, but I liked it,” Yamauchi said.
In elementary school, Yamauchi loved learning the recorder and the marimba, she said. At age 13, she moved on to the flute, and later, the baritone. She would eventually get a degree in early childhood education in Osaka, Japan and ever since, has been devoted to sharing her love for music with children.
It’s no surprise that when Yamauchi immigrated to Madison, she was eager to keep her passion for music alive. Madison felt like home to her, Yamauchi said, but she longed for a way to keep in touch with her Japanese heritage while nursing her love of music — and Taiko fit the bill.
Taiko, which is the Japanese word for “drum,” has existed in Japan for centuries and at first was predominantly used in the military arena, according to Stanford Taiko. Recall old samurai movies, with drummers rallying warriors for battle — that’s Taiko. But, nowadays, Taiko is mostly used for community events, Yamauchi said, and she most associates it with the festivals she attended in Japan as a child.
“Taiko would bring people together,” Yamauchi said.
And it still does — Yamauchi formed Beni Daiko to share Taiko with the Madison community in November 2012, and nearly 12 years later, the group is still going strong.
Beni Daiko’s Nov. 16 shows are part of the Overture’s “Kids in the Rotunda” event series — presenting free, family-friendly performances geared toward children. This is typical for Beni Daiko, for the group’s lively musical performances make them popular with young audiences, Yamauchi said.
Beni Daiko’s performances offer a perfect combination of music and history that transcends language barriers, appealing to people of all ages and introducing children to a new culture using the universal appeal of music. Sometimes, Yamauchi said, they’ll teach kids Japanese words to encourage audience interaction and add rhythm to their performances. According to Yamauchi, music is something of a gateway for children to engage with history.
“Some people do Japanese martial arts — it’s kind of the same way, you can do it with taiko,” Yamauchi said.
The music is meant to be appreciated not only by people of all ages, but of all cultures and nationalities, too. Though Yamauchi is a Japanese citizen herself, about half of the group’s members aren’t Japanese and joined Beni Daiko to learn more about Japanese culture, Yamauchi said. After being introduced to Taiko, they’re hooked.
And anyone who watches Beni Daiko perform is sure to be hooked as well. There’s plenty of videos of performances on their website to peruse — one in particular, from Atwood Fest in 2019, captures Beni Daiko in all of their rhythmic glory.
They’re draped in crimson robes — “beni” means “deep red” in Japanese, according to the group’s website, so they’re quite true to their name — as they move in unison, drums thumping and rattling. It’s hypnotizing and immersive, an enthralling, thunderous spectacle of Japanese music and culture.
What makes a Beni Daiko performance successful?
According to Yamauchi, if audience members can feel a part of Japan in the performance, she and her fellow performers have done their job.
She cherishes the feeling of introducing spectators to a facet of Japanese culture that they otherwise would not have known about, and she particularly loves when the audience engages with the music and asks questions.
“Those are the kind of things that make me very happy,” Yamauchi said. “I’m so glad I’m doing this.”
It’s settled — there’s no need to hop on a 14 hour, transcontinental flight to feel like you’re in Japan, because seeing Beni Daiko perform here in Madison will do the trick. Catch them at the Rotunda at the Overture Center for the Arts on Nov. 16 and score a front-row seat to a musical and cultural experience you won’t soon forget.
