ABOUT TAIKOZ

Artist Bios

Since 1997 TaikOz has established a unique performance aesthetic that reflects the group’s passionate dedication to the forms of wadaiko and a desire to create new music for today’s audiences. The group undertakes a year-round schedule of workshops, teaching and performances that have seen them appear on the stages of Australia's finest concert halls, as well as those of Japan, Paris, Bangkok, and most recently, Taiwan. The group regularly appears in the theatres of regional Australia, having undertaken four Australia-wide tours.

TaikOz has composed over twenty-five original works for wadaiko, including several in combination with instruments such as shakuhachi, koto, marimba, saxophone and didgeridoo. Distinguished composers, Gerard Brophy, Andrea Molino, Michael Askill, David Pye, Philip South, Graeme Koehne and Timothy Constable have also written works for the ensemble.

TaikOz has collaborated with artists and companies as diverse as John Bell and the Bell Shakespeare Company, Eitetsu Hayashi and Eitetsu Fuun no Kai, Meryl Tankard, Regis Lansac and Kodo. The group has also appeared in concerto works with the Sydney, Melbourne, West Australian and Queensland Symphony Orchestras, as well as the Dresden Sinfoniker in Europe. Awards include Limelight "Best New Composition Award" for Kaidan, Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award in recognition of TaikOz's commitment to Australian music and a Drover Award for regional touring and education.

A brief overview of TaikOz's history:

Over twenty-five original works for wadaiko, often featuring such instruments as shakuhachi, shinobue, nôkan, koto, voice, percussion, marimba, saxophone, guitar and didgeridoo
New works for wadaiko and other instruments by Australian composers Gerard Brophy, David Pye, Michale Askill, Timothy Constable, Philip South and Graeme Koehne
Major collaborations:
- 150 taiko players, drummers and percussionists in Sydney City for Sydney Festival First Night (2010)
- John Bell and The Bell Shakespeare Company in William Shakespeare's Pericles (2009)
- Senior members of Kodo - Yoshikazu Fujimoto, Chieko Kojima, Yoko Fujimoto, Motofumi Yamaguchi and Eiichi Saito (2009)
- Director and choreographer Meryl Tankard in Kaidan: A Ghost Story - a dance, music, theatre work - Sydney Festival at the Sydney Opera House (2007) World Premiere Work
To view video excerpts from Kaidan click here
- Eitetsu Hayashi and Fuun no Kai in Australia and Japan (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2008)
- Wadaiko Matsumura-gumi in Australia and Japan (2004, 2005)
Performances of Australian taiko music in Japan:
- National Theatre of Japan, Tokyo (2008)
- Hibike Festival, Echizen (2005)
- Kaikyôsai Festival, Kobe (2001)
Performances with orchestra:
- Mono-Prism by Maki Ishii with the Sydney, Melbourne, West Australian and Queensland Symphony Orchestras, and conductors Hiroyuki Iwaki, Ryusuke Numajiri and David Porcilijn (1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2009, 2009, 2010)
To view video of Mono-Prism with WASO click here
- Book Of Clouds by Gerard Brophy with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Riley Lee, shakuhachi and Synergy Percussion, conducted by Tadaaki Otaka (2008) World Premiere Work
- Winners by Andrea Molino and the Queensland Symphony at the Brisbane Festival and Dresden Sinfoniker at the Pompidou Centre, Paris (2006) World Premiere Work To view documentary footage of the Winners project click here
Major tours of regional Australia:
- Shifting Sand (2012)
- Blessings Of The Earth (2010)
- The Gathering (2008)
- Da Ha-Pounding Wave (2006)
Awards:
- Limelight "Best New Composition Award" for Kaidan (2007)
- Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award in recognition of TaikOz's commitment to Australian music (2006)
- Drover Award for regional touring and education (2005)