Renshu movement drill. Recorded 6/9/20. Focus: Kiai nice and loud, weight shift in legs, feel good stretch in arm extension.
Technique Drills
Drill 1: Evenness - 8 beats with RIGHT hand—8 beats with LEFT hand—8 beats with BOTH hands
Watch for evenness in the hands - in the height of the bachi rising, in the sound quality and speed. Also be aware of tension.
Drill 2: Evenness - 8 beats with RIGHT hand—8 beats with LEFT hand—8 beats R/L ALTERNATING
Drill 3: Isolation - 8888—4444—2222—ALTERNATE
This is a drill to encourage evenness and dexterity between right and left hands. There are several levels so feel free to skip ahead or go back and repeat sections. Everything is played in cycles of 8 and there is a reset pattern between each level.
1. DoRo Don played with both hands at the same time. This is great to get a sense of the differences in your hands.
2a. DoRo Don played with right hand only (RRR) then —> 2b. DoRo Don played with left hand only (LLL)
3a. Alternate between RRR and LLL then —> 3b. Alternate between LLL and RRR
4a. DoRo Don played RLR then —> 4b. DoRo Don played LRL
5a. Alternate between RLR and LRL then —-> 5b. Alternate between LRL and RLR
6a. DoRo Don played RRL then —-> 6b. DoRo Don played LLR
7a. Alternate between RRL and LLR then —-> 7b. Alternate between LLR and RRL
8a. DoRo Don played RLL then —-> 8b. DoRo Don played LRR
9a. Alternate between RLL and LRR then —-> 9b. Alternate between LRR and RLL
KUCHISHOKA DRILLS (Taiko Vocabulary)
In all of these drills, the first priority is getting the correct sound out of the drum. Using the correct sticking (Right or Left hands) would be the next challenge.
Kuchishoka Review (taiko vocabulary) - I SAY—YOU SAY—YOU PLAY
Call and Response 1 - I SAY—YOU SAY—YOU PLAY
Call and Response 2 - I SAY—YOU SAY—YOU PLAY
Call and Response 3 - I SAY—YOU SAY—YOU PLAY
Call & Response 4 - I SAY—YOU PLAY (This one is skipping the step where you say it after I say it.)
Roy Drills
Do your best and follow along! The entire drill lasts 9 minutes, but you don’t have to do it all at once.
The PRC SongS
PRC Song (It doesn’t have an official name yet!)
This song was written by members of the Fall 2019 PRC class. It is evolving, but these are the basic patterns. Meg (left) is playing the “ji” or basebeat of the song, while Yurika (right) is playing the main melody.
This is a compilation of 4 different parts that could be played along with the PRC song. The melody of the song is the bottom right hand corner. The tempo is a little fast. Listen and try to follow the melody until it sings itself from memory.
Drill based on lines 3 & 4 of the PRC song. You can put your arms straight up or out to the sides diagonally like Franco is doing.
The Kuchishoka (taiko vocabulary) for these lines are: DON DON tsuku tsuku / DORO DORO “Can” “Do”
Matsuri Taiko
This is a version of Matsuri Taiko (Festival Drums) that was learned by students in the Spring 2019 PRC Class. The main patterns of the song are played at the beginning and ending with some fun “ditties” played in the middle.