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Check-ins today were about book recommendations. Here are some of the ones that were offered:
Fiction:
The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt
A Man Called Ove, by Fredrik Backman
Nonfiction:
Audacity of Hope, Dreams from My Father, by Barack Obama
Becoming, by Michelle Obama
Radical Dharma, by Reverend angel Kyodo williams
Ending Parkinson’s Disease, by Ray Dorsey, et al.
Sh*t My Dad Says, by Justin Halpern
Limitless, by Joaquin Farias (about Dystonia)
Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, by Barry M. Prizant
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, by Ibram X. Kendi
The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen
The Constitution
We worked on a 2-Drum stepping and movement drill led by Franco. You can practice along the video.
We talked about how to try to use the natural strength of your lower body to channel energy up to your upper body. We think a lot about the force of the “den-den” daiko.
We also spent some time reviewing our Kuchishoka or kuchishoga (taiko vocabulary).
DON / DORO - loud sound
tsu / tsuku - soft sound
Ka / KaRa - played on the rim of the taiko
“SU!” - the rest
Yurika mentioned that she encourages her youth students to “cheat” in taiko. That means, if some other vocabulary helps you more, then use that! Think of scatting - sometimes the words that emerge are nonsensical but they can still be rhythmic and musical. Or as in one SJT song, the kids learn a line using the words, “No I don’t want to go, No I don’t want to go, No I don’t want to go home, KA!”
You can find a bunch more kuchishoka drills here or on the PRC activities page:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YunHcBHbKI&feature=youtu.be
ANNOUNCEMENTS and REMINDERS:
If you missed it, you can see the San Jose Taiko performance at SJ Obon at the bottom!
In the next couple of weeks we may have a visitor or two observing our class. They are taiko professionals who are interested in starting a similar program to PRC in their area. We know them well, and trust they will be respectful in our space. If you feel uncomfortable for any reason about this, please let us know.
Payment for classes should be made here: https://www.paypal.me/sanjosetaiko OR by check made out to San Jose Taiko, 565 N. 5th Street, San Jose CA 95112 (please mark the check PRC). The fee is $10 drop-in or $36/month.
Bachi can be purchased to be mailed for $10 a pair.
Private Zoom lessons are available at $25 for 50 minutes. We are not quite yet able to offer in-person private lessons due to COVID restrictions.
At any time, feel free to email yurika@taiko.org for questions!