Eitetsu Hayashi
After 11 years of performing in a group, Eitetsu started performing solo in 1982. In 1984, he debuted at Carnegie Hall as the first Japanese taiko drum soloist and gained international acclaim. In 2000, he performed with the Berlin Philharmonic in Waldbühne, Germany, and overwhelmed an audience of over 20,000. Since then, he has performed with many symphony orchestras and artists of different genres worldwide.
Eitetsu has pioneered the field of traditionally unprecedented taiko solos, including the Odaiko solo techniques and the creation of original techniques using a set of multiple taiko drums. He has developed a new genre of "Taiko Music" to be transmitted from Japan to the world, and is active in Japan and overseas. In 2018, he performed 6 concerts in 4 cities in the Japan-Canada Friendship 90th Anniversary Tour in Canada and in October performed in the official performance of the Japan-France Friendship 160th Anniversary Japan Expo “Japonisum 2018”. This year, he worked for production and recording as a concept video production staff for the “Tokyo 2020 NIPPON Festival”.
Eitetsu contributes to a large number of large-scale dispatches for introducing Japanese drum music and culture for each International Friendship and Exchange Year for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Relations Foundation, and the Agency for Cultural Affairs.
He has authored many publications, including the newly refurbished version of "Ashitano Taiko Uchie" (Hatori Shoten), autobiography "Taiko Hizuki-Dokuso no Kiseki" (Kodansha), and many other articles in journals and magazines. He has received the 1997 Minister of Education Prize for Arts and Culture, the 2001 Japan Traditional Culture Promotion Award, and the 2017 Matsuo Entertainment Awards.
#TaikoCelebration2021
ABOUT WTC
The World Taiko Conference (aka WTC) aims to hold a global taiko gathering event in Japan, connecting people from around the world.
The first-ever taiko conference took place in 1997 in Los Angeles, USA.
Ever since, the North American Taiko Conference has been held as a biennial event, for a total of 11 times to date. Since 2016, Europe also has its own annual gathering: European Taiko Conference (ETC).
Taking inspiration from these two global events and many others, WTC aspired to hold the first ever taiko conference in 2020, but it became an online program due to the global pandemic.
Taiko, also known as “wadaiko” (Japanese drumming), originally emerged as a performing art in Japan around 70 years ago.
This art-form continues to expand worldwide, enjoyed by people of diverse cultures and ethnicities, of all ages and any gender.
Today, taiko stands out as a form of Japanese culture that has spread extensively around the world despite its relatively short history.
Two distinct qualities that set taiko apart from other musical instruments are its rich, powerful resonance and the ease with which anyone can make a sound when they first attempt to play it.
Aside from this year’s concert, WTC will continue to offer a multifaceted lineup of events, designed for everyone to enjoy regardless of their taiko experience.
Hopefully in the near future, we will be able to realise an in-person taiko conference event to be held in Japan, and let us continue to push the growth of taiko together in various directions.
Meet the WTC team
Executive Steering Committee
Executive Steering Committee Chair:
Tadahiro Konoe
(curioswitch inc., Creative Director / CEO)
Executive Steering Committee (Alphabetic order) :
Nobuyuki Nishimura
(NOBU Representative, Producer)
Tomoharu Inoue
(Inoue Business Consultants, Inc., CEO/
Culture Vision Japan Foundation Inc., Board chairman)
Yoshihiko Miyamoto
(Miyamoto Unosuke Shoten Co., Ltd., President)
Advisor (Alphabetic order):
Akemi Imai
(Board Chair, Taiko Community Alliance (U.S.A.) Member)
Akitoshi Asano
(The Asano Foundation For Taiko Culture Research, President)
Benjamin Pachter
(Board Chair, Taiko Community Alliance (U.S.A.) Member)
Jonathan Kirby
(Artistic Director, Kagemusha Taiko (UK)
Director, UK Taiko Festival and European Taiko Conference)
Katsuji Asano
(ASANO TAIKO U.S., Inc., CEO/ President)
Kazuhiko Osawa
(Nippon Taiko Foundation, President)
Makoto Shimazaki
(Professor Emeritus at Musashino Art University)
Tax and accounting advisor：
Sachiko Otsu (Otsu Taxation Office）
Organizing Committee
Organizing Committee Chief Coordinator:
Nobuyuki Nishimura
Organizing Committee Coordinator:
Yui Kamiya
Organizing Committee (Alphabetic order)：
Ami Akimoto
Atsushi Sugano
Kohei Inde