About Wai Taiko

Wai Taiko was co-founded by frontierswomen Michelle Miles and Lianne Stephenson with the help of the University of Waikato's East Asian Studies Department (now the Department of Humanities).

After both doing a stint in Japan as high school exchange students where they were part of the school taiko club at Tachibana High School in Kyoto, they returned to NZ with a passion for big drums and loud noise....and so, the dream was born. With two homemade drums - craftily created using the internet, wine barrels and a bit of kiwi ingenuity by Barry Stephenson, and some beautiful shimedaiko (thanks to WEL Energy Trust and EAS Dept) we commenced the crazy art of Japanese taiko drumming in Hamilton, New Zealand.

After six months we did our first performance - at a church gala, and then at the University clubs day, and gradually we grew....more drums came and more people came...and we evolved from a small culture club into a performance group servicing the Waikato and beyond! Huge Thanks to Barry the Taikomeister - without him we would be drumming on tyres!

Our repertoire contains many of the songs we learnt in Japan including many traditional pieces such as Chichibu yataibayashi, Miyake kiyaridaiko, Buchiawase (aka Kenkadaiko) and local songs - Ujigawa daiko, Nagaraseiryu noboriuchi, Kagaribi, and Minaguchibayashi. We are also adding more songs from the professionals we bring in to coach us now and then, and original songs from the members of the group.

Our performance style has developed into a mix of the fun, smiley and dynamic. Practices are fairly informal and we do not run marathons. Despite the lack of long distance running, the group as a performance art entity is sought after and we perform regularly throughout the year; mostly in Hamilton but also the wider Waikato area, Auckland and even once as far as New Plymouth for the premiere of The Last Samurai. Alas, Tom Cruise did not attend.

We normally have around 20 members in the group at different stages of learning and performing. The group is lead by Lianne and Michelle who teach with a mixture of "fun facism". We are all volunteers working hard to keep this unique and exciting art alive in Hamilton. We enjoy shaping our local culture and it is exciting to represent the taiko community in New Zealand.

Lianne Stephenson and Michelle Miles