May 10, 2024/ 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Schoenberg Music Building, Lani Hall CA

Join us for an afternoon of music and memories to celebrate UCLA's acquisition and digitization of Rev. Shuichi Thomas Kurai's audiovisual holdings. Rev. Tom was a well-known taiko teacher and performer in the greater Los Angeles area as well as a Sato Zen priest. Taiko is a tradition of Japanese drumming that is immensely popular in Japan, North America, and Europe. For Japanese Americans, taiko is a heritage practice and a site of intense contemporary activity. Rev. Tom was known for both. We will share footage from his extensive personal video collection documenting forty years of his activities as a taiko master. His former student, ethnomusicologist Deborah Wong, will provide a short keynote, followed by taiko performances by the Taiko Center of Los Angeles (Rev. Tom's ensemble, now led by Maceo Hernandez) and UC Riverside's Senryu Taiko. Rev. Gyokei Yokohama from Sozenji Buddhist Temple will provide a blessing. 

Food and drink may not be carried into the theaters. 

Sponsor(s): Deborah Wong, UC Riverside Department of Music. UCLA Ethnomusicology Archive