First established in 1995, ITI has grown from an event with only three collegiate groups to an annual two-day conference that brings together over 180 collegiate taiko players, who have the opportunity to learn from and play with professional taiko players on the vanguard of North American taiko. Rooted in a spirit of open-minded learning and in a celebration of diversity and heritage, this event is one of the largest events held for the North American taiko community. This upcoming year will mark the 25th anniversary of the event, and we are excited that you will join us during Memorial Day Weekend in 2019 to celebrate the bonds of community that have been created and strengthened over the past quarter-century.
In celebrating this milestone, we hope that this ITI can both honor the community built by 25 years of collegiate taiko players and explore the ways in which taiko has been shared and pushed by the gathering of our communities within the larger North American taiko context. Since the close of the 24th ITI at UC Riverside, we have been working to create an Invitational with these goals held close to heart, and we invite you to share in several new, upcoming experiences with us.
To celebrate the contributions of both the collegiate community and the larger taiko community represented by our workshop leaders, we will be holding two separate concerts: the first on Saturday evening featuring our workshop instructors [link], and the second on Sunday afternoon featuring the collegiate taiko groups [link]. All performers have been invited to showcase work that they feel embodies their/their group’s signature approach to the art and music of taiko. We hope you will enjoy the concerts!
Throughout the weekend, we will also be organizing several community-building events in honor of the 25th anniversary, with Karen Young of The Genki Spark and Kris Bergstrom. While taiko and the collegiate taiko community may hold different meaning for everyone, we hope that these events - and the conversations that ensue - will foster new understandings, celebrate old and new friendships, and allow for an opportunity to reflect on the vibrant identity of the West Coast collegiate taiko community.