In April we were honoured by the
visit of the renowned taiko player
and teacher Katsuji Kondo, the
former frontman of the Kodo
Drummers.

He arrived with his student, Mio
Shoji, a Shinto priestess from the
only shrine in Japan dedicated to
Wadaiko (Japanese drums).

Katsuji Kondo joined Ondekoza,
the fore-runner of Kodo in 1976,
training in taiko drums, tsugaru
shamisen (three stringed
Japanese lute), folk dance and
song.

With Kodo, he toured throughout
the world, performing over 1200
concerts in over 20 countries.
In 1993 he left Kodo to pursue a
career as a solo player and
teacher, and is currently one of
the most sought-after taiko
masters.

After a week of rehearsals,
Mugenkyo & our guests performed
two successful concerts at the
Edinburgh Queen’s Hall and the
Glasgow Tramway.

Mio Shoji’s Shinto blessing, a
chanted prayer with taiko
accompaniment, created a magical
atmosphere to open the concert.

Other highlights included Katsuji
Kondo’s shamisen (a three-
stringed Japanese lute), and their
powerful duo “Amaterasu”.

We ended the concert performing
an upbeat piece together
onstage, which brought the
audience to their feet.

As part of his visit, Katsuji Kondo
also taught two workshops at the
dojo, an open one-day workshop
and a taiko player’s workhop.

As the former head teacher at the
Kodo Apprentice Centre on Sado
Island, and also having set up his
own dojo in the mountains of
Nagano prefecture, Katsuji Kondo
is an extremely experienced
teacher, and we were very excited
to host his workshops.

Both sessions were completely
full, with participants from all over
the UK, and from as far afield as
Dublin and Frankfurt.