On Sunday, May 30, 2021, SEISA’s "Creative Wadaiko Group" participated in the 2nd National 7-Piece Taiko Drumming Championship held at Claire Konosu in Konosu City, Saitama Prefecture.

From its beginnings as a club activity at the former Miyazawa Gakuen (now SEISA Gakuen) 25 years ago, the SEISA Creative Wadaiko Drumming Group "Dako-on" has grown to bring courage and inspiration to people all over the world, including Eritrea and Saipan. Over the past year, the Dako-on has been affected by COVID-19, but have continued to work with the support of the local community in the Wakabadai area of Yokohama, where the team is based.

This time, a team of SEISA high school and local high school students formed the "SEISA Dako-on" team, with the aim of nurturing the next generation of young taiko drummers. The team's first challenge was to qualify for the National 7-Piece Taiko Championship, and they did just that, taking part in the national competition.

Below are some common and scenesfrom the championships, sent to us by the Dako-on staff.

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The teams from all over Japan were of a high level, and I felt that this contest allowed them to express the charm of kumi-daiko, its composition, performance and other details within the confines of seven people. Some of the teams were so committed to this competition that they felt they could not compete with us in strength. With the lack of opportunities to perform, it was great to see people taking the opportunity to shine, to have goals and to be able to do what they want to do. That's why every team's performance was full of inspiring taiko sounds.

The reason we launched SEISA Dako-on as the next generation team is because we realized how much our friends at SEISA have supported us during the COVID-19 disaster. We have decided to move forward, hoping to connect this gratitude to everyone's dreams.

Wishing you good health! The piece we played this time, "Danda", is a cheering ale. We composed this piece in 2011 after the Great East Japan Earthquake. We wrote this piece to send energy and courage through the sound of taiko drums. At this time of the year, all the members are thinking about good health and well-being. We want everyone to be healthy. We played this piece with the hope that it will end soon.