DURHAM -- The six men stood wide-legged on stage behind their large drums, alternately pounding at them with sticks, punching the air above them and chanting in Japanese - sometimes hopping between beats or leaning to pound on the drum beside them with knees bent.
All adults with intellectual disabilities, the six are part of a Triangle group that is the only one in the country to use the Japanese performance art of taiko (TIE-ko) for its therapeutic properties. Meanwhile, taiko drumming is growing in popularity nationwide.
Their performance Sunday in Page Auditorium at Duke University will help raise money for a trip to Japan where they plan to compete against Japanese counterparts who share a passion for the forceful drumming style.
Taik o, the Japanese word for "drum," is a form of traditional performance art that includes elements of dance and cadence as well as the large, deep-sounding drums that are its namesake.
Sunday afternoon's show in Durham and one earlier this month in Raleigh will help send the drumming group, Triangle Special Taiko, to the 12th annual Disabled Persons' Nippon Taiko Festival, an Oct. 17 competition that showcases taiko players with disabilities.
The Triangle drummers were one of just 25 groups invited to participate, and they'll be the first group from outside Japan to perform at the annual event. Triangle Special Taiko is the only group of its kind in the country.
"We should definitely be proud that we have this unique program in our community," said Chris Frelke, a Raleigh city employee who helped start the special taiko program.
In its four-year partnership with Triangle Taiko, the City of Raleigh has helped with recruiting and provided practice space for the group. The nonprofit group provides the lessons.
Frelke said taiko allows adults with intellectual disabilities to socialize, perform in public settings and excel at something that many of them find deeply satisfying.
Caleb Badgett of Raleigh had tried his hand at the snare drum with limited success, but he found he could immediately get the right sound from the taiko drum.
"It sounds like bass speakers," said Badgett, 22, who has been playing with Triangle Special Taiko for a year. "I have gotten a lot better already, and I think I can get really good at this."
There are more than 5,000 taiko groups in Japan, and more than 150 in North America. Triangle Taiko, founded in 2002, is the only such group in North Carolina.
Triangle Taiko founders Rocky and Yoko Iwashima brought the art form to the Triangle in 2002, though at that point even they hardly knew how to play. They pounded on trash cans covered with packing tape until they could afford to buy their first drum.
"Everyone was a beginner at the time," Rocky Iwashima said, noting that the group now has more than 20drums.
The couple discovered special taiko on a trip to Japan, and approached city officials with the idea of starting a group in Raleigh. Their son, Taki, is on the team that will perform in Japan.
"What we're looking to do now is broaden the base of people who are aware of taiko and special taiko," he said. "I guess that's the next step."
