When you travel abroad, you will often be surprised by differences in lifestyle and culture. Encountering the unique culture of a country or region, and learning about its history and traditions, is one of the joys of travel.
This time, we will introduce an experience that allows you to connect with the culture and traditions of your travel destination. It is called the “Wadaiko Making Experience.”
The wadaiko (Japanese drum) is one of Japan’s traditional musical instruments, which are collectively known as wagakki. For centuries, it has been intertwined with Japanese life and culture, used in ceremonies, traditional performing arts such as kabuki, and at festivals.
There is a workshop in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka Prefecture where you can actually try making a wadaiko yourself.
We visited Ando Taiko Shop, a historic wadaiko shop founded in 1894. They have largely preserved the manufacturing method from the time of its founding, and even today, they make all of their wadaiko by hand. This shop has inherited many years of traditions and skills.
At this workshop, you can make your very own wadaiko using traditional manufacturing methods!
In fact, there are very few places in Japan where you can actually make a wadaiko. Many customers come from overseas for this unique experience.
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Let’s start creating
Now, let’s actually make a wadaiko!
We start by attaching a cowhide heads to the shell of the drum.
The shell is the wooden part on the sides, and the heads are the parts on the front and back that you hit with sticks called bachi to produce sound.
For this experience, the cowhide is pre-cut to fit the size of the drum, but originally the shop receives the cowhide as a single large piece. They then determine the usable portion while examining the condition of the hide and cut it. After that, they dry the cowhide, a process that takes at least two to three years.
Likewise, the shell is also cut from wood that is dried for several years before being used to make a drum.
For this reason, including the drying periods, it is said that it takes several years to make a wadaiko.
Here are the materials and tools for making a wadaiko. The cowhide has been placed on the shell and secured with string to the base below. At this stage, the center is indented when seen from the side. From here, the head is flattened, the leather is stretched, and it is neatly taut.
The Three Key Steps in Making a Wadaiko
The process involves rotating through the following steps 1 to 3.
1) Hammer the edges to stretch the leather. Nails pass through the leather, so hammering over them stretches the leather.
2) When you have gone around once, rotate the wooden stick that’s sandwiched between the ropes on the side, twisting the ropes. This tightens the ropes and stretches the leather.
3) Lightly tap the leather from above with a wooden mallet. This stretches the center of the leather, making it a uniform thickness.
These steps also determine the tone of the wadaiko. The tighter the tension, the higher the pitch will be. This process is repeated many times, checking the tone as you go, until you get close to the ideal sound.
In actual drum making when made to order, meticulous adjustments are necessary to achieve the pitch requested by the customer.
Even in this experience, you will adjust the pitch to your liking while listening to the sound it produces. You can even make each head with different tensions to enjoy the difference in tone.
Once the leather is stretched over the drum, secure it with rivets. It might feel a little difficult at first, but once you get the hang of it, you will be able to strike the rivets rhythmically.
Once you are finished with one side, cover the other side with leather and secure it with rivets in the same way.
Here is the drum with both sides have covered and riveted. It’s almost finished!
Finally, trim the edges of the leather neatly, polish the surface, and you are finished.
In Closing
The drum you’ll be making in this experience is a kazari taiko (decorative drum), a small drum about 15 to 16 centimeters in diameter. As the name suggests, it can be enjoyed as a decoration, but it can also be played.
The whole workshop only takes about 1 or 2 hours, and you can take your finished drum with you the same day. This wadaiko making experience offers an easy way to enjoy authentic Japanese traditions. It produces a wonderful souvenir and will be a treasured memory of your trip to Japan.
How to Make a Reservation
For more details and to make reservations, click here → https://exploreshizuoka.jp/activities/places/wadaiko-ccc/