Bodies in Motion: Gender, Identity, and the Politics of Representation in the American Taiko Movement
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BODIES IN MOTION: GENDER, IDENTITY, AND THE POLITICS OF REPRESENTATION IN THE AMERICAN TAIKO MOVEMENT A THESIS SUBMlTI'ED TO THE GRADUATE DMSION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN MUSIC MAY 2008 By Sarah Anne Carle Thesis Committee: Ricardo D. Trimi1los, Chair Frederick Lau Christine Yano ii We certify that we have read this thesis and that, in our opinion. it is satisfactory in scope and quality as a thesis for the degree ofMaster of Arts in Music. THESIS COMMITIEE ~4.~ Chair iii ©Copyright 2008 by Sarah A. Carle iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Fieldwork for this thesis was carried out from May through August. 2007, in San Jose and Los Angeles. California, and Seattle, Washington. Financial assistance was provided by the Arts and Sciences Advisory Council and the Foreign Language Area Studies (FLAS) grant awarded by the Center for Japanese Studies at the University of Hawai'i. I am grateful to everyone who assisted me in my research, especially PJ and Roy Hirabayashi as well of the rest of San Jose Taiko, who were warm, welcoming, and responded enthusiastically to my many questions. My two years playing taiko in Mie prefecture, Japan, from 2003 through 2005, sparked my interest in taiko, and I would like to thank everyone from the group Som Daiko, especially Sbimamura-sensei, Yasuko, and Miwa. In Honolulu, my two years studying taiko with the Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble provided invaluable insight into the world of American taiko. I am grateful to Kenny and Cbizuko Endo for their support, as well as the other members ofthe group for their support and friendship. Thanks to all the taiko players I worked with for answering my many questions with such candor, enthusiasm, and spirit At the University of Hawai'i, I would like to thank my thesis committee, Professors Trimillos, Lau and Yano, as well as the ethnomusicology faculty: Dr. Byong Won Lee and Dr. Jane Moulin, and the faculty, staff, and students of the department who offered their support F"maIly, J would like to thank my family and friends in both the US and Japan for their continued love and support My grandfather, parents, and brother, in particular, have always been encouraging, supportive, and enthusiastic. Thanks also to Christian MOO who provided technical support as well as nmnerous episodes of comic relief. v ABSTRACT The ancient dnl1DTDing tradition of Japanese taiko has recently become popularized in America, partially maintaining its Japanese roots while incorpotating American musical ideals, practice, and aesthetics, thus creating a unique hybrid cultmal tradition. My project, inspired by the recent study of musical identity in the diaspora, focuses on the development oftaiko in America in relation to ethnic identity and gender. The rise of the American taiko movement, although rooted in the Japanese American community, dovetailed with the ethnic revitali71lfion movements of the late 19605 and early 19705, and has thus become emblematic of the Asian American voice in America. This thesis examines the interrelation of ethnic identity as expre!bed through music and movement, gender constructs in taiko performance, and the politics of representation within the local and global taiko community. I utilize ethnographic data gathered from interviews and observation of San Jose Taiko of California and the Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble of Honolulu, as well as numerous individual taiko practitioners, to argue that taiko dnunming has provided a unique outlet for self-expression through music and movement and allows its practitioners to construct, affirm, and challenge their identities amid the changing American geo-politicallandscape. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS i\C~O~E(JE~ .............•......•...........•......•.•....•....•.•....•....•.•...•..... i" ABSI~CT .....................•.•....•....•.•.•....•.•..•......•..................•...........•....." CHAPTER I ~OI>lJCT10~ ....................•.....•......•......•......•............................•....... 1 1.1 Purpose of the Sltudy ................................•...•................•......•....•.• 1 1.2 Methodology ........•................................•.•.•....•.•....•....•.••........... 6 1.3 lItsbnumIl~ts ......••.•....•....•.•....•.•..•.•.•.•....•..............................•.•... 7 1.4 Outline of Chapters •...•.•..•.•.•....•......•..•......................•................. 8 1.5 Sli~~()e .•..•.....................................................••.•.•..•.•......... 51 CHAPTER 2 ETHNIC II>~TY IN THE i\MERIC~ TAlKO MOVE~ ........................ 12 2.1 Asian Ameri~ Identity in the Post-World War II Era•.••.•••.•••••••........ 12 2.2 Raciall)ynamics, I>iaspora, and Ethnic Revitali7l!1jon Mo"ements ............ 15 2.3 Case Sltudy: SIan Jose Taiko .•......•.•.•..•..•....................................•..20 2.4 SIan Jose Taiko: Ethnic I~ty and Community ...•••....•....•••....•.......... 22 2.5 ()u}tlUn!Ii\\dlu)rity .........................•....•.•...•.•..•.•....•.••...•..•.•.•..•...25 2.6 Race, i\uth~ticity, and the Visual I>omain ..........•....••.....•.•..•.•....•.....30 2.7 .Analysis of SIan Jose Taiko's "Ei Ja ~ai Ka?" ••.•....•..•........•...••......••••32 2.7.1 ~()~ ..........................................................................3~ 2.7.2 Opening &105 ...................................•••...........••....•.....•....•.•... 35 2.7.3 Vocal and I>~ Slection •.................•...•.•.•...............••...••......•... 36 2.7.4 Closing Slection ...........••.••.•....••....•....•.•..................................40 ~SlCRIPT10~ OF "EI Ji\ ~i\I KA.?" •••••.•••••••••••••••.•••.....•.•....•.......•....•••44 CHAPTER 3 (J~ER ~ PERFORMi\T1VITY IN i\MERIC~ TAlKO.•....•.•....•..•.•.•••.•... 53 3.1 Taiko and the Female Body •.........•.•.••.•.•.•••••••••••••••.•.•••••••.••••.•••.•. 53 3.2 (lender as Part of Historical Tradition•.•....•........•................•.•...•.....•. 57 3.3 "<Jenderi:ng" Taiko .........••....•...•....•.•..•.•...•..............................•.. 551 3.4 .Analysis of SIan Francisco Taiko I>ojo's "Tsunami" .•••.••.•.•.•••••••.••.•••... 64 3.4.1 ~otes on Editing of "Tsunami"...........•....•...••...•......•....•..•.•..•.•.... 65 3.4.2 Long Pause in the "Tsunami" &los............................................... 66 3.4.3 Cheering ...•.•....••.....•.............•.•..•.•..•.•................................•.. 67 3.4.4 Rhythmic Variations•.............•.........•.•........•....•..•.....•.•........••... 68 ~SlCRIPT10~ OF "TSI~i\MI" •.•......•.•......•.•....•....•.•.........•.•....•..•..•... 72 vii CHAPTER 4 MUSICAL IDENTITY AND THE POLITICS OF REPRESENTATION IN THE JAPANESE AMERICAN NATIONAL MUSEUM'S "BIG DRUM: TAIKO IN THE UNITED STATES" EXHIBITION ...............................................................90 4.1 Japanese American National Museum History ...................•................. 90 4.2 "Big Drum" Exhibition Background and Development.......................... 93 4.3 Socio-political Motivations in the "Big Drum" Exhibition .......................94 4.4 Diasporic Relations in the Global and Local Community ......... ~ ..............96 4.5 Politics of Representation in the "Big Drum" Exhibition .........................98 4.6 Promotion ........................•..................................................... 100 4.7 Analysis of "Winds of Change".................................................... 103 4.7.1 Instrumentation and Dynamics ................................................... 105 4.7.2 Triplet-Feel Pattern ................................................................ 106 4.7.3 Guaguanc6 Pattern .................................................................109 4.7.4 Ending ................................................................................110 TRANSCRIPTION OF "WINDS OF CHANGE"............................................ .113 CHAPTERS CONCLUSION ..................................................................................... 129 APPENDIX A ...................................................................................... 133 BffiLIOGRAPHY................................................................................. .134 1 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 PURPOSE OF THE STIJDY Taiko drumming is a unique composite art form incorporating music, choreography, and lyrics. In the last several decades. taiko drumming in America has undergone a renaissance, growing from only a few kumidaiko (ensemble taiko drumming, hereafter referred to simply as "taiko") groups in the early 19708 to more than 150 North American groups today.1 One oftaiko's most distinctive cbaracteristics is that despite having Japanese origin, its practice in America is a hybridization of numerous musical cultures. This thesis examines the intersection of social and ethnic identification, gender constructs, and rep. ;entational politics in the American taiko movement. Japanese taiko drumming has a long and resilient history in America. In the early twentieth century, Japanese immigrants imported traditional Japanese taiko drums to America, where they were primarily used in Buddhist temples and various karate,jUdO, and kendiJ dOjo (places for learning). Since then, the practice oftaiko dnnnming in America has become increasingly widespread, especially from the late 1960s when ensemble taiko groups began fonning within Japanese American communities. Originally developed in response to the reinvigoration of Japanese American ethnic pride, the modem taiko movement dovetailed with ethnic revitalization movements of the 1960s and 19708