Editing Taiko (section)

==Notable performers and groups==
[[File:EitetsuHayashi2001-01.jpg|thumb|right|[[Eitetsu Hayashi]] in a 2001 concert in Tokyo|alt=Black & white photograph of a solo performance by Eitetsu Hayashi.]]
A number of performers and groups, including several early leaders, have been recognized for their contributions to taiko performance. [[Daihachi Oguchi]] was best known for developing ''kumi-daiko'' performance. Oguchi founded the first ''kumi-daiko'' group called [[Osuwa Daiko]] in 1951, and facilitated the popularization of taiko performance groups in Japan.{{sfn|Bender|2012|p=52}}

[[Seidō Kobayashi]] is the leader of the Tokyo-based taiko group [[Oedo Sukeroku Taiko]] as of December 2014.{{sfn|Bender|2012|p=59}}<ref name=OST>{{cite web|title=Performing Members|url=http://www.oedosukerokutaiko.com/htm/memberprofile_top_e.html|publisher=Oedo Sukeroku Taiko|access-date=11 December 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141226125533/http://www.oedosukerokutaiko.com/htm/memberprofile_top_e.html|archive-date=26 December 2014}}</ref> Kobayashi founded the group in 1959 and was the first group to tour professionally.{{sfn|Bender|2012|p=59}} Kobayashi is considered a master performer of taiko.<ref name=Electronic>{{cite journal|journal=Electronic Musician|volume=11|issue=7–12|year=1995|publisher=Polyphony Publishing Company|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=DJwJAQAAMAAJ 52]|oclc=181819338}}</ref> He is also known for asserting intellectual control of the group's performance style, which has influenced performance for many groups, particularly in North America.{{sfn|Wong|2004|p=85}}

In 1968, [[Seiichi Tanaka]] founded the [[San Francisco Taiko Dojo]] and is regarded as the Grandfather of Taiko and primary developer of taiko performance in the United States.{{sfn|Varian|2013|p=31}}{{sfn|Tusler|2003|p=127}} He was a recipient of a 2001 [[National Heritage Fellowship]] awarded by the [[National Endowment for the Arts]]<ref name=NEA-Tanaka /> and since 2013 is the only taiko professional presented with the Order of the Rising Sun 5th Order: Gold and Silver Rays by Emperor Akihito of Japan, in recognition of Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka's contributions to the fostering of US-Japan relations as well as the promotion of Japanese cultural understanding in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sftaiko.com/awards/|title=Awards and Accolades|website=San Francisco Taiko Dojo|access-date=29 April 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208231526/http://www.sftaiko.com/awards/|archive-date=8 December 2017}}</ref>

In 1969, {{nihongo4|[[Den Tagayasu]]|田耕|Den Tagayasu}} founded [[Ondekoza]], a group well known for making taiko performance internationally visible and for its artistic contributions to the tradition.{{sfn|Bender|2012|p=60}} Den was also known for developing a communal living and training facility for Ondekoza on Sado Island in Japan, which had a reputation for its intensity and broad education programs in folklore and music.{{sfn|Bender|2012|pp=68–70}}

Performers and groups beyond the early practitioners have also been noted. [[Eitetsu Hayashi]] is best known for his solo performance work.<ref name=Katara>{{cite web|title=Eitetsu Hayashi – Japan's Premier Taiko Drummer|url=http://www.katara.net/english/event/eitetsu-hayashi-japans-premier-taiko-drummer/|website=Katara|publisher=Katara Art Studios|access-date=30 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131030002041/http://www.katara.net/english/event/eitetsu-hayashi-japans-premier-taiko-drummer/|archive-date=30 October 2013}}</ref> When he was 19, Hayashi joined Ondekoza, a group later expanded and re-founded as [[Kodo (taiko group)|Kodo]], one of the best known and most influential taiko performance groups in the world.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Rosen, D. H.|title=Creating Tradition, One Beat at a Time|journal=Japan Spotlight: Economy, Culture & History|date=2006|publisher=Japan Economic Foundation|page=52|oclc=54028278}}</ref> Hayashi soon left the group to begin a solo career<ref name=Katara /> and has performed in venues such as [[Carnegie Hall]] in 1984, the first featured taiko performer there.{{sfn|Hoover|2011|p=98}}{{sfn|Thornbury|2013|p=137}} He was awarded the 47th Education Minister's Art Encouragement Prize, a national award, in 1997 as well as the 8th Award for the Promotion of Traditional Japanese Culture from the [[Japan Arts Foundation]] in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|title=Eitetsu Hayashi Biographies|url=http://www.sfiaf.org/eitetsu_hayashi_bio|publisher=San Francisco International Arts Festival|access-date=18 January 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150209032203/http://www.sfiaf.org/eitetsu_hayashi_bio|archive-date=9 February 2015}}</ref>