Stan Shikuma
Seattle, WA
sktaiko1@mac.com

Stan Shikuma has been playing taiko since 1981, first with Seattle Taiko Group (1981-1986), then Kokon Taiko Ensemble (1987-1992) and finally Seattle Kokon Taiko (1992-present), serving as SKT's Artistic Director from 1995-97. Since 2000, he has also served as the Director of Kaze Daiko, a youth taiko group. Stan views taiko as a synthesis of rhythm, movement and spirit and enjoys exploring and developing each aspect.

Besides performing and composing taiko pieces, Stan has also written articles on the history and development of taiko, taiko training materials, a syllabus for a children's taiko class and a glossary of taiko terms. He has served as project coordinator for the Regional Taiko Gathering of groups from Idaho, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, sits on the Advisory Board of the North American Taiko Conference, and served as a consultant to the Japanese American National Museum’s 2005 exhibit, Big Drum: A History of Taiko In The United States.

Other recent performance works include:

· Stargazer – New opera by Garrett Fisher examining the struggle between church and science in the trial of Galileo; performed by the Fisher Ensemble, All Pilgrims’ Church, Seattle, WA, January 2006

· A Story of Sadako – Music and soundscapes for an excerpt of a longer play on Sadako, the young girl who died of leukemia after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Written and directed by Manuel Cawaling for the 60th anniversary memorial program. From Hiroshima to Hope, Green Lake, Seattle, WA, August 2005

· Kaiki Shoku (Eclipse) – An original peformance piece written by William Satake Blauvelt and produced by Aono Jikken Ensemble. Based on the life of Japanese feminist and anarchist Suga Kanno, the first female political prisoner executed by the Japanese government in modern times. Theater Off Jackson, Seattle, WA, June 2005

· Sounds of Shadow and Light – New musical scores for two silent film scores for Yasujiro Ozu’s A Straight Forward Boy and I Graduated, But… as well as a reprise of a previous score for Teinosuke Kinugasa’s A Page of Madness. Broadway Performance Hall, Seattle, WA, October 2004

· Dream of Zeus – Orchestra (piano, electric lute, Indian harmonium, viola da gamba, oboe/English horn, taiko/percussion) for a modern opera based on the Oreistes. Composed by Garrett Fisher and produced by 16 Visions and Global Arts. Consolidated Works, Seattle, WA / January 2004; King County Performance Series: Tukwila and Enumclaw, WA, April 2004

· Skies Over Normandy – Recording pieces of the soundtrack to a new Lucas Entertainment computer game, Skies Over Normandy, part of the Medal of Honor series of games developed for Sony’s Play Station 2. Music composed by Michael Giacchino. Recorded at Bastyr University Chapel, Kenmore, WA, June 2003

· The Old Country – One-hour radio program exploring “roots” music from many lands. Guest host for a show on Taiko - Japanese Drums featuring history, background and music from 12 taiko CD’s. KBCS 91.3 FM studios, Bellevue, WA, May 2003

· Theory of Flow (work in progress) -- Collaborative exploration of music flowing from didjeridoo, blues guitar, vocals, taiko and DJ “scratch” music; with Aaron Straight, Christopher Blue, WD 4D, “Mad” Max; demo tape recording Killebrew Studios, La Conner, WA, April 2002



05/01/2006, sns