Fort Wayne Taiko is an emerging group that has provided Northeast Indiana with taiko classes, workshops, lecture-demonstrations and performances since 2000. The purpose of Fort Wayne Taiko is to promote taiko drumming in this community, Indiana, and the region. We honor the tradition of taiko as we equally strive to integrate taiko with elements of modern dance and other art forms to create experimental, multimedia, multicultural performance art.

FW Taiko was inspired by the Fort Wayne Dance Collective’s presentation of Katari Taiko, a taiko group from Vancouver, Canada that taught and performed in Fort Wayne during a week-long residency in 1997. Since that time, FW Taiko has built taiko drums and horizontal, vertical and diagonal stands under the leadership of Founder/Director Allison Ballard with the help of community drummers and volunteers. In 1998, Ms. Ballard attended the Taiko Conference held in Los Angeles. She studied taiko with Japanese masters at the 1999 Taiko Camp held in Grass Valley. At these events, she networked with the North American taiko community and gained knowledge and skills related to drum construction, taiko performance and teaching. Over the past six years, FW Taiko has hosted several guest taiko drummers for residencies who have taught skills and repertoire to local drummers.