Taiko (double-headed barrel drum)
Tenri, Nara, 2007-2008
Wood, animal skin, metal, silk
Musical Instrument Museum, #2009/172.2.1-5
The term "Taiko" refers to a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum. This particular drum is called a tsuri-daiko. Also called a gaku-daiko, it is a large Japanese hanging drum and is played with two mallets on one side only. The tsuri-daiko is used primarily in bugaku orchestra, which plays for Japanese classical imperial court music and dances, known as gagaku. "The taiko marks the main beats of each musical phrase in gagaku." (Assembled from various wikipedia pages and the museum's info card).
