About Burnie taiko

Penguin's Meg Arvier undertook a Taiko drumming workshop in Hobart during 2004, which sparked her interest in bringing similar workshops to the North-West and eventually forming a Coastal group. This idea was well received by the community. Funding was sought, and granted, to cover expenses for drum-making and drum-playing workshops to be delivered by Simon Vanyai in Burnie, the first of which took place at Marist Regional College, Burnie on December 1st 2004.

Since that time we have gone from strength to strength, with many workshops and performances under our belts. We have also created many of our own drums, using traditional methods (thanks to Simon Vanyai for his assistance).

What do the symbols mean?

The three Japanese characters at left read Hikaru (top character, also at the top of the page) and taiko (bottom two characters). Hikaru is a Japanese word meaning "to shine" and we have chosen this word as our Japanese name. The other symbol, with three interlocking teardrop shapes, is the internationally recognised symbol for taiko.

Burnie Taiko has received sponsorship and support from Burnie City Council, Regional Arts Fund and Tasmanian Community Fund.