Taiko Dance - Taikoodori

A folk performing art in which dancing is accompanied by the beating of drums. As drums were originally used as talismans to summon gods, drums are viewed as sacred in many places and are believed to ward off disasters. Large, colorful processions are made to exterminate pests or ward off epidemics, processions are made in line for village festivals, and they are performed from house to house as memorial dances during the Bon Festival. The drum dances performed for memorial services also incorporate elements of Buddhist chanting dances, and many are refined versions of the ancient Dengaku dance performed during rice planting ceremonies. As the sound of the drums is reminiscent of thunder, they are also used in rain-making ceremonies.

Generally, it refers to a dance common in Western Japan, in which dancers dance in groups while each wears a drum on their chest or waist and beats it. It is called Kanko Dance, Zanzaka Dance, Chankoko, Usu-daiko Dance, Gaku, Gakuuchi, Furyu, etc., and is an elegant style of dance in which dancers wear flower hats or sacred trees on their backs. On the other hand, the lion dances that are performed alone, such as the Shishi Dance and Kakubeijishi Dance, found in Eastern Japan, can be seen as being based on the Taiko Dance of Western Japan and feature lion heads (including deer, wild boar, and dragon) on the head. In a broader sense, the term taiko dance can also refer to the Ho-o Dance of Nishitama District, Tokyo, where a large drum is placed in the center and several people dance around it while beating the drums, or the Mawari Taiko Dance of Fukuchiyama City, Kyoto, where a specially selected person beats the drums, or the Tentsukumiya Ukitachi Dance of Saga Prefecture. In this way, the functions and types of taiko dances are diverse, forming one of the major characteristics of Japanese folk performing arts.

[Hidezaburo Hagiwara]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

太鼓を打ち鳴らしながら踊る民俗芸能。太鼓はもともと神を降ろすための呪具(じゅぐ)であったところから、太鼓を神聖視するところは多く、災厄(さいやく)を払うとされてきた。害虫の駆除や疫病送りには大掛りで華やかな行列を組み、村々の祭りには列を組んで道行をし、盆には供養踊として家々を巡る。供養のための太鼓踊には念仏踊の要素も入っており、また古くからある田植の際の田楽踊(でんがくおどり)が風流(ふりゅう)化したものも多い。太鼓の音が雷鳴を思わせるところから雨乞(あまご)いにも用いられる。

　一般的には、踊り子が各自胸または腰に太鼓をかけ、それを打ちながら集団で踊る西日本に多く分布する踊りをさす。かんこ踊、ざんざか踊、チャンココ、臼(うす)太鼓踊、楽(がく)、楽打(がくうち)、浮立(ふりゅう)などといい、花笠(はながさ)や神籬(ひもろぎ)を背につけて踊るもので、風流系である。一方、東日本に分布する鹿(しし)踊や角兵衛獅子(かくべえじし)といった一人立(だち)の獅子(しし)踊は、西日本の太鼓踊をもとに、頭に獅子頭(がしら)（鹿(かのしし)、猪(いのしし)、竜を含む）をいただいたものとみることができる。また、広義には中央に大太鼓を据えて、その周りを数人が踊り回りながら太鼓を打つ、東京都西多摩郡の鳳凰(ほうおう)の舞や京都府福知山市のまわり太鼓など、あるいはとくに選ばれた1人が打つ佐賀県の天衝舞(てんつくみゃー)浮立なども太鼓踊ということもできる。このように太鼓踊の機能と種類は多岐にわたり、日本の民俗芸能の大きな特色の一つを形成している。

［萩原秀三郎］

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