Building a Practice PVC Japanese Taiko Drum
With its roots reaching back as far as 6th century Japan, the taiko drum has grown into use throughout the globe and can be seen widely used in many ensembles. Taiko drums are basically a Japanese percussion instrument derived from “wadaiko” translated as “Japanese drums” and the practice of playing them has transformed into a worldwide art form. The methods to go about making these drums are varied but sometimes it can take years for the drum and its support to be built! Luckily, one enterprising individual from Pittsburgh PA has found an easy and quick way to make one for practice purposes, using our very own FORMUFIT products.
Chung Wan Choi is so passionate about his PVC Taiko drums that he not only constructs them but has created his popular Facebook page DIY Taiko based on it. Using FORMUFIT Furniture Grade PVC Pipe and Fittings, Chung made a collapsible taiko drum that could not only be filed away for convenient storage, but during play could be converted into two different positions popular to so many taiko artists. Players can use Chung’s PVC taiko stand in the traditional “Naname” (slanted) mode, or in in “Shime/Beta” mode with a slightly tilted or upright style. Chung’s drawing of his PVC Practice Taiko shows these different positions here as well as its ability to collapse to take up only as much space as 1-2 folding chairs:
Chung personally chooses and endorses FORMUFIT products for the construction of these taiko practice drums due to the quality of our fittings, their ability to remain fit and secure throughout aggressive use, and the fact that they look attractive compared to other PVC piping and fittings available.
Both his Facebook page and his official site here go into great detail about how these are constructed. Chung particularly likes to buy the parts in bulk from Home Depot so that he can take advantage of their free shipping options.
Chung is so thrilled with how FORMUFIT products have fit into his musical art so much that he has even expanded his constructions to include a practice Odaiko stand!
The end result is a beautiful and practical musical instrument that can be used in live performance as well as for practice, with the ability to collapse for easy travel and storage.
But don’t just take our word for it….see and hear the results for yourself here below: