Kenny Endo Contemporary Ensemble – 40th Anniversary Tour!

About the event

“Virtuosic and often thrillingly choreographed works in Japanese rhythmic forms held together by Japanese, Western, and Middle Eastern influence.” —The New York Times

One of the leading personas in contemporary percussion and rhythm, Kenny Endo is at the vanguard of the taiko genre, continuing to lead the way in this Japanese style of drumming as he marks his 40th year of performing and touring.

A jazz percussionist and early innovator in Japanese taiko, Kenny Endo’s adventurous spirit stretches the taiko genre incorporating influences like funk, jazz, Afro-Cuban, and Hawaiian, with roots firmly grounded in tradition. His performances are nuanced, brilliant, exciting!

He has received numerous awards and accolades, including special recognition in Japan—he was the first foreigner to be honored with a “natori,” a stage name, in Japanese classical drumming.

Kenny Endo was a featured artist on the 2005 PBS special “Spirit of Taiko” and several film soundtracks, including Hatta’s Picture Bride and Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. He has performed for Michael Jackson and Prince, opened for The Who, and performed with Bobby McFerrin.

For his 40th anniversary, he will tour with his Contemporary Ensemble—taiko, vibes, drums, ‘ukulele, flute, koto—with special guest artists from Japan and the US.

Admission is FREE on a first-come, first-admitted basis; Festival Dance subscribers will receive reserved priority seating.

The concert is presented as part of the third annual Humanitas Festival. This project received support from the Idaho Commission on the Arts; WESTAF, the Western States Arts Federation; and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support is provided by the Hilltop.