In most years, Soh Daiko members past and present would gather to celebrate the new year with a potluck feast and traditional mochitsuki, including pounding rice, shaping the mochi pieces, and singing our very own mochitsuki song. Unfortunately, we are still not able to hold this event due to COVID concerns. Instead, this year we invited former Soh Daiko members back to the dojo to share a day of reconnecting, sharing stories, and, of course, playing taiko! Everyone even got to take home mochi goody-bags, so we could have a taste of our previous tradition.

We were delighted to welcome back Soh Daiko members from its earliest days who helped shape our group and our repertoire. Together, we played some of our signature pieces, mixing current and former members in old and new positions in the piece, with former members jumping in for their iconic solos. We were even lucky enough to get some feedback from them on the current members’ performance!

Our trainees also got the opportunity to perform for our former members, receive advice, and learn more about Soh Daiko’s history and community. They even got to meet their Soh Daiko mentor’s mentor and experience their Soh Daiko “lineage”, shown in the photos below! With their review to become probationary members looming ahead, we hope this event was as inspiring and educational as it was fun.

A big thank you goes to all the former Soh Daiko members who joined us for such a special day. To all the former members who were not able to make it, we hope we will see you soon and be able to share a proper mochitsuki together!

To read more about how Soh Daiko does mochitsuki, check out our post from 2018.