Our new home, Arlington, celebrates the arts with the sixth annual Arlington Alive! Summer Arts Block Party. It is a free event with live music, storytelling, artisan and craft booths, food vendors, and activities for all ages. Odaiko New England opens the event at 1pm.
Odaiko New England (ONE) is a premier Japanese drumming group in New England. We are celebrating our 25th anniversary and new location in Arlington. Come see and hear what ONE has to offer!
After practicing over 20 years in Woburn, we found a new home in Arlington early this year. This event is our way of saying “Hello” to our new neighbors and show what taiko drumming is all about, and share our love for taiko. You will see different kind of drums, different style of drumming, and have a sneak peak of our new songs in progress, how our school shows would look like, and of course, try some drumming yourself!
All ages are welcome although taiko drumming can get really loud, so those who have sensitive hearing, we recommend bringing ear plugs.
FREE for public (donation appreciated).
Salem-Ota Cultural Exchange and students from Ota City, Tokyo celebrate Obon together at the Peabody Essex Museum. Come for some amazing taiko, and after the performance participate in bon odori (festival dancing.)
This event is included with museum admission.
Odaiko New England is very pleased to return to Rhode Islands’s 36th annual Black Ships Festival, August 9th and 10th.
Friday evening, catch our full performance at 7pm at Independence Park. The event is free. Bring chairs and blankets to sit out on the grass.
Saturday will feature multiple small performances throughout the day as part of the Arts & Crafts and Martial Arts Fair featuring demonstrations, workshops, and displays. And in the evening, we’ll be performing at the Black Ships Festival Gala.
The Black Ships Festival is a weekend-long festival celebrating the signing of the Treaty of Kanagawa, which opened the Japanese ports of Shimoda and Hakodate to United States trade. The “Black Ships,” or “Kurofune,” refers to the Japanese term for foreign ships.
To celebrate this friendship, the Japanese city of Shimoda also celebrates this festival.
The Black Ships festival is hosted by the Japan-America Society of Rhode Island.
