PRESS RELEASE

Odaiko New England Names New Executive Director, Artistic Director

(WOBURN, MA)

The Board of Directors of Odaiko New England, the area’s oldest and most prominent taiko company, has officially named Juni Kobayashi as its Artistic Director and has hired Morwen Two Feathers as its new Executive Director. Based in Woburn, Massachusetts, Odaiko New England (or ONE) is a not-for-profit organization that offers taiko drumming performances, lecture-demonstrations, and classes, with the mission of making this Japanese drumming style familiar to American audiences, and thereby encouraging a greater appreciation of Asian-American cultures.

Elaine Fong, Odaiko New England’s founder and first artistic/executive director, sees this as another important milestone the company has achieved. “Odaiko New England has come such a long way in just ten years. In 2001, we had contracted down to only three performing members, wondering if the group would survive.  In ten years, however, not only has the group survived, it has thrived.  We are now a non-profit organization, recognized regionally, and we have grown to 14 members. We have transitioned to our third artistic director.  More importantly, this is the first time in our history that we now have an Executive Director.  Juni brings incredible musicality and I am excited to see how she will shape the artistic vision for Odaiko New England. Morwen has not only extensive experience in the non-profit community, but she has connections to other drum communities that can lead to networks and collaborations Odaiko New England has not yet undertaken.”

Juni Kobayashi was a trained classical percussionist when she began taiko drumming in 2000, after seeing Odaiko New England perform at First Night Boston 2000. She became a performing member of ONE in 2001. “I was drawn to taiko because it is part of my culture as a Japanese-American,” she said recently. “I love the physicality of it, and I love the sound of the drum.” Juni’s solo performance at the North America Taiko Conference in California in August, 2011 was widely hailed as a powerful example of the creative possibilities of taiko. (See a video of Juni’s performance, here.)

Juni’s long-time membership in ONE and her talent as a taiko drummer and composer made her a natural pick when ONE’s second Director left the company last year to move out of state. She served as Interim Director while the organization undertook a strategic planning process to determine its next steps. As board President Steven Ward explained, “Odaiko New England had reached a stage in organizational development where it became necessary to obtain expertise in the administrative area to complement our expertise in the artistic area. It was no longer feasible to have both artistic and administrative functions handled by a single staff member.”

The board decided to split the Director role into artistic and executive functions, and offered the Artistic Director job to Ms Kobayashi. Over the summer, they also hired Morwen Two Feathers as Executive Director. Ms Two Feathers comes to the organization with over thirty years of experience in nonprofit organization management and development, and also has a drumming background as co-director of the community drumming organization Earth Drum Council for more than twenty years. She has a long association with Odaiko New England, having served on its founding board of directors when the organization was incorporated in 2004.

“I am very excited to work with Odaiko New England,” Ms Two Feathers said. “I have a deep interest in the power of drumming to build community, and that’s central to the mission of this organization. Plus, Juni is a powerhouse, and I am looking forward to working with her to develop the performing and teaching caliber of the organization even more than it is already.”

“The only way the board could even entertain the idea of hiring an Executive Director was to have an Artistic Director who was able to grow the organization to this point,” noted Mr. Ward. “Juni Kobayashi was the person capable of accomplishing this task. We would not have been able to hire this additional staff person if Juni did not prepare both the artistic side and administrative side for this opportunity.”

Kate Jurow, a ONE member from Somerville, added, “As a performing member and a Board member, I’m excited that we have grown to the point where we have the capacity to support both the artistic and executive sides of Odaiko New England. Juni and Morwen are the perfect match: a powerful artistic vision supported with proven executive skills. Together they will launch us into our next phase of artistic and organizational growth.”

ONE starts its fall session of taiko classes on September 20 at its dojo in Woburn, and is continuing its association with Young Audiences of Massachusetts, offering lecture-demonstrations to school children across the Commonwealth, in addition to a full slate of performances at various venues. For more information about Odaiko New England and its upcoming activities, please explore this web site or call 781-938-3786.