Kelvin Underwood
Encyclopedia
Kelvin Underwood is an American
musician specializing in the drum set and taiko
, the art of Japanese drumming.
After joining the Japanese
taiko ensemble Ondekoza
at age 19, he returned to the United States four years later to study at Berklee College of Music
and pursue a career as a professional drummer.
He is a member of the Los Angeles
-based contemporary taiko quartet On Ensemble and collaborates with a variety of other artists and performers.
Underwood resides in Ashland, Oregon
with his wife of six years, Rosie Dunaway, and their son Blaise.
on March 22, 1975, the youngest of 6 children. A few of his older siblings were musicians and visual artists in school, but he is the only one to pursue music professionally. From a young age, his family encouraged him to perform. His father was in the United States Army
, and for three years during elementary school
, his family lived in Munich
, where he was filmed dancing to "Billie Jean
" in his school's talent show
at age 9. Before he became a musician, Underwood enjoyed dancing, and he cites Michael Jackson
and the popularity of breakdancing as inspirations.
Underwood's first exposure to drumming came when his older brother gave him a Solid Gold
toy drum set as a gift, though he was not serious about playing music at first. He later "caught the drumming bug" watching MTV
and air drumming with a pair of drumsticks given to him by a family friend. When Underwood was 13, his brother recognized his interest in drumming and, along with his father, bought Underwood his first true drum set, which he still plays today. Throughout high school
, Underwood was entirely self-taught, learning drumming techniques from watching videos and listening to music without any private instruction. During high school, he joined an alternative rock
band, as well as participating in his school's jazz band
.
was beginning their circumnavigation of the United States
, starting in New York City
and running counter-clockwise around the circumference of the country. While in North Carolina
, the group performed for the student body at Underwood's high school. This was Underwood's first exposure to kumidaiko (ensemble taiko drumming), and after the concert, the ensemble set up one of their okedo in the lobby and invited audience members to play. Underwood had no prior experience playing taiko, but he tried out the new instrument, drawing on the rhythms he had seen in the performance and his own experiences on the drum set. The founder and director of Ondekoza, Tagayasu Den, was impressed by Underwood's playing and invited him to join the group in the International Folk Festival in downtown Fayetteville.
During the festival, Underwood was given a drum on the group's float
and told to play whatever he wanted, while the rest of the group played yatai bayashi. This was Underwood's first taiko performance, and afterward he was invited by Den to join the group and perform on stage with them. Still a high school student with dreams of studying music in college, Underwood declined, though he kept in touch with the members of Ondekoza over the next few years. He graduated high school and attended North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, NC, but after one year in the music program, he found himself dissatisfied and accepted Den's offer to move to Japan and join Ondekoza.
. He joined the group in the role of a typical trainee—helping to load the drums, set up for performances, and sell merchandise—but Den wanted Underwood to perform and very quickly had him up at the front of the stage during the group's regular performances, much sooner than was typical for a new member of the group. Underwood had no formal teacher or training, and instead learned how to play taiko in performance, primarily through observing and listening to the other players, aided by small amounts of broken English and Japanese.
Japanese culture and the new lifestyle with Ondekoza was something of a shock to 19-year-old Underwood. Far from his native land and learning as much Japanese
as he could in order to get by, he had to adapt to living in a foreign country and to Ondekoza's unique communal lifestyle. In his own words, all Underwood wanted to do was play the taiko, but he had to learn discipline, and he had to grow up.
, wanting to learn what he could about the art of taiko over roughly six months and never intending to spend years in Japan. Though he was looking for a role as a student, he quickly learned all of Ondekoza's style and repertoire and soon became a featured performer. He played in nearly every piece, playing odaiko and yatai bayashi, and soloing often. He became a sort of frontman for the ensemble, appearing on posters and acting as a spokesperson when they traveled to English-speaking countries.
Ondekoza traveled widely in the four years Underwood was a member, between 1994 and '98, visiting three continents. They visited many cities along Asia
's eastern coast, including Hong Kong
, Shanghai
, several cities in Taiwan
, and a large part of Japan itself. A tour of Europe
took them to Finland
, Sweden
, Switzerland
, and Germany
. In North America
, they traveled primarily along the east coast and in the northeastern United States, as well as in Quebec
and Ontario
.
in Boston, MA. At Berklee, he found the sort of formal education and environment of exploration that he had found lacking during his time in Japan. He focused on the drum set in college, not playing any taiko during his time at Berklee from 1999-2003. At that point in his life, he considered himself "done with taiko" and had no interest in North American taiko, which he saw as driven by a Japanese-American identity he did not relate to.
While living in Boston, Underwood met his future wife, Rosie Dunaway. After graduation, he had no desire to stay in Boston or move back to North Carolina, so at his wife's suggestion the pair moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
. They settled in Berkeley, CA, where Underwood found work playing in a variety of jazz, alternative rock, and jam bands. Although he enjoyed the music, Underwood felt that it was not working out for him as a musician. He found that the other musicians he played with lacked the extreme focus he had found in the members of Ondekoza, and the "basic taiko spirit" that he feels taiko players everywhere share.
, Tuvan throat singing, and a variety of percussion instruments not usually found in taiko music. It occurred to Underwood that, although he had felt disconnected from the cultural roots of North American taiko, he could still play taiko while exploring his own musical interests, developing himself as a musician while also taking the art of taiko places it had not been before.
At the time of that performance, Underwood had no plans to become involved with On Ensemble, but he later met ensemble members Shoji Kameda
and Kris Bergstrom
and was surprised to discover that they knew of him from his time in Ondekoza and were interested in working with him. Over the next year, while still living in the Bay Area, he began traveling to LA periodically to collaborate and perform with the group. In the beginning, he played only drumset, but after Michelle Fujii decided to leave On Ensemble to become Artistic Director of Portland Taiko, Underwood expressed to the group an interest in playing more taiko. He was gradually incorporated into more songs, branching out to play more instruments, and as songs grew up around his abilities he became a main member of the ensemble.
. In Ashland, Underwood got involved with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival
, and has performed as a drummer during their 2009 and 2010 seasons, while also collaborating with a variety of artists, including Ashland's Dancing People Company. He finds it challenging to remain involved with On Ensemble over such a distance, but he was travelling a lot between Ashland and LA until the beginning of 2010, when he committed to the OSF's production of Ruined
. After the show closes in October, he plans to resume his schedule of travelling to be a part of On Ensemble, as well as spending time on developing his own musical projects using taiko and other instruments he has encountered over the years.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician specializing in the drum set and taiko
Taiko
means "drum" in Japanese . Outside Japan, the word is often used to refer to any of the various Japanese drums and to the relatively recent art-form of ensemble taiko drumming...
, the art of Japanese drumming.
After joining the Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
taiko ensemble Ondekoza
Ondekoza
, sometimes referred to as "Za Ondekoza", is a Japanese troupe specializing in taiko drumming.Founded in 1969 by Den Tagayasu, in Sado island, Japan. Ondekoza was influential in the rise of the kumi-daiko style of taiko...
at age 19, he returned to the United States four years later to study at Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
and pursue a career as a professional drummer.
He is a member of the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based contemporary taiko quartet On Ensemble and collaborates with a variety of other artists and performers.
Underwood resides in Ashland, Oregon
Ashland, Oregon
Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, near Interstate 5 and the California border, and located in the south end of the Rogue Valley. It was named after Ashland County, Ohio, point of origin of Abel Helman and other founders, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other...
with his wife of six years, Rosie Dunaway, and their son Blaise.
Early life
Kelvin Underwood was born in Fayetteville, North CarolinaFayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
on March 22, 1975, the youngest of 6 children. A few of his older siblings were musicians and visual artists in school, but he is the only one to pursue music professionally. From a young age, his family encouraged him to perform. His father was in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, and for three years during elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
, his family lived in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, where he was filmed dancing to "Billie Jean
Billie Jean
"Billie Jean" is a dance-pop/R&B song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written, composed, and co-produced by Jackson, and produced by Quincy Jones from the singer's sixth album, Thriller . Originally disliked by Jones, the track was almost removed from the album after he and...
" in his school's talent show
Talent show
A talent show is an event where participants perform their talent or talents of acting, singing, dancing, acrobatics, drumming, martial arts, playing an instrument, and other activities to showcase a unique form of talent, sometimes for a reward, trophy or prize...
at age 9. Before he became a musician, Underwood enjoyed dancing, and he cites Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
and the popularity of breakdancing as inspirations.
Underwood's first exposure to drumming came when his older brother gave him a Solid Gold
Solid Gold (TV series)
Solid Gold is an American syndicated music television series that debuted on September 13, 1980. Like many other shows of its genre, such as American Bandstand, Solid Gold featured musical performances and various other elements such as music videos...
toy drum set as a gift, though he was not serious about playing music at first. He later "caught the drumming bug" watching MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and air drumming with a pair of drumsticks given to him by a family friend. When Underwood was 13, his brother recognized his interest in drumming and, along with his father, bought Underwood his first true drum set, which he still plays today. Throughout high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, Underwood was entirely self-taught, learning drumming techniques from watching videos and listening to music without any private instruction. During high school, he joined an alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band, as well as participating in his school's jazz band
Jazz band
A jazz band is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands usually consist of a rhythm section and a horn section, in the early days often trumpet, trombone, and clarinet with rhythm section of piano, banjo, bass or tuba, and drums.-Eras:SwingDuring the swing era in the mid-twentieth...
.
First Taiko Experience
In 1990, OndekozaOndekoza
, sometimes referred to as "Za Ondekoza", is a Japanese troupe specializing in taiko drumming.Founded in 1969 by Den Tagayasu, in Sado island, Japan. Ondekoza was influential in the rise of the kumi-daiko style of taiko...
was beginning their circumnavigation of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, starting in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and running counter-clockwise around the circumference of the country. While in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, the group performed for the student body at Underwood's high school. This was Underwood's first exposure to kumidaiko (ensemble taiko drumming), and after the concert, the ensemble set up one of their okedo in the lobby and invited audience members to play. Underwood had no prior experience playing taiko, but he tried out the new instrument, drawing on the rhythms he had seen in the performance and his own experiences on the drum set. The founder and director of Ondekoza, Tagayasu Den, was impressed by Underwood's playing and invited him to join the group in the International Folk Festival in downtown Fayetteville.
During the festival, Underwood was given a drum on the group's float
Float (parade)
A float is a decorated platform, either built on a vehicle or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parades, such as those of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Carnival of Viareggio, the Maltese Carnival, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Key West Fantasy Fest parade, the...
and told to play whatever he wanted, while the rest of the group played yatai bayashi. This was Underwood's first taiko performance, and afterward he was invited by Den to join the group and perform on stage with them. Still a high school student with dreams of studying music in college, Underwood declined, though he kept in touch with the members of Ondekoza over the next few years. He graduated high school and attended North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, NC, but after one year in the music program, he found himself dissatisfied and accepted Den's offer to move to Japan and join Ondekoza.
Joining Ondekoza
With the full support of his parents and family, Underwood met up with Ondekoza at the end of their marathon tour in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He joined the group in the role of a typical trainee—helping to load the drums, set up for performances, and sell merchandise—but Den wanted Underwood to perform and very quickly had him up at the front of the stage during the group's regular performances, much sooner than was typical for a new member of the group. Underwood had no formal teacher or training, and instead learned how to play taiko in performance, primarily through observing and listening to the other players, aided by small amounts of broken English and Japanese.
Japanese culture and the new lifestyle with Ondekoza was something of a shock to 19-year-old Underwood. Far from his native land and learning as much Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
as he could in order to get by, he had to adapt to living in a foreign country and to Ondekoza's unique communal lifestyle. In his own words, all Underwood wanted to do was play the taiko, but he had to learn discipline, and he had to grow up.
Frontman
Underwood originally joined the group looking for a sort of apprenticeshipApprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
, wanting to learn what he could about the art of taiko over roughly six months and never intending to spend years in Japan. Though he was looking for a role as a student, he quickly learned all of Ondekoza's style and repertoire and soon became a featured performer. He played in nearly every piece, playing odaiko and yatai bayashi, and soloing often. He became a sort of frontman for the ensemble, appearing on posters and acting as a spokesperson when they traveled to English-speaking countries.
Ondekoza traveled widely in the four years Underwood was a member, between 1994 and '98, visiting three continents. They visited many cities along Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
's eastern coast, including Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, several cities in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, and a large part of Japan itself. A tour of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
took them to Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, they traveled primarily along the east coast and in the northeastern United States, as well as in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
and Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
.
Leaving Ondekoza
Underwood never got the formal training he had been looking for when he first joined Ondekoza, and after four years with group, he wanted to find a way to become a better percussionist, to retain his dormant skills with the drum set, and to grow as an artist. He had become a masterful taiko player in the Ondekoza style, but he had not explored the art form beyond the boundaries of his ensemble. Ondekoza emphasized strength and discipline over practice and exploration. Underwood wanted to follow his own route of experimentation, while Den was more interested in preserving the stylistic integrity of Ondekoza, and so in 1998, the two parted ways.Berklee/Berkeley
After leaving Ondekoza, Underwood picked up his education where he left off, fulfilling his dream of attending Berklee College of MusicBerklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
in Boston, MA. At Berklee, he found the sort of formal education and environment of exploration that he had found lacking during his time in Japan. He focused on the drum set in college, not playing any taiko during his time at Berklee from 1999-2003. At that point in his life, he considered himself "done with taiko" and had no interest in North American taiko, which he saw as driven by a Japanese-American identity he did not relate to.
While living in Boston, Underwood met his future wife, Rosie Dunaway. After graduation, he had no desire to stay in Boston or move back to North Carolina, so at his wife's suggestion the pair moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. They settled in Berkeley, CA, where Underwood found work playing in a variety of jazz, alternative rock, and jam bands. Although he enjoyed the music, Underwood felt that it was not working out for him as a musician. He found that the other musicians he played with lacked the extreme focus he had found in the members of Ondekoza, and the "basic taiko spirit" that he feels taiko players everywhere share.
On Ensemble
In early 2004, Underwood saw a performance by the Los Angeles-based taiko quartet On Ensemble and was struck by the group's innovation and originality. He noted the "masterful" emphasis on movement as the ensemble incorporated elements of traditional Japanese dance into their performances, as well as the focus on melody achieved using instrumentation that was uncommon to the other taiko groups he had seen: KotoKoto (musical instrument)
The koto is a traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument, similar to the Chinese guzheng, the Mongolian yatga, the Korean gayageum and the Vietnamese đàn tranh. The koto is the national instrument of Japan. Koto are about length, and made from kiri wood...
, Tuvan throat singing, and a variety of percussion instruments not usually found in taiko music. It occurred to Underwood that, although he had felt disconnected from the cultural roots of North American taiko, he could still play taiko while exploring his own musical interests, developing himself as a musician while also taking the art of taiko places it had not been before.
At the time of that performance, Underwood had no plans to become involved with On Ensemble, but he later met ensemble members Shoji Kameda
Shoji Kameda
Shoji Kameda is a fourth-generation Japanese American musician and composer, and leading player of North American taiko.He is a founder and member of On Ensemble, a contemporary taiko quartet,and a member of the jazz fusion group Hiroshima.-Personal life:...
and Kris Bergstrom
Kris Bergstrom
Kristofer Bergstrom is a leading North American taiko player. He is a member of Los Angeles-based taiko quartet On Ensemble and of North American taiko group TAIKOPROJECT. In addition to taiko, Bergstrom plays the shamisen, koto, and turntable as a member of On Ensemble.-Personal life:Kristofer...
and was surprised to discover that they knew of him from his time in Ondekoza and were interested in working with him. Over the next year, while still living in the Bay Area, he began traveling to LA periodically to collaborate and perform with the group. In the beginning, he played only drumset, but after Michelle Fujii decided to leave On Ensemble to become Artistic Director of Portland Taiko, Underwood expressed to the group an interest in playing more taiko. He was gradually incorporated into more songs, branching out to play more instruments, and as songs grew up around his abilities he became a main member of the ensemble.
Ashland
For a period of time, Underwood and his wife considered moving to Los Angeles to live closer to On Ensmble, but after the birth of their son, Blaise, they decided to move to Rosie's hometown in Ashland, OregonAshland, Oregon
Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, near Interstate 5 and the California border, and located in the south end of the Rogue Valley. It was named after Ashland County, Ohio, point of origin of Abel Helman and other founders, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other...
. In Ashland, Underwood got involved with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a regional repertory theatre in Ashland, Oregon, United States. The festival annually produces eleven plays on three stages during a season that lasts from February to October...
, and has performed as a drummer during their 2009 and 2010 seasons, while also collaborating with a variety of artists, including Ashland's Dancing People Company. He finds it challenging to remain involved with On Ensemble over such a distance, but he was travelling a lot between Ashland and LA until the beginning of 2010, when he committed to the OSF's production of Ruined
Ruined (play)
Ruined is a play by Lynn Nottage. The play won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.The play involves the plight of women in the civil war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo.-Production history:...
. After the show closes in October, he plans to resume his schedule of travelling to be a part of On Ensemble, as well as spending time on developing his own musical projects using taiko and other instruments he has encountered over the years.
Discography
- Fujiyama, Ondekoza, 1997.
- Dust and Sand, On Ensemble, 2005.
- Ukiyo Live: 2007, On Ensemble, 2007.
- Ume in the Middle, On Ensemble. Turtlefield Music, 2009.
Video
- Fujiyama, Ondekoza, 1997.
- NEIRO, On Ensemble, 2006.
- Live at the Cerritos Center, On Ensemble, 2007.
- Yamasong, Sam Hale. 2010.