Beats of the Rising Sun — PHOTOS
A drummer performs during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A drummer performs during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A performer holds his hands behind his back as he awaits to play during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A drummer performs during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A drummer performs during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform to an audience during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups perform during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A drummer performs during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in Las Vegas on Friday, June 12, 2015. (Joshua Dahl/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Groups performed during the Taiko Ten, part of a Japanese drumming conference at UNLV on Friday.
Two of the groups that performed Friday night are based in Las Vegas. More than 400 taiko enthusiasts are expected to attend the conference, and a second concert will be Saturday night — the Taiko Jam at Artemus Ham Hall, featuring select players at the conference. Tickets are $30.
Taiko is a Japanese art form, conference organizers say, adding that it wasn’t seen outside of Japan until the 1970s. Its influence has expanded recently into popular music, including the bands Imagine Dragons and 30 Seconds To Mars.
