The now widely recognized style of wearing only a 'shimekomi' ('fundoshi loincloth) was originally started by Ondekoza when Pierre Cardin suggested that the physique of the drummer be exposed.

Part of a larger movement to rediscover Japanese folk art, Tagayasu brought together a group of young men and women to Sado Island to study and live.

Den Tagayasu and Ondekoza's arrangements of these pieces, and their associated playing styles, have been popularized by their widespread use by other taiko groups throughout Japan and the United States.

In 1986 the new members of Ondekoza performed at the 1986 World's Fair in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and extensively toured in Europe and the United States.

Ichiro Inoue, Yasuko Takakubo, Marco Lienhard, Shigeru Yamamoto and Maceo Hernandez were the lead performers.

Similarly, in 1998, the group began a marathon tour of China, performing in various cities throughout the country while running a distance of 12,500 km.

The project is aimed at children and their communities, and involves workshops in which participants build musical instruments out of bamboo and other items occurring in nature.

[citation needed] The project is typically carried out in a number of steps, from instrument building, to musical experimentation, and eventually to a collaborative performance involving Ondekoza and other musicians of varying world genres.

[citation needed] Music & Rhythms was originally launched in Korea in 2005, and has since involved children and communities in various locations around the globe including Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Japan.

[citation needed] Members of Ondekoza reside together in what was an abandoned/closed elementary school, in the rural setting of Higashi Chichibu-mura, in Saitama, Japan.

[5] Applicants who wish to join the group must complete a trial year, paying a monthly stipulation to cover their board and living costs.