[1] In his youth, Kobayashi regularly performed competitive drumming at Bon festivals in Tokyo, in part to impress the large crowds which included many young women.
[2][5] Kobayashi founded Oedo Sukeroku Taiko in 1959 out of the Yushima Tenjin Shrine in the Bunkyō Ward in Tokyo.
[6][7] Among taiko groups in Japan, it is one of the most recognized, and Kobayashi's leadership and skill is considered masterful.
[7] During the 1990s, Kobayashi made a statement to the North American taiko community based on the intellectual property related to Sukeroku style performance.
This letter requested that all groups playing Oedo Sukeroku Daiko's pieces to cease performing them altogether if they had not received permission from Kobayashi.