Historical accounts, of which the earliest date from 588 CE, note that young Japanese men traveled to Korea to study the kakko, a drum that originated in South China.

[3][4] Certain percussive patterns and terminology in togaku, an early dance and music style in Japan, in addition to physical features of the kakko, also reflect influence from both China and India on drum use in gagaku performance.

[21] Taiko continue to be used in gagaku, a classical music tradition typically performed at the Tokyo Imperial Palace in addition to local temples and shrines.

In kagura, a category of music and dances stemming from Shinto practices, taiko frequently appear alongside other performers during local festivals.

[25][26] Taiko, along with other instruments, are featured atop towers that are adorned with red-and-white cloth and serve to provide rhythms for the dancers who are encircled around the performers.

[34] Unable to read the traditional and esoteric notation,[34] Oguchi found help to transcribe the piece, and on his own added rhythms and transformed the work to accommodate multiple taiko players on different-sized instruments.

[46] Kodo continued to use Sado Island for rigorous training and communal living, and went on to popularize taiko through frequent touring and collaborations with other musical performers.

[17] Larger drums can be made using a single piece of wood, but at a much greater cost due to the difficulty in finding appropriate trees.

[93] The color of the cords of these drums also indicates the skill of the musician: Orange and red for amateur players, light blue for performers with expertise, and lilac for masters of the instrument.

[97] In addition to the ō-tsuzumi, ko-tsuzumi, and nagauta-shime daiko,[98] Kabuki performances make use of the larger ō-daiko offstage to help set the atmosphere for different scenes.

[100][101] In contemporary times, taiko are carved out on a large lathe using wood staves[66] or logs that can be shaped to fit drum bodies of various sizes.

[109][110] The family-owned business started in Mattō, Ishikawa, and, aside from military equipment, made taiko for Noh theater and later expanded to creating instruments for festivals during the Meiji period.

[31][117] Author Shawn Bender argues that kata is the primary feature that distinguishes different taiko groups from one another and is a key factor in judging the quality of performance.

[122] In taiko, it refers to very specific kinds of movement while performing that evoke the sophistication stemming from the mercantile and artisan classes active during the Edo period (1603–1868).

[122] The sticks for playing taiko are called bachi, and are made in various sizes and from different kinds of wood such as white oak, bamboo, and Japanese magnolia.

[146] Orally, patterns of onomatopoeia called kuchi shōga are taught from teacher to student that convey the rhythm and timbre of drum strikes for a particular piece.

[152][153] Daihachi Oguchi, the leader of the Foundation, wrote Japan Taiko with other teachers in 1994 out of concern that correct form in performance would degrade over time.

[154] The instructional publication described the different drums used in kumi-daiko performance, methods of gripping, correct form, and suggestions on instrumentation.

[162] These drum dances are not limited to Okinawa and have appeared in places containing Okinawan communities such as in São Paulo, Hawaii, and large cities on the Japanese mainland.

He mentioned some of its unique features, such as "a taiko is suspended from a tree while women and children gathered around", and observed that a player used either side of the drum while performing.

[181] They are known for their work in generating interest in performing taiko among Australian audiences, such as by developing a complete education program with both formal and informal classes,[182] and have a strong fan base.

[189][190] A year later, a few members of Senshin Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles led by its minister Masao Kodani initiated another group called Kinnara Taiko.

[195][196] Many of these early groups lacked the resources to equip each member with a drum and resorted to makeshift percussion materials such as rubber tires or creating taiko out of wine barrels.

[207] The exhibition covered several topics related to taiko in the United States, such as the formation of performance groups, their construction using available materials, and social movements.

[140][214] Masculine roots have also been attributed to perceived capacity for "spectacular bodily performance" [215] where women's bodies are sometimes judged as unable to meet the physical demands of playing.

[220][221] Those involved in the construction of taiko are usually considered part of the burakumin, a marginalized minority class in Japanese society, particularly those working with leather or animal skins.

[193][224] During World War II, second-generation Japanese residents, called nisei faced internment in the United States and in Canada on the basis of their race.

[227] During the 1960s in the United States, the civil rights movement influenced sansei to reexamine their heritage by engaging in Japanese culture in their communities; one such approach was through taiko performance.

[236][237] He was a recipient of a 2001 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts[189] and since 2013 is the only taiko professional presented with the Order of the Rising Sun 5th Order: Gold and Silver Rays by Emperor Akihito of Japan, in recognition of Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka's contributions to the fostering of US-Japan relations as well as the promotion of Japanese cultural understanding in the United States.

[115] Den was also known for developing a communal living and training facility for Ondekoza on Sado Island in Japan, which had a reputation for its intensity and broad education programs in folklore and music.