By Shige Higashi, Contributor to the Chugoku Shimbun newspaper in Hiroshima
Published on May 14, 2026 in Japan Time
Photo: Esther Vandecar performed with Kemushi Teenagers at an event in the Japanese Friendship Garden in Phoenix in 2008. Photo by Mark Zemnick
Esther Vandecar, an American woman who encountered Japanese traditional drums (Taiko) in Hiroshima about 40 years ago and dedicated her life to this art form in the United States, passed away on April 3 in Michigan at the age of 85.
Currently, Japanese culture is experiencing a significant boom in the United States, with anime, manga, sushi, ramen, and taiko gaining popularity. This taiko boom began in the 1980s among Japanese Americans on the West Coast and gradually expanded into mainstream America. It is now common for major concert halls and university music programs across the country to host taiko performances featuring Japanese performers.
Esther Vandecar played a pivotal role in this cultural movement. In 1987, while teaching English in Hiroshima, she attended a concert by “Kodo,” a world-famous taiko group based on Sado Island, Niigata Prefecture.
At that time, she was 47 years old. The concert deeply moved her, and she expressed her desire to learn taiko. However, she was told that females were not accepted by any teacher to learn taiko in Hiroshima at that time.
Undeterred, Esther found a teacher named Itsuki Munakata from the Hiroshima Taiko Preservation Society in Kaita Town near Hiroshima City. She learned various performances such as “Nicho Daiko” and “Hono Daiko” from him. After Hiroshima, she also encountered the “Iyo no Kuni Matsuyama Suigun Daiko” in Matsuyama, where she practiced diligently.
In 1992, she returned to the United States to care for her parents. She then established a taiko group called “Fushicho Daiko” in Phoenix, Arizona, a city named after the mythical phoenix, as there were no local taiko workshops at that time.
In Phoenix, by the 1990s, the Phoenix Sister City Association with City of Himeji in Japan sponsored the Arizona Matsuri, a two-day Japanese cultural festival that attracted tens of thousands of visitors annually. Her taiko performances, brought directly from Japan, captivated audiences.
Esther also founded the “Fushicho Daiko Dojo,” where she taught taiko to Americans. She dedicated many years to teaching children at the Phoenix Day School for the Deaf, incorporating taiko into their programs. Eileen Morgan, a teacher at the school whom she met during this time, was also captivated by taiko and became a member of Fushicho Daiko. In 2011, when Esther moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan, to consider her retirement and to be closer to her children, Morgan took over the dojo.
Even after relocating to Michigan, Esther continued her taiko activities. She introduced a taiko program at Kalamazoo College and established the “Michigan Hiryū Daiko,” continuing practice and performances. Her students number in the hundreds across the United States, with many in Arizona having learned from her directly.
Having lived in Los Angeles for over 40 years, I have observed that Japanese culture has become more prominent in the U.S. in recent years. Shohei Ohtani’s success with the Los Angeles Dodgers has contributed significantly to this trend. Additionally, the efforts of Americans like Esther Vandecar, who introduced Japanese culture to regional cities, have played a vital role in this cultural exchange.