Doug Sakamoto

Growing up in San Jose, Doug remembers going to local matsuris with his family and always loved watching the taiko performances. When he was old enough to start taking lessons in San Jose Taiko's Junior Taiko program, he begged his mom to sign him up for classes and he loved every minute of it.  Playing all through elementary school to high school, Doug learned from amazing teachers and had many fun opportunities with the Junior Taiko Performing Ensemble to perform alongside members of San Jose Taiko.

Continuing his education at UC Irvine, Doug was very excited to learn that UCI had their very own student organized taiko group, Jodaiko. Being able to continue to pursue taiko and learning new styles from his peers further fueled his love for the artform and Jodaiko provided Doug opportunities to be a songwriter and a leader for the group.