Stonewave Taiko's been drumming for a decade, celebrating with a festival

Each drummer stood in a dominating yet swaying stance and never lost a beat.

Stonewave Taiko, a group that has been drumming for a decade and performed at a multitude of festivals, started with very humble beginnings.

Founder and artistic director David Hewitt still recalled sitting on the lawn of his home in Kalaru with car tyres he had collected from the rubbish tip.

He twisted and wrapped each tyre of different sizes with layers of clear packing tape, a process that allowed him to make a drum for virtually nothing.

"$2 worth of tape, and you wrap it two to three times to make it thick," David said with a laugh of the recycled percussion instruments.

He also cut dowel to make his own bachi - straight wooden sticks.

"I put up posters to start a group and thought, 'If we get 10 people it'll be great,' and 50 people signed up, and I'd only made six to eight drums, so there I was for the next week making drums."

A couple of years later, the group began supporting a small bespoke business from Tathra called TaikoDrumWorks, and the local artisans replaced David's repurposed creations with high-quality instruments.

Resident taiko teacher and drummer Reiko Healy said a dream of hers was realised when she heard Bega had established a community group that trained and performed together.

"I was born and brought up in Japan, and the sound of taiko is very familiar to all Japanese people. Whenever you go to any festival, temple or shrine, you hear the sound of taiko," Reiko said.

"It can be a workout if you want it to, so it's suitable for younger people, men, or anyone, or 60s, 70s ladies who are doing programs.

"Are you going to join us?" she said with a bubbly laugh and smile.

After moving to the area 25 years ago, Reiko and her husband selected Bega because of the climate and community, not wanting to "lose the four seasons".

Since then, she had developed her own Japanese clothing and jewellery brand, and filled her time with a side of taiko.

To mark the anniversary of the community group, Stonewave Taiko will be celebrating its birthday with a mini Mid-Winter Japanese Festival on Friday, July 5 from 9am to 12pm, at Littleton Gardens, Bega.

There will also be a rare opportunity to watch Master Miyake player Haruyoshi Tsumura perform.

He will also be running two workshops primarily for Stonewave Taiko members, and a further 11 players travelling from Melbourne, Sydney, Japan and New Zealand.