Good vibrations…

It is not uncommon for powerful art to resonate within our souls, but the ancient art of taiko drumming has power enough to resonate within every inch of our bodies. Literally.

Sacramento Taiko Dan is a school and performing troupe that offers newly composed original works and fresh arrangements of the traditional standards of contemporary Japanese drumming. Designed to provide local audiences with a taste of what the group has prepared for its 2006 season, Kokoro Kara (From the Heart) is both a 17th-anniversary concert and a student summer recital. Taiko master Tiffany Tamaribuchi leads performers ranging in age from 7 to more than 65 years old in a demonstration of the deep power and emotions that can be evoked through this simple and singular art form.

In a live presentation, taiko drumming becomes a dance between the performers and the myriad drums that fill the stage. Through this intimate exchange of energy with their players, the meticulously hand-crafted drums become characters in and of themselves. Feeling their thundering reverberations resonate through your body turns an otherwise merely visual and auditory experience into a wonderfully visceral one.

Translated from Japanese, the word “taiko” simply means “great drum”–a moniker that certainly applies to one of the instruments featured here, a 5-by-6-foot monster that weighs in at just under 800 pounds. The Memorial Auditorium hosts Sacramento Taiko Dan on Saturday, July 22, at 7 p.m.; tickets are $20 or $15 for students, seniors and children. For more information–including details concerning school presentations and a schedule of ongoing classes–visit www.sactaiko.org or call (916) 444-5667.

155 mph and no cops in sight…

Beware: Summer is half over! If you’ve squandered your time in climate-controlled confines, you’re running out of chances to complain about the heat before beginning the grumbles over winter’s chilly wetness. The Bridge-to-Bridge Waterfront Festival provides a chance to curse the thermometer while watching high-powered speed boats shoot across the Sacramento River. Once the testosterone of the 155-mph races wears off, visitors can drop in on the parachute artists or saunter over to the beer garden for some live music. And because this event is organized by the city of Sacramento, water-safety demonstrations will flood the boardwalk. Opening ceremonies on Saturday, July 22, and Sunday, July 23, commence at 10 a.m. in Old Sacramento; a Pajama Party rounds the night off Saturday at 9:30 p.m. on the Delta King; and an awards presentation completes the weekend’s festivities at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, visit www.discovergold.org or call (916) 808-7777.

Horse of battle, horse of ballet…

Nothing makes the modern culinary combatant go more gaga than a healthy infusion of scientific knowledge into the kitchen. Through a special oil within the handle, this ice-cream scoop by Zeroll transfers the heat from your hand into its cupped scoop, melting your unyielding but otherwise delightful dessert on contact. Stubborn “soft” serve can now arrive on a cone in beautifully crafted mounds. Unfortunately, as with all of science’s gifts to us, there are drawbacks. With a menu price of $20, this retro-styled culinary contraption really is only for the serious creamery connoisseur. In addition, the device should not go in the dishwasher; but since when do cooks actually do their own dishes?

On your bark…

Does having four legs, instead of the standard-issue two, better prepare you to participate in a five-kilometer run/fitness walk? The jury is still out, but the Sacramento Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) invites you to investigate at the 13th annual Doggy Dash and Pet Fest. Participants in the five-kilometer or two-kilometer Doggy Dash are invited to bring along a leashed friend; those sans canine are also welcome. New to the Pet Fest this year, which follows the run, are pug races, a pet masseuse, a pet psychic and Beer for Dogs (think beef-flavored, non-carbonated O’Doul’s). The Doggy Dash begins on Saturday at 8 a.m. in William Land Park. Registration can be done at the event or online at www.sspca.org for $30. Admission to the Pet Fest is free, and dog daycare is provided for those dogs who wish not to embarrass their owners by dragging their tired, bipedal bodies behind them in the run. For more information, contact the SPCA at (916) 383-PETS, ext. 9102.

Druids, dragons and fairies! Oh my!…

Before summer reaches its hellish intensity, escape to another world where the accepted garb leans more toward corsets and staffs than bikinis and shades. The annual Celtic Midsummer Faerie Festival offers not only the expected musical minstrels, but also many surprising additions. The true appeal lies in the offbeat mystery of entertainment acts such as Sexy Cernunnos: Stag Horned God of the Greenwood and a fire-breathing dragon with a 6-foot wingspan. Prancing its way through the Fair Oaks VFW Property, located at 8990 Kruithof Way in Fair Oaks, the jubilation occurs Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is free with a donation of two canned goods, and for more information you can call (916) 443-2866. As these shadows will certainly not offend, do not slumber here, so that you may behold the midsummer visions that appear.