Ju Percussion Group celebrates 40 years in 2026

Ju Percussion Group celebrates 40 years in 2026

2026-07-16

A group of musicians in Taiwan has drummed to their beat for four decades. They’re the world-renowned Ju Percussion Group. Members of the ensemble say that percussion music’s primal and rustic appeal brings their music closer to the audience. And for forty years, they’ve touched the hearts of listeners from all walks of life, from concert halls to temple squares. Let’s take a look in our special report.

A large group of people departs from Taipei. They’re members of the Ju Percussion Group, heading to Hualien with a mission.

Earlier, the ensemble was invited to perform in Hualien, but the performance was postponed due to severe flooding from an overflowing barrier lake on Matai’an Creek in a typhoon.

Shovels and buckets are turned into musical instruments into the new arrangement, which kept the audience on the edge of their seats and elicited enthusiastic applause at times. The scene in which members passed buckets to each other showcased the power of unity and mutual support.

Hwang Kuen-yean
Senior member
I hope to bring the joy and passion of music to the audience here. It’s not that we want to do anything great, but just to create a little something to inspire them, so that maybe they’ll have sweet and fuzzy dreams before they go to sleep. I think that would be wonderful.

Wu Shih-san
Senior member
Percussion instruments are very close to the human heartbeat, and drumming is also a human instinct. We love to interact with people through percussion instruments, and we hope that they can get to know music in a relaxed state and become more familiar with music.

This performance in Guangfu Township, Hualien was a collaborative effort by 14 members of the Ju Percussion Ensemble spanning four generations. Among them, Peng Ching-ying, who stood on the stage, is not only a musician but also a teacher in the Ju Percussion Music School system.

Away from the stage, Peng Ching-ying takes the podium, imparting her musical experiences to inspire the next generation.

Before practicing the “Pirates of the Caribbean” theme song, she wants kids to imagine they’re about to sail out to sea. This puts them in the right state of mind to interpret the piece.

Peng Ching-ying
Member
After becoming a teacher, I could finally understand, more or less, how my teachers guided us in class, and what kind of feelings they hoped we could adopt. Actually, I used to get nervous every week before entering the classroom. At times I might not have practiced well enough. So when I’m about to scold students, I would be remember that I used to be exactly like them.

As a kid, Peng was pretty shy. At the age of 5, her mother enrolled her in the Ju Percussion Music School. Slowly, she gained confidence and found her calling.

Peng Ching-ying
Member
I initially chose percussion because I love it. I really find it fun, enjoyable, and gives me a sense of accomplishment. We also go on tours, and we accomplish things together. It’s not just the result that matters, but the process of improvement. I think that has had a significant impact on me. I’ve always wanted to feel these things in a group because I feel that those things are very genuine.

Peng has followed the group for almost 30 years, from pre-school to a full-time member. Among the current 20 members, 7 are “lifelong members of Ju Percussion Group” like her.

Ju Tzong-ching
Founder and Artistic Director
This teaching method isn’t to train performers. Instead, it’s an extracurricular program outside the formal schooling system. It draws on the human instinct to tap and play to connect with music. Later, we discovered that many people have embarked on an artistic path because of this method. So, this process has been going on for 35 years, and 160,000 people have joined over the years. This is something I never expected.

Ju Percussion Group, founded in 1986, is Taiwan’s first professional percussion ensemble. In 1991, it established a teaching system, which later branched out and formed the Ju Percussion Group 2, the Jumping Percussion Group and others. To date, the group has performed in 35 countries and regions around the world, with more than 3,500 performances.

Ju Tzong-ching
Founder and Artistic Director
When I founded the group, it was simply out of love for music. I’m incredibly blessed that I could stay true to myself and stick to my initial mission. I thought it’s quite incredible that a grassroots performance group performing around the world would last 40 years, but we have defied the laws of nature.

Tai Han-chih
Member
I think there are many different kinds of things involved in making music. Furthermore, I believe that when people come to our performance, they would first feel the energy and see how we collaborate and enjoy the music on stage. We hope to bring the passion of percussion to everyone.

Director Ju Tzong-ching personally oversees rehearsals before formal performances, leaving no detail overlooked. His dedication sustained the percussion group for 40 years. While it may seem like smooth sailing to outsiders, it has actually been a long and arduous journey.

In December 2022, the Ju Percussion Group’s rented warehouse in Bali, New Taipei burned down, destroying many valuable assets in the middle of the night. To make matters worse, there were less than two months left before the premiere of their major production of the year, an updated version of the critically acclaimed "MuLan."

Ju Tzong-ching
Founder and Artistic Director
That situation dealt a huge blow to us. Immediately afterwards, I convened a video conference to check whether anyone got injured and tally the losses incurred. Then, I made a very important decision: we wouldn’t play the victim card. We immediately took action, called the 1000-day countdown, and made overall plans for the entire project, including systems, talent, works, and performances.

Six months later, the Ju Percussion Group was reborn from the ashes. Not only did it survive the fire, but when the COVID-19 pandemic began and the arts and culture industry fell into depression, Ju Percussion Group was the first to insist that it would not lay off staff or cut salaries.

Ju Tzong-ching
Founder and Artistic Director
It’s about how you face things when they happen. Do you say, “There’s nothing I can do, let it go,” or do you confront it, solve the problem, or even reignite your fire and bravely move forward? If I were the only one saying this, people would think I’m crazy. It’s one thing if I’m the crazy one, but if a group of people are all crazy, the perseverance and the likelihood of success are very high. So I’m very fortunate to have found a group of friends with strong solidarity, strong cohesion and a common goal.

A common vision kept them through thick and thin. Despite the Ju Percussion Group’s international standing, it remains committed to Taiwan.

To inspire more kids, the Ju Percussion Group went further into schools, such as holding classes in Taipei’s Dalong Elementary School to get kids to play music.

Lee Pei-hsun
Member
I think it’s very important for children to grow up happily, so in the process of nurturing their learning and interests, we also hope that they can gain something from it. If the schoolwork becomes too stressful, sometimes playing music, or just playing is a very therapeutic process.

On campus, children tap out rhythms for the first time, experiencing the joy of music. These inspired ideas may one day be transformed into musical works.

Wu Hao-tse
Dalong Elementary School
It’s different from other classes, because in other classes you have to sit in a chair and look through things, but in this class, you can go up and play many musical instruments. My wish is to be up there and show little kids how I play musical instruments.

Liu Guo-chao
Dalong Elementary School principal
Watching a performance itself is incredibly moving. It’s a kind of emotion that you might not normally feel in your daily life. But music, with its many elements, sparks children’s imaginations and connects them with human relationships. I think that kind of emotion will stay in their hearts for a lifetime.

Hwang Kuen-yean
Senior member
Some kids may not have the opportunity to come to the National Concert Hall or other performance venues and sit upright to watch a concert. We’re proactively bringing music to their doorstep, and suddenly they’re discovering how wonderful music is. Perhaps this catalyzes a passion for music in the future.

They keep running with all their might. This is the group’s second percussion theater production, “A Tale of Clay,” telling the story of Lin Kuang-ching, the founder of a ceramic empire.

Ju Tzong-ching
Founder and Artistic Director
Lin Kuang-ching’s story is the same as the percussion group’s 40-year history. From the first blueprint, through setbacks and various trials and tribulations, we learned how to regain passion and keep moving forward. Our story is the same as his. So we have two storylines in this production.

The protagonist of the story, Lin Kuang-ching, also gave his first theater performance, conveying a story of perseverence through the action of running. In addition, “A Tale of Clay” is also the first work co-created by members of the Ju Percussion Group across generations.

Kao Han-yen
Member
I often say that it’s like I’m standing on the shoulders of giants to see the world and the development of percussion music. It seems like we’ve avoided many detours and can clearly see our future development and how we should communicate with the audience.

Peng Ching-ying
Member
I feel very proud to stand on stage with everyone in the group, because I think it’s really quite an achievement to have come this far. The pride probably comes from being able to stand together at such heights. I feel very lucky.

For 40 years, Ju Percussion Group has traveled the world and reached out to people with their music. They’ve proven that art is not just for the halls of fame, but can enter everyday life and be passed down through generations. And their story is far from over.

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