murmurOkaya Taiko Drum Festival
Okaya City · Around Ilf Plaza Square
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Okaya Taiko Festival Executive Committee · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Aug 13–14, 2026 （Ended）
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually mid August
- How the date is set
- Every year, August 13 – August 14 Eve festival on the first day, main festival on the second
- Venue
- Around Ilf Plaza Square
- City
- Okaya City, Nagano
About
Okaya's citizens' festival runs for two days every August, an eve festival on the first and the main festival on the second. It started as a merchants' festival after the 1970 Osaka Expo, when the Okaya Taiko preservation society was formed under the guidance of Osuwa Daiko, drumming linked to the Lower Shrine of Suwa and said to have spurred on the Takeda army at the battles of Kawanakajima. Okaya Taiko has since become a local performing art with about 20 drumming groups. The thing to hear is a synchronized performance by 300 drummers, billed as the biggest in Japan, which fills the whole area with sound. Around Ilf Plaza you will also find a main stage, the MINAKOI Wassaka dance, a community square, a street parade and an international taiko contest. The festival is run by the city, its chamber of commerce, tourism association and neighborhood leaders.
Sources
- OfficialOkaya Taiko Festival Executive Committee okaya-taiko.jp
Last checked: Oct 11, 2026. Event information is based on official announcements, but changes may not always be reflected here. Please check each official website for accurate details.
Other events this month
On the day, see what locals are murmuring on the murmur map
murmur is an app that shows short, anonymous posts on a map, right where they were written. On festival day, open the map around the venue and see what people nearby are saying.