Taiko drummers are the heroes of San Francisco’s Cherry Blossom Festival grand parade in the same way that a high school marching band that came by bus from Iowa is the hero of the Rose Parade. On Sunday, this was recognized when Roy and PJ Hirabayashi, who founded the San Jose Taiko Group 53 years ago, were riding in a convertible Mustang at the front of the Northern California Cherry Blossom Parade.

“This is our first time ever,” said Roy, 75, who served with his wife as community marshals for the parade, “and we get the privilege to ride in a car. It’s a great honor.”

There were 53 entrants in the parade, up from in the low 40s last year, including three or more taiko drum corps. Most prominent among them is the 40-member strong San Francisco Taiko Dojo, which merits its own decorated float and a martial arts troupe. But they were far back in the pack, behind the proud six-drummer contingent from San Jose Taiko, pounding and walking behind entry No. 6, the founder of their group.

“The car is above our pay grade,” said drummer Trish Kume. “Taiko is the heartbeat of the Cherry Blossom Festival both here and in Japan, and we bring the spirit of the Japanese people here in America.”

The Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival, one of the state’s largest celebrations of Asian traditions, is a two-weekend event that culminates with the parade on the final day. Tradition that goes back to its founding in 1968 is that the parade starts in front of City Hall and climbs its way up Post Street to a festival in front of the landmark pagoda at Japantown’s Peace Plaza. That tradition has been upended for several years while the Peace Plaza undergoes a $34 million renovation that will include a new grove of cherry trees that give the event its name.

It is expected to reopen in time for next year’s festival, while in the meantime the parade ends It is expected to reopen in time for next year’s festival, while in the meantime the parade ends just past a community stage and food vendors at Post and Webster streets. For the participants in the parade, it doesn’t matter where or how it ends. It is the marching to the cadence of all those taiko drums that is the point of it. The Berkeley-Sakai Association, which sends high school students to Japan for cultural exchanges, was marching to the beat of Oakland Taiko.

“I’ve never marched in a parade, so I’m really excited,” Oak Griffin, a 15-year-old Berkeley High School student, said before the parade.

“This gives us a lot of exposure, and we get to be on TV,” explained the group’s chaperone, Kate Lucchese of Emeryville. “We’re promoting the fact that we still exist and promoting peace through friendship.”

Oak had more personal expectations for the parade experience. “I’m expecting,” he said, “my feet to get tired.”

As the parade got underway, Cindy and Ron Vasquez were seated on a stone plinth at the starting point, having driven in from the Central Valley community of Manteca (San Joaquin County).

“I’ve been wanting to check this parade out for so long,” Cindy said, “to see if it is as big and as good as the Chinese New Year Parade.” If it wasn’t, it was trying.

The community marshal honorific is fairly new to the parade. The grand marshal has been a fixture from the beginning. This year’s grand marshal was Atsuko Okatsuka, a comedian and actress with a Hulu TV special called “Father.” Honored as grand marshal in an earlier parade was grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka, who founded San Francisco Taiko Dojo in 1968.  That’s just four years before PJ and Roy Hirabayashi founded San Jose Taiko. Maybe they, too, could get promoted from community marshals to grand marshals. Their six-member following of retiree drummers kept it up all the way from City Hall to Japantown.

“We’re here for the vibe and the energy of taiko that Roy and PJ have passed on to us,” said Kume, who has been with the group for 30 years, along with her husband, Stewart Kume. “It’s not just playing the drums. It’s about what we can do to help the community.”

This article originally published at San Francisco Cherry Blossom Festival drums up a first for grand parade.