Thomas Jefferson High School will host two world-class groups from Stanford University in a free public performance at the school on March 26.

The Stanford Taiko (Japanese Drumming) Group and the Stanford Chamber Chorale will perform in an evening event that includes performances by bands from Kilo Middle School, Totem Middle School, and Thomas Jefferson High School.

The performance will start promptly at 6:30 p.m., with seating open at 6 p.m. Admittance is free; early arrival is encouraged.

In Japanese, taiko literally means "drum," though the term has also come to refer to the art of Japanese drumming, also known as kumi-daiko.

Taiko has been a part of the Japanese culture for centuries. The art of kumi-daiko - a drum ensemble - was originated by a jazz drummer in 1951 who stumbled across an old piece of taiko music and decided to break with tradition by forming a taiko drum ensemble. More recently, taiko has enjoyed not only a resurgence of interest in Japan, where there are over 4,000 taiko ensembles, but also in this country, where taiko has become a rich and varied form of drumming, as idiomatically North American as jazz or American Indian drumming.

The Stanford Chamber Chorale is the Stanford Department of Music's most select choir comprised of 24 voices drawn from both graduate and undergraduate students at Stanford University. Hailing from across the United States and around the world, these singers represent a variety of academic disciplines and degree programs.

As members of the Chamber Chorale, these Stanford students meet a demanding schedule of performing, touring, and recording while maintaining their rigorous academic programs. Over the years, the Chorale has toured in the United States and has appeared in a notable list of venues around the world.

The March 26 performance is a rare opportunity to witness these intriguing and high-caliber performers locally, for free. This event has been organized by Mike Lewis, Thomas Jefferson High School Music Department, and is part of this national series of Music In Our Schools Month (MIOSM) concerts. MIOSM is sponsored by the National Association of Music Education to raise awareness of the importance of music education for all children.

Data shows that music improves academic performance: In 2005, SAT takers with coursework/experience in music performance scored 56 points higher on the verbal portion of the test and 39 points higher on the math portion than students with no coursework or experience in the arts.