The latest fad being embraced by the type of folks who rented tae-bo tapes by the case back in the late ’90s, and swore by their carrot juice in the ’80s is “taiko, one of the biggest crazes to hit the boomer generation since pilates and green tea.” It’s not a new idea, really: taiko combines the idea of music as personal therapy with the undeniable truth that it’s fun to make a lot of noise and bang on stuff. But this is more than a new-age experiment in self-esteem. Taiko ensembles are springing up all over, and the noise they make is real music, taken very seriously by those who create it.