Ohayo Gozaimasu?

Scott, a fellow taiko player in my Tuesday night class, always greets everyone with "Ohayo Gozaimasu!" I thought this was rather odd because "Ohayo Gozaimasu" literally means "Good Morning" in Japanese. For the longest time, I thought perhaps Scott was trying to be funny. However, recently I began to notice a few of the ensemble members using this greeting at practice with each other, regardless of the hour. Today, I decided to voice my confusion to Gayle, one of the regulars at Sunday open practice. She said that "Ohayo Gozaimasu" is a unique greeting used among taiko players as well as other musicians in Japan. You are supposed to say "Ohayo Gozaimasu" to anyone you see for the first time that day. Ohhhhh! Mystery solved! I admitted feeling rather dumb about not catching on to this practice, but Gayle assured me that she was also surprised the first time she heard about it. Scott later told me that this greeting is not limited to taiko players. Other musicians, actors, and dancers (people in the performing arts) in Japan use this greeting with one another.