Marin Naruse performs shimauta or traditional music from the Amami Islands, an archipelago in Northern Japan. “Shimauta” translates as “community songs,” and the genre often involves bamboo flutes, hand drums, and lutes along with lyrics in a falsetto voice.
Learn more during the Shimauta Workshop Series at Uke Hut in Long Island City on Thursday, Dec. 28, at 5:30 pm.
Presented by Flushing Town Hall and Multicultural Sonic Evolution (MuSE), this event is part-performance, part-workshop, part-open dialogue. Naruse will also discuss other forms of music created by ethnic minorities around the world and efforts to preserve them.
The $20 admission price includes two drinks.
Always traveling, Naruse frequently delivers seminars and actively collaborates with artists from other genres — Jazz, orchestra, rakugo — to expand shimauta’s impact and appreciation. She is an official Minyo Ambassador as per the Japan Folksong and Dance Foundation.
Founded in 2007 and led by composer Yui Kitamura and percussionist Chihiro Shibayama, MuSE strives to improve the world via the power of music. The Queens-based nonprofit presents unique showcases, nurtures composers, and supports artists from fields that incorporate music into their shows.
Located at at 36-01 36th Ave., Uke Hut is known for selling ukeleles and other instruments, but it also facilitates concerts, lessons, repairs, and rentals.
Images: Marin Naruse