Songs of Amani Island, Japan
Anna Sato and Shingo Maeyama, two of the island’s most famous artists of the younger generation, perform the folk music of Amami Island in western Japan, providing the New York audience with the rare opportunity to hear this hauntingly beautiful music. Ms. Sato (vocals), who began singing shimauta (community songs) at the age of three, is joined by Shingo Maeyama (vocals, sanshin-plucked lute), an Amami Folk Song Award winner. While harnessing the moving melodies of shimauta passed down for generations, each artist is a seasoned master of their craft and a pioneer in new expressions. Their music is unmistakably Japanese and yet universal in its appeal, delivered with remarkable virtuosity.