Aomori City, Japan

During my second sabbatical the fall semester of 2002 I went to northern Japan to study folk music and specifically the tsugaru shamisen. I stayed in Aomori City but travelled throughout the Aomori prefecture. In the eight weeks I was there I attended over fifty performances of shamisen, taiko, dance, and song. It was a tremendous experience of learning the customs and folk music of Japan.

In 2003 I recorded a CD entitled Min’yo Fusion on which I perform some of the beautiful songs I learned. Here are a few samples from this recording. The shamisen and recorder are acoustic performances, but all other instruments and sounds are electronic.

Kuroda bushi

Ringo bushi

Mari to tonosama

Kojo no tsuki