SATURDAY 20th June
Times : 1pm - 4:30pm
(2 performances @ 2pm and 3:30pm)
Tickets : Free
London Okinawa Sanshin Group
The London Okinawa Sanshin group is a bunch of people who are crazy about Okinawan folk music.
Okinawa is one of Japan's southern prefectures, and consists of hundreds of islands in a chain over 1,000 km long, which extends southwest from Kyushu (the southwestern most of Japan's main four islands) to Taiwan.
The cornerstone of Okinawan folk music is a traditional instrument called the sanshin. The sanshin (literally meaning "Three strings") is a precursor of the Japanese shamisen. Often likened to a banjo, it consists of a snakeskin-covered body, wooden neck and three strings. Many modern sanshin no longer use snakeskin but are covered with nylon instead.
The London Okinawa Sanshin Group plays concerts throughout the year at a variety of events where their performance included an Okinawan festival dance called Eisa. Eisa is a lively dance involving a group of dancers some of them carrying and playing drums.
There will be a stall selling Okinawan food and their local produce.
Children and families welcome.
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