Japan Society Presents Yumi Kurosawa and Yoko Reikano Kimura

On Thursday, May 24 (7:30 pm) Japan Society presents an evening with two New York-based master instrumentalists: koto player Yumi Kurosawa and shamisen player Yoko Reikano Kimura, who are revitalizing their instruments through novel repertoire, musical approaches, and playing techniques. The eclectic program will span traditional, classical, and contemporary works, including duets of koto + shamisen, shamisen + cello (Hikaru Tamaki) and koto + tabla (Anubrata Chatterjee). The recital will take place in Japan Society's serene and intimate Murase Room, with a cash bar at 7 pm. Tickets are $25, $20 for Japan Society members, available at japansociety.org/performingarts.

Yumi Kurosawa is an internationally recognized star on the koto, Japan's national instrument. Her solo repertoire includes classical Japanese compositions, as well as her own innovative and enchanting original works. She has been a featured soloist at Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, the Apollo Theater, Houston Grand Opera, and the World Economic Forum in Dalian, China. She has collaborated with Beyoncé dancers Les Twins, and performed with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra at Suntory Hall's opening gala. At Japan Society, she'll play a classic 17th century piece, a late-1970s duet with Kimura, and four of her own evocative compositions: Rapture, One Droplet, JB Transfer, and Enchantimenta, the latter two with Chatterjee on tabla.

Yoko Reikano Kimura concertizes globally as a shamisen (three-string Japanese banjo) and koto virtuoso, and singer. Acclaimed in both traditional and contemporary repertoire, she has premiered new concertos by Daron Hagen and Marty Regan. Awards include First Prize at the prestigious 10th Kenjun Memorial National Koto Competition, and First Prize at the Fourth Great Wall International Music Competition. Duo YUMENO, her duo with cellist Hikaru Tamaki, received the Chamber Music America Commissioning Award in 2014 and the Kyoto Aoyama Barock Saal Award in 2015. At Japan Society, her repertoire will include traditional works of the Edo period (17th century), plus contemporary master Toshi Ichiyanagi's spiky and energetic Rinkai-iki and Yoko Sato's mercurial duo Not a Single Drop with Tamaki on cello.

Less familiar to Western audiences than the koto, the shamisen (Japanese for "three strings") resembles an elongated banjo with a squarish body and oversized triangular pegs. It is plucked with a large, flared plectrum to produce a plangent, often percussive sound. Its fretless neck enables slides and glissando effects. The shamisen's lowest string is set low to its resonant, drum-like body to create a buzzing timbre known as sawari, akin to the rasping buzz of a low sitar string.

The shamisen's outer strings are usually tuned an octave apart, with the middle string tuned a fourth or a fifth above the lowest one (e.g., D-G-D' or D-A-D'). However, unlike Western instruments such as the violin or guitar, there is no fixed convention for the instrument's "home" pitch; instead, it is can be adjusted to suit the singer's register or the player's liking. In recent times, the shamisen has been taken up by jazz, rock, and even bluegrass players, who draw on its resemblance to the banjo to give the genre a Japanese spin.

For listeners around the world, the koto symbolizes Japanese music. Descended from the Chinese zheng, it was introduced to Japan from China in the 7th and 8th centuries. It is approximately six feet in length, with thirteen strings for traditional music, and up to 31 strings for contemporary compositions, on moveable bridges that enable changes in tuning. Wearing nail-like picks on her fingers, the player plucks the strings with her right hand, while the left is used either for plucking or affecting a string's intonation via bends and vibrato effects.

The koto has a wide expressive range; by turns, it can be spare or intricate, delicate or forceful, plaintive or exuberant. Since the 1960s it has found its way into pop, jazz and world music, appearing on tracks by the Rolling Stones, Queen, David Bowie, Anthony Braxton, Paul Winter Consort, and many others.

Since the inception of the Performing Arts Program in 1953, Japan Society has introduced nearly 700 of Japan's finest performing arts to an extensive American audience. Programs range from the traditional arts of noh, kyogen, bunraku and kabuki to cutting-Edge Theater, dance and music. The Program also commissions new works to non-Japanese artists, produces national tours, organizes residency programs for American and Japanese artists and develops and distributes educational programs. Wrote Back Stage, "At once diverse and daring, the program stands toe to toe with some of the most comprehensive cultural exchange endeavors today."

Founded in 1907, Japan Society in New York City presents sophisticated, topical and accessible experiences of Japanese art and culture, and facilitates the exchange of ideas, knowledge and innovation between the U.S. and Japan. More than 200 events annually encompass world-class exhibitions, dynamic classical and cutting-edge contemporary performing arts, film premieres and retrospectives, workshops and demonstrations, tastings, family activities, language classes, and a range of high-profile talks and expert panels that present open, critical dialogue on issues of vital importance to the U.S., Japan and East Asia.

During the 2017-18 season, Japan Society celebrates its 110th anniversary with expanded programming that builds toward a richer, more globally interconnected 21st century: groundbreaking creativity in the visual and performing arts, unique access to business insiders and cultural influencers, and critical focus on social and educational innovation, illuminating our world beyond borders.

Tickets & Information: Tickets for performances and related events at Japan Society can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 212-715-1258 or in person at Japan Society (M-F 12:00 pm - 7:00 pm and Sat-Sun 11:00 am - 5:00 pm). Japan Society is located at 333 East 47th Street, between First and Second Avenues (accessible by the 4/5/6 at 42nd Street-Grand Central Station or the E at Lexington Avenue and 53rd Street). For more information, call 212-832-1155 or visit japansociety.org.

Lead Sponsor: MetLife Foundation. Corporate Partner: ORIX Americas Miyauchi Charitable Foundation. Major Support: Doug and Teresa Peterson, The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Inc., the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, an anonymous donor, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional Support: Dr. and Mrs. Carl F. Taeusch II, Dean Jeanette C. Takamura, Gary M. Talarico and Linda W. Filardi, Hiroko Onoyama, Jun Makihara and Megumi Oka, Mr. Alan M. Suhonen, Jon T. Hutcheson, Amy and Joseph Perella, Sarah Billinghurst Solomon and Howard Solomon, Mr. Norton Belknap, Nachiketa Das, Louis J. Forster, Dr. John K. Gillespie, an anonymous donor, Jonathan B. Kindred, Ms. Paula S. Lawrence, Satoru and Hiroko Murase, Pamela Perlman, and Alex York. Endowment: Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Endowment Fund and the Endowment for the Performing Arts, established with a leadership gift from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. In-kind Support: Special transportation assistance for Japan Society's 110th Anniversary Performing Arts programs is provided by All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd. Yamaha is the official piano provider of Japan Society. MetLife Meet-the-Artists Reception support is provided by MetLife Foundation.