Events

[CLASSICAL] Let’s be honest, not many music lovers are tuned into the world of Ukulele virtuosity, but it’s not every day that a true master of any particular instrument comes through town. Ukulele Wizard, Jake Shimabukuro is just such a master. He’s been credited with redefining the undervalued instrument, been declared a musical “hero” by Rolling Stone, and even evoked comparisons to Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis. Shimabukuro has marked playing in front of the Queen of England as a career highlight, but he’s still hungry. On his latest release, Grand Ukulele, wherein he expands his sound to a new dimension with a 26-piece orchestra, Shimabukuro collaborated with legendary producer/engineer, Alan Parsons. “He attended a couple of my shows near where he lives in Santa Barbara and the concert promoter put us in touch. I was stunned. I mean, THE Alan Parsons? We ended up having dinner before the show and he casually mentioned the idea of possibly working together on a project. It was a priceless opportunity I didn’t want to pass up – he’s a genius,” said Shimabukuro about working with Parsons. Shimabukruo, the Ukulele Wizard comes to Kleinhans Music Hall on Saturday, November 7 at 8pm and Sunday, November 8 at 2:30pm to Perform with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. He’ll play a set of pieces that include Roussel’s “Suit No. 2” from Bacchus et Ariane, Byron Yasui’s Ukulele Concerto, Jacques Ibert’s “Escales (Ports of Call)” and more. JoAnn Falletta conducts.