Learning Togetherness Through Play: Children’s Songs and Embodied Connection in Japan and Ghana

You are cordially invited to attend a special presentation by Ethnomusicology MA student Miho Matsushita

Who: Miho Matsushita
When: Wednesday, April 8, 2026 at 12:00 PM
Where: Old Arts 3-47, University of Alberta

Did you ever play hand-clapping or circle games as a child? Such
activities are more than simple play—they are embodied practices
through which children learn to connect with others through rhythm,
movement, and shared moments.

This presentation focuses on Japanese warabe-uta (traditional
children’s play songs), while also drawing on examples from Ghanaian
fefe-hawo (children’s play songs), to examine how “togetherness” is
experienced and learned through the body. Based on ethnographic
experiences and audiovisual materials, it explores how children's play
songs are connected to their respective cultural contexts and what
meanings they have held within children’s social worlds.

Miho Matsushita is a Master’s student in M.A. in Music program,
specializing in Ethnomusicology, at the University of Alberta. She
holds an M.Phil. in Music from the University of Ghana, focusing on
Ewe children’s songs in Ziope, Ghana, and a B.A. in Music from
Kunitachi College of Music, Tokyo. She has over 25 years of teaching
music in schools in Japan, Zimbabwe, and USA, promoting music
education that integrates African music and children’s songs while
fostering cross-cultural understanding. Her research interests include
African music, children’s play songs, music education and African
Diaspora.