The Development Story

 The development of SHAMIKO began with the idea to revive the traditional Japanese stringed instrument called the shamisen. Seberu Pico Co., Ltd, the producer of the SHAMIKO, is a company with more than 40 years’ experience as a jewelry parts manufacturer. With deep knowledge and understanding of jewelry production, bringing out the best of Akoya pearls with its emotional colors and its vivid, brilliant shine, our Akoya pearl products have been exported internationally and have been received well for many years.

 

 

Naturally Sourced Beauty 

In Japan, there are abundant forests, and the nutrients that flow from the soils to the rivers end up in the seas which creates healthy seas. Healthy seas make a fantastic environment for creating beautiful pearls.Living standards have also benefited from the rich forests, and traditional housing and tools for everyday life have been created from the abundant “wood”. In addition, not only “wood” but also for “washi,” Japanese paper (wa meaning Japanese and shi meaning paper) is often used for interiors and as partitions in traditional dwellings. Of course, the tradition of “washi” has also benefited and has been nurtured by the abundant forests and water.

 We love the nature of Japan and want to preserve the culture, born in a rich environment, for the generations to follow. It is with this thought that we have been involved with pearl products for many years.

 

Product Construction

The body of the SHAMIKO is made of wood as the conventional shamisen, using a masu, a traditional wooden measuring cup in Japan. A round hole was created to produce the sound in the back of the body. The combination of squares and circles is the simplest and the most powerful design, and it shows the spirit of “discipline” and “harmony” of the Japanese people. The Japanese flag is exactly this design and the dohyo sumo wrestling ring is also of the same design.

One of the key features is the skin that is used on the body. The traditional shamisen used dog and cat skin; however, it absolutely makes no sense in this day and age to use such materials. Instead, we have used “paper” for the skin. Many people are surprised when they learn that “paper” is used for the instrument. The skin of the SHAMIKO is made mainly from pulp produced using a special manufacturing method. Not only does the skin not break, but the paper resonates with an exceptionally clear sound. Another advantage of adopting “paper” is that it can be painted. Since it is paper, it acts as a canvas.  Various art materials can be used to decorate the paper and the instrument can be finished with original artwork. 

 

Andon Shamiko

There are other reasons that the SHAMIKO is a novel musical instrument “ANDON SHAMIKO “can also be decorated as a lantern. “ANDON” is a traditional Japanese lantern made of wood and paper. The unique idea of bringing a musical instrument and a lantern together was designed to give stillness and peacefulness. The fusion of “music” and “light” was born out of necessity from the hustle and bustle of modern life. SHAMIKO began retailing in Japan in 2018 after a 4 years development period. The SHAMIKO story will continue.