World Music And Country Fairs

This weekend is chockfull of music and country fairs. Here are some of the highlights. 

Catch a cross-cultural live improvisation featuring contemporary and traditional world artists when Chinese pipa player Min Xiao-Fen and Korean komungo player Jin Hi Kim join  rhumba tapper Max Pollak. 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing, Friday 8 p.m.Learn more. 

Friends of Sands Point Preserve presents “Puccini’s Passion.” The piece tells the story of the famed composer, near the end of his life, as he reflects on his life and loves — how they became the inspiration for his operatic heroines. Tickets are $125 per person and include the performance, cocktails, dinner, and dessert & coffee. Seating is limited, and reservations are required. 7 p.m. cocktails and dinner; 8:15 p.m. performance; dessert and coffee after the performance. Learn more. 

Enjoy the annual Cow Neck Peninsula Historical Society’s Old Fashioned Fall Country Fair in Port Washington. This year's fair features a working blacksmith, a restored 1909 race car called “the Black Beast” that reportedly competed n the first Indianapolis 500, a pie-eating contest, art contest, pony rides, tours of a historic in a country store in a barn. Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Sands-Willets House, 336 Port Washington Blvd, Port Washington.

Join the Long Island Ukulele Strummers Club jam session. This self-described "rag-tag group of uke-crazed wanna-be musicians" meets Friday at the Plainview-Old Bethpage Library, 999 Old Country Road in Plainview. 7:30 p.m. Learn more. 

Visit the Long Island Fair Friday-Sunday as well as Sept. 27-29 at the Old Bethpage Village Restoration. This family-friendly festival offers a range of attractions, including exotic animals, prize-winning livestock, pony and carnival rides, as well as traditional live music.  There are fun-filled contests for kids and adults. Hours:  Friday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Entrance fees are $12 for adults, $8 for children 5 - 12 (under 5 free), and seniors (60+). “Dollar Days” are Saturday, Sept. 21, and Sunday, Sept. 29, when everyone gets in for $1.  The admission price includes both the fair and the village. Address: 1303 Round Swamp Road in Old Bethpage, exit 48 of the Long Island Expressway; for more information, call 516-572-8400