2009 Asia-Pacific Traditional Arts Festival- Legend of Mekong River
The 2009 Asia-Pacific Traditional Arts Festival organized by the Preparatory Office for the National Headquarters of Taiwan Traditional Arts will be held from October 3rd to 11th. Nearly 100 performing teams and artisans from five nations of the Indochina Peninsula will bring a feast of cultures and arts to the audiences in Taiwan. The nine-day event will be filled by a lineup of foreign performing groups and exhibitions in two stages. The first stage will feature brilliant performances brought by the Tre Viet Band, Samarm and His Folk Art Ensemble of Laos, and the traditional music and dance group from Srinakharinwirot University.
The Tre Viet Band is formed by the multi-talented master performer, Dinh Ha Linh and four other musicians. This time, they will bring their secret weapon- the Dan Da. This is the début performance of this 12-scale stone-slab instrument in Taiwan. This instrument was invented 10 thousand years ago. It was discovered during the French Colonial Period. Though it weights 50kg, it makes a clean and pleasing sound. Performance of K'longput will also be featured in this year’s event. K'longput is a bamboo tube instrument played by clapping of the player’s hands. The player of K'longput uses his palms to form a bowl and clap air into the tube. From the beginning to the end, the player’s hands do not come into direct contact with the instrument, but interesting pitches are created by controlling the instrument over the air. It has been said that players of K'longput often prepare a bucket of cool water to relieve their swollen hands after practice. The highly representative single-string instrument, Dan Bau, and tenor bamboo xylophone, T’rung, in a triangular shape looking like a sail, will also be presented in the event. So, don’t miss the interesting shows.
Due to complex international factors, the Asia-Pacific Traditional Arts Festival has never been successful in inviting performing groups from Laos. This year, we are honored to present the Samarm and His Folk Art Ensemble of Laos. Laos National Treasure singing and chanting poet (Mor Lam), Samarm will present the traditional folk music of Laos called Lam. Lam is performed through interesting dialogues or interplay of witty questions and answers with accompaniment of the Lao style reed pipe instrument. The humorous and witty dialogues presented in Lam are mostly stories of unwavering love, Buddhism teachings, or social reflections. The social status of Mor Lam may not be high, but they are honored for a special status in the society. The accompanying artists from Laos will also perform the special dances of the minority ethnics.
The traditional dance group from Srinakharinwirot University will bring the traditional Thai Palace Mask Dance “Kong”. Kong is a performance requiring tightly knitted synchronization among the dancers, musicians, and narrator. It is an art integrated with dance, music, poetry, and martial arts. And a large lineup of costumes, masks, and hair pieces are required to complete a performance. Therefore, it is considered as the most refined performing art of Thailand. The stories told in the dances are mostly themed upon the topics of fights against evil and the backdrop is often based upon the epic poem of the Ramayana. The actors use hand gestures and 68 different body movements to express the behaviors and emotions of the characters of the stories. Each dance step and gesture in the dance represents specific meanings. This group of teachers and students from the highest art institution of Thailand will also perform the representative Thai classic music, Pi Phat, Klung-sai, and Mahori, as well as the music of the ethnic minorities of Northern Thailand.
Other than the series of featured shows, the organizer has especially planned a series of peripheral events, including the pre-festival seminars, craft demonstrations, workshops, and in-depth knowledge forums. Worth mentioning is that to deepen the experience of the viewers to the cultures of the Mekong River, the organizers have especially planned the Golden Music and Dance-Legend of Mekong River Exploration Map activity. All participants are eligible to request an exploration map at the service counter, and anyone who successfully collects four stamps will be qualified to enter the luck draw. Prizes include travel packages with air tickets to Vietnam, vouchers to the Futai Dongshan Mansion Craft Tour, and more. For information regarding the exhibitions and shows, please call the National Center for Traditional Arts at (03) 950-7711 or visit the Web site http://www.ncfta.gov.tw.
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◎ Event Contact: The Preparatory Office for the National Headquarters of Taiwan Traditional Arts;
Xu Tian-Xia (許天俠) at (03) 970-5815 ext. 1368 or 0934293634
◎ News Contact: The Preparatory Office for the National Headquarters of Taiwan Traditional Arts;
Lian Jia-Ying (連家瑩) at (03) 970-5815 ext. 2067 or 0939794713
The Preparatory Office for the National Headquarters of Taiwan Traditional Arts;
Chen Yi-Ling (陳羿伶); (03) 970-5815 ext. 2066 or 0953096650
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