A Tribute to Art in the Name of Love: The 2021 International Artist Day Celebration, Part 2 of 5

How was the choir formed? What was the driving force behind it? Let’s find out from the documentary film about this remarkable choir. “It all started after Typhoon Morakot in 2009. At that time, my cousin-in-law was the principal of Liou-Guei Senior High School. After the disaster, he felt that we should have a music club to help keep children calm.” “What we want to do is to reduce the gap between the urban and rural areas. We also hope to broaden the horizon of our children.”

Let’s hear “The Song of the Southern King” they performed at the 2021 International Artist Day event. It’s a traditional Puyuma aboriginal folk song, inviting everyone to sing together joyfully. The children are joined by the Nibun Choir in this performance.

Following the aboriginal children’s choir is the Hoyi Cultural Heritage Dance Troupe. This young troupe is gaining public attention for its unique “Jia Jiang Street Dance” series choreographed by Director Chang I-Chang, who is also known as Ah King. This dance integrates the Taiwanese (Formosan) temple dance with modern hip-hop moves.

“Actually, Taiwan (Formosa) has a lot of its own unique steps and formations from the local temple dance. I thought I could integrate what I learned in my childhood with other things. The local cultures native to our homeland are the most valuable to me.” “So we should have a deep understanding of everything related to it, from the history and culture of the temple chief guards to the dance’s steps, formations, and origin. We should also experience them. Then, we combine this culture with new trends. When we promote our ideas, we help more young people to understand their local culture in the process. Consequently, those negative concepts held by some people will gradually decrease.”