Chio-Tian Taiwanese Folk Drumming at Summer Streets NYC – Foley Square
August 6th, 2012 by Mr. C
(Photos and videos by mr c)
(drum team getting ready for a performance with Channel 2 news before show)
I had missed the Chio-Tian Taiwanese Folk Drumming and Arts Troupe perform at Hearst Plaza in Lincoln Center (U.S. premiere) last Friday but fortunately little chinese elves had told me that this dynamic drum team was playing at Foley Square by City Hall in lower Manhattan the next morning as part of the SUMMER STREETS 2012 before heading back to catch a 14 hour plane ride back to Taiwan. I certainly was excited to see the Chio-Tian group perform live after seeing the team featured in a Taiwanese film called DIN TAO: LEADER OF THE PARADE which was part of the NYAFF program last July. I liked but didn’t love the movie but I did fall in love with the traditional drumming techniques displayed in the film. So when I heard the team was making its U.S. debut in NYC – we had to make an attempt to see them perform! And you know what? The Chio-Tian Drum team did not fake the funk! They sounded more dynamic in person than in the film and the choreography looked like it came right out of a Wong Fei Hong or Once Upon a Time in China movie! I recognized at least one of the drummers from the film in attendance in NYC. The Chio-Tian team balanced a blend of traditional drumming & dance with a more modern & fun routine that the younger generation can relate to.
Din Tao is basically a religious Taoist procession which features drumming, huge body costumes of gods and an even bigger & taller body costumes of the Eight Generals. Drummers wear embroidered clothing and don tribal face paint. The eight generals serve as the “policeman” to capture and punish evil spirits.
Enjoy a few videos that we took at Foley Square of the Chio-Tian folk drum team below! Their performance in the U.S. was also in part to promote Taiwan Tourism! Go visit Taiwan!
Note: Summer Streets 2012 is an event planned on August 4, 11th, & 18th from 7am-1pm when 7 miles of NYC Streets will be opened for everyone to bike, walk, run, and enjoy festivities like drumming, rock climbing at spring street, receive a free bike helmet at 51st Street, soar through the air on a zip line at Foley Square, or just casually stroll along to experience the city streets in a new way.
(Zip Lining at Foley Square before the Chio-Tian Folk Drumming performance)
Tags: drumming, taiwanese
Posted in art, community, mr. c, music, photos | Comments (0)
