Though Haitang Typhoon did its best to dampen the festive spirit during the first half of the Taipei International Choral Festival, there are still several good reasons to make it to the National Concert Hall for the festival's last three days, rain or shine.
Those reasons are Denmark's Vocal Line, Canada's Winnipeg Singers and several local choral groups including the Semiscon Vocal Band, Formosa Singers, the Taipei Philharmonic Choir, and various school choirs.
Tonight's concert pairs Vocal Line with Taiwan's own Semiscon Vocal Band. The 30-member Vocal Line is dedicated to contemporary acapella ? jazz, pop and rock ? as well as some classical avant garde. If you were one of those kids in college that never missed a midnight acapella concert, you won't want to miss tonight's show, with arrangements from Joni Mitchell, Alicia Keys and more of your favorite singers. Acapella has a tendency to come out poorly in recordings, but Vocal Line's sound is stellar, which says something about how the group must sound live.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TAIPEI ARTS INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION
The three-year-old Taiwanese acapella sensation Semiscon Vocal Band is set to give their Danish counterparts a run for their money. With their creative use of voices, texture, rhythm and harmony, Semiscon takes the concept of imitating musical instruments to a new level. One of their hits is Soul Bossa Nova in which different members imitate trumpets, saxophones and a drum set. Semiscon is a group of performers as much as it is a group of singers and they get full marks for personality.
For a change of pace,
tomorrow's concert features more traditional choral music from around the world, provided by the Winnipeg Singers and the Formosa Singers. Founded in the 1930s, the Winnipeg Singers are regarded as one of Canada's finest choral ensembles with a repertoire spanning from the Renaissance to the present.
The choir's formative gigs were regular broadcasts on CBC radio in the 1970s, where they explored both sacred and secular music. Each year the Winnipeg Singers commissions new works by Canadian composers, and tomorrow night's lineup also includes Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninov and US composer Samuel Barber.
The Formosa Singers, who are dedicated to "expressing the essence of Taiwan in song," will treat audiences to new arrangements of old folk songs -- Hakka, Hokkien, Aboriginal and Japanese -- and they'll throw in a few contemporary world masterpieces for good measure.
For the most acts stuffed into one night, buy your tickets for the Festival's final concert on Sunday, which brings back acts from earlier in the week such as the Parahyangan Catholic University Choir from Indonesia and the Orfeon Chamber Choir from Turkey. The Vocal Line will also be performing, as will the Taipei Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra. Solo acts include a soprano, a tenor and a rapper.
Tickets, priced from NT$300 to NT$1,500 are available through Artsticket: (02) 3393 9888, or www.artsticket.com.tw. The National Concert Hall is at 21-1 Zhongshan S Rd, Taipei
(
May 18 to May 24 Pastor Yang Hsu’s (楊煦) congregation was shocked upon seeing the land he chose to build his orphanage. It was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the only way to access it was to cross a river by foot. The soil was poor due to runoff, and large rocks strewn across the plot prevented much from growing. In addition, there was no running water or electricity. But it was all Yang could afford. He and his Indigenous Atayal wife Lin Feng-ying (林鳳英) had already been caring for 24 orphans in their home, and they were in
On May 2, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), at a meeting in support of Taipei city councilors at party headquarters, compared President William Lai (賴清德) to Hitler. Chu claimed that unlike any other democracy worldwide in history, no other leader was rooting out opposing parties like Lai and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). That his statements are wildly inaccurate was not the point. It was a rallying cry, not a history lesson. This was intentional to provoke the international diplomatic community into a response, which was promptly provided. Both the German and Israeli offices issued statements on Facebook
Even by the standards of Ukraine’s International Legion, which comprises volunteers from over 55 countries, Han has an unusual backstory. Born in Taichung, he grew up in Costa Rica — then one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — where a relative worked for the embassy. After attending an American international high school in San Jose, Costa Rica’s capital, Han — who prefers to use only his given name for OPSEC (operations security) reasons — moved to the US in his teens. He attended Penn State University before returning to Taiwan to work in the semiconductor industry in Kaohsiung, where he
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday delivered an address marking the first anniversary of his presidency. In the speech, Lai affirmed Taiwan’s global role in technology, trade and security. He announced economic and national security initiatives, and emphasized democratic values and cross-party cooperation. The following is the full text of his speech: Yesterday, outside of Beida Elementary School in New Taipei City’s Sanxia District (三峽), there was a major traffic accident that, sadly, claimed several lives and resulted in multiple injuries. The Executive Yuan immediately formed a task force, and last night I personally visited the victims in hospital. Central government agencies and the
RSS