Dragon Boat Festival festivities
On the VERIZON STAGE – A multicultural program with professional musicians, dancers and singers will be entertaining, starting at 10 a.m., Saturday and Sunday.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 7, 2010
10:00 a.m. Chinese Music Ensemble of New York
A small ensemble of the larger orchestra performs in repertory, dating over the last 3,000 years, on traditional string, wind and percussions instruments. The full ensemble of some 50 musicians is the only full Chinese orchestra in the United States and the Americas. They play every type of Chinese music on ancient and modern instruments.
10:45 a.m. Lion Dancers Perform on Stilts
11:30 a.m. Opening Ceremonies
A Dragon Dancing Team with percussions lead the team parade to welcome all and, together with invited dignitaries, officially kicks of the 20th annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York.
12:30 p.m. Jack Hsu’s’ Hsu-Nami Band
Internationally-renowned progressive rock band The HSU-NAMI band integrates an amplified “erhu,” a two-string spike fiddle used in Chinese classical and folk music, into an instrumental progressive rock sound. The HSU-NAMI band redefines the 1960s and 1970s fusion rock sound. Hsu’s music was featured in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
1:30 p.m. Malini Srinivasan and Her Dancers
Colorful South Indian Dancers developed in the courts and temples over the past 2,000 years bring their Bharatanatyam dances to the modern stage. www.malinisrinivasan.com.
2:30 p.m. Shaolin Kung Fu
Warrior monks from the Shaolin Temple perform martial arts. In the history of the Shaolin Temple, founded in 495 A.D., generation after generation of monk generals and solders protected the temples and villagers from wars and riots of society.
3:30 p.m. Napua Davoy’s Brave Cool World
Popular, classical and jazz idioms are mixed seamlessly with Latino grooves. Napua’s vocals, backed by her versatile musicians bring depth and freshness to the music. www.napuadavoy.com
SUNDAY, AUGUST 8, 2010
10:00 a.m. Carnegie Hall’s ACJW Ensemble
Talented young professionals of The Academy – a program of Carnegie Hall, The Julliard School and the Weill Music Institute – show their versatility across all musical genres.
11:00 a.m. Simon Yu C. F. Yu’s Exotic Experiment Band.
The band is fresh from a tour through Hong Kong, Beijing and Singapore and plays electronic rock music.
12:00 p.m. The Chinese Dance Company
The Chinese Dance Company performs colorful folk dances. www.chinesedance.org
1:00 p.m. Dana Leong and His Music
Composer/musician Dana fuses hip-hop, jazz and electronics to create a signature boundless sound. Often referred to as a “hi-def Yo Yo Ma,” Dana has revolutionized the cello with his cutting edge amplification, lyrical melodies and a collage of jazz textures and improvisations. www.danaleong.com
2:00 p.m. Shaolin Kung Fu
Warrior monks from the Shaolin Temple perform martial arts for the second time in two days.
3:00 p.m. American Bolero Dance Co.
The American Bolero Dance Company performs a variety of colorful Spanish dance styles including flamenco, zarzuela, classical and bolero. In the words of Jennifer Dunning, dance critic for The New York Times, this company “knows how to dance and sing up a storm.” www.ambolero.com
In the Arts & Crafts tent, some 20 artists will be demonstrating traditional Chinese crafts; including calligraphy, rice doll making, bead stringing, kite making, jeweled ornaments, ribbon flowers, paper cutting and much more. Children will also be able to try their hand at making their own crafts, while the Balloon Man and face painter returns to the delight and entertainment of all.
