NTDTV Gala in Taipei Well-Acclaimed
By Wu Jinxi
Epoch Times
January 13, 2006
Two shows of New Tang Dynasty’s Chinese New Year Gala in Taipei were successfully held at the Taipei Community Center on Jan. 11 and 12. The show reflected both classical and contemporary music with contributions by many well-known performers. The final number on the program “Series of Songs for the New Year” by the New Tang Dynasty Chorus won a standing ovation.
This is the third annual NTDTV New Year’s gala. Since the NTDTV’s gala uses both traditional and untraditional art forms in performances, the artists of Taiwan paid increasing attention to the gala and more and more artists expressed interest in performing for this year’s gala. Taiwan’s President Chen Shui-Bian, Vice President Annette Lu, Mayor of Taipei, Ma Ying-Jeou, all sent their greetings to the gala.
The gala started with the imposing number “New Tang Dynasty Flag and Drum Team.” The Peking Opera Master Cao Fuyong created a wonderful performance, “Triumph” to match the drum and the flag performance. Dancers from Taiwan’s National University of Fine Arts performed dances “Music Dance Dunhuang,” “Flying Flowers,” “Music Dance Dunhuang” with stage scenes displaying the magnificence of Dunhuang Murals and the auspicious scenes of a Buddha’s world.
The father of folk rhyme, a native Taiwanese, Hu Defu; folk singer, Huang Dacheng; and famous violinist, Su Xianda also contributed performances at the gala. Su Xianda played four pieces of music and of them “Our Master” was composed by Falun Gong practitioners. Huang Dacheng sang three songs written by Falun Gong practitioners. Hu Defu sang his representative songs “In a Hurry,” “Beautiful Ears of Grain,” and “The Beautiful Island.” They wished the audience a happy New Year.
The performances were broadcast live outside the center. In the intermission, the New Tang Dynasty Drum Team played a near-distance performance for the audience and won warm applause.
The gala was concluded with a song that sings the praise of “Truthfulness, Benevolence, and Tolerance” by the New Tang Dynasty Chorus. National Examination Preparation Committee member, Qiu Huajun, said, “The gala is a sumptuous feast of art and music performances in both classical and contemporary styles. It displays how different races can live together in harmony. The dance performances displayed oriental strength in interpretation and reflected beauty in the details.”
Others from the audience commented that the gala performances are original and the gala covers the traditional, contemporary, oriental, Western arts and music. One concert go-er commented, “This gala showed a high level of artistry and was simply wonderful to experience.”
The 2006 NTDTV Gala consists of more than 20 shows that will take place in 17 major cities around world. There are 5 shows in Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung, Taiwan.