Music lovers are invited to bring lunch, join friends and relax to enjoy a taste of New York’s eclectic “underground” music scene.
Jangu drum dance, a style that combines poongmul, samulnori, elements of traditional dance, and Western drama into innovative compositions that enhance and modernize Korea’s native arts and preserves their fundamental forms. Vongku has been featured in tours of his homeland, Europe, and the Dominican Republic and in solo and symphony at Carnegie Hall. He has been featured on Fox TV’s Good Day New York and on recordings by Ishle Yi Park and by Xtatika. Trained by masters, Hyungsoon Kim in Suljanggu and KiBock Kim in Utdari Poongmul in Korea, Vongku performs today with his Jangu ensemble.
Julie Tay, a Singaporean anglophile on traditional percussion and Chinese yangqin features Xiao Xiannian, a rising star of the dulcimer scene form the foundation of this ensemble. Xiao is a multiple prize-winning, state-designated "First Class Performer" in China, and came to New York to partner with Julie. As part of their performances, Julie adds sidekick narratives and gossip to the music with drums, gongs, and bells. On the yangqin, a large-sized dulcimer, Xiao pulls all sorts of east and west material to allow the music to swing freely from scoreless folk songs to Pan-Asian pop, to Hollywood inspirations to self-styled fusion as heard on the streets of Beijing or Brooklyn. On the jembe, the wooden fish, or the big Tang drum and switching between Chinese and English, Julie spars with Xiao, thrilling audiences from NY to Tennessee’s Dollywood and at festivals from the Ozarks to Detroit.
New York City, NY; NYC