The youngest member of Bali Ganda Sari, an aboriginal performance troupe from Indonesia's Bedulu region, I-Gusti was playing the role of a virgin fairy whose dancing would bless and protect the audience and wider society. The group was performing in Taipei as part of the 2006 Aboriginal Music Concert organized by the city's Indigenous Peoples Commission. Other presentations were given by local aboriginal artists, including the Bunun Eight-Part Choir, Formosa Aboriginal Song & Dance Troupe, pop star Van Fan, and a group from the Camphor Tree Elementary School of Taipei County.
From first to last, their varied styles and approaches to music and dance manifest the diversity possible among human cultures, as well as their many shared elements.
The Balinese group was one of very few to have preserved the traditions of Bedulu music and dance dating back to the 1930s. Spokesperson Jenny Ma explained that, because of a plague epidemic at that time, musical instruments were banned from public celebrations, so people had learned to mimic their sounds with their voices for the rituals. During the fairy's descent to the human world in "Trance Dance," for example, the drumming heard by the audience was, in fact, created entirely by the performers' mouths. The three adult members of the group were capable of producing the sounds of all instruments played by a 35-piece orchestra, Ma claimed. Furthermore, she said, in Bali, people were taught to play music without music notation, relying totally on their mouths and body movements to remember the tunes. Newcomers just listened to oral accounts and learned by ear. Little I-Gusti had not even studied with her elders but simply started dancing of her own accord.
Among the groups and artists representing Taiwan that evening, the Formosa Aboriginal Song & Dance Troupe was notable for not being associated with any particular aboriginal ethnicity. Indeed, the troupe of 22 young people--with an average age of around 25--came from seven of the island's 12 officially recognized indigenous ethnic groups, the Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Paiwan, Pinuyumayan, Truku and Tsou. Nevertheless, the "Sa'aniwan Festival" performed by the group at the concert illustrated both the "ilisin" harvest festival and "pakalong" boys' initiation ceremony of the Amis people of eastern Taiwan, according to director Faidaw Fagod. Although most audience members presumably could not understand the Amis language used by the lead singer, they nevertheless responded to his invitation to dance as the entire group joined arm in arm with their listeners.
Fagod mentioned the difficulties of coordinating performers from so many ethnic groups, whereas Lee Tin, director of the Camphor Tree Elementary School, said that for her performers the problem was worse. Even though they might live in aboriginal communities in the Taipei area, they often no longer spoke their mother tongues. The choir had, therefore, been established to rekindle dying traditions. Such extracurricular activities were vital since, Lee said, "In general, the learning and academic performance of urban aboriginal children is not as good as those of Han Chinese. Moreover, most of their parents scrape a living with part-time jobs and cannot pay attention to the children's study." Teachers assisted students with extra classes 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., but tried to make them have more fun with dancing and singing.
"We want them to regain dignity on stage with their voices. They don't need to feel inferior to others; at least it can make them feel that speaking Amis is an honorable thing." Ironically, some parents were initially reluctant to let their children participate in the chorus, preferring that they become proficient in Mandarin as that would offer them better futures, Lee said. Her persistent efforts led to the group winning an aboriginal song and dance competition in northern Taiwan, and to their Amis-language performance "Happy Formosa Aborigines" Nov. 11.
The other side of this coin was expressed by local resident Huang Chun-mei who lives near Da-an Park. "We rarely have the chance to see aboriginal performances. My children learn a little about aboriginal culture in school, but they cannot see it in Taipei City." She admitted that, to someone of her generation, aboriginal music was still a largely alien sound. It was only since a number of aboriginal singers had become famous pop stars, therefore, that their voices have become known to the public.
One such aboriginal pop star, Van Fan, appeared on the stage later in the evening. Younger members of the audience pushed to the front to clap, wave their arms and get close to their idol. Like most commercial artists, he characteristically performs in Mandarin, however. Thus, the highlight of the Aboriginal Music Concert ended ironically with songs sung in the mainstream Han Chinese language. Nevertheless, in spite of performing typically romantic Mandopop songs such as "My Most Beloved," Fan said he interpreted his art in the spirit of energetic aborigines.
This is the reality of modern cultural diversity in Taiwan. Who is to say that an aborigine singing in Mandarin is any less authentic than, say, the Bunun Eight-Part Choir, which, like the Balinese group, made non-verbal sounds with their voices? The Bunun ethnic group's performance comprised a series of "woo" sounds, varying from the high-pitched "mahosgnas" to the mid-range "manda" and deeper, more resonant "mabonbon." The combined effort, which could last up to 12 seconds without pause, created the effect of having a beehive next to the listener's ear.
"The significance of our music is to unite and confront enemies together," explained music director Ibi Takiludun. One interpretation was that it represented a prayer for a good millet harvest, another that it symbolized the unification of the tribesmen when defeating invaders in the past.
Such similarities with the ideas and practices of the Austronesian group from Indonesia led to a suggestion from Ma that they perform together since, as she said, "Many ceremonial performances similarly make use of music or dance." There is no truer expression of desire for cultural exchange.