Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Sun, Wind, Grassland and Ocean - A Celebration of Taiwan Aborigines Music of the Puyuma Tribe

纪晓君 (Ji Xiao Jun) I got to know her from the radio. I really forgot when I bought this but the album was released in 1999 which is my 1st year uni. So, it should be from the late night program which I always like to listen to in 988. Hmm....I think should be the DJ Ji Zan Xiong. Her voice captivated me the moment I heard the song Puyuma Homeland 故乡普悠玛 a song deeply ingrained in her Puyuma tribe root.

During my recent visit to Taiwan, Chia-Chun, my host from Taipei told me that 纪晓君 is actually Jia Jia's sister (家'家 of 昊恩家家 - featured in my previous post) !!!!!!!!!! No wonder it's not a surprise I was attracted to her voice and immediately want to look for their album, considering the fact that I only heard a few seconds of their songs during the 金曲奖 award show when they announce the nominess!!!! So, it's fated hehe.....

You can search for 纪晓君 in YouTube as well. Some live performances available.


So, now who's this uncle pulak? 陈建年 (Pur-dur, his tribal name) is actually another great singer from the Puyuma tribe and given that Puyuma tribe is a minority, even among the minority Aborigine tribes itself, 陈建年 is actually uncle of both 纪晓君 and 家'家. Like 纪晓君, I first heard the song 海洋 (Ocean)from the radio and it got me hooked to it already. The voice is so synonymous to the feeling of the song, and you can feel the ocean, the wave, the strong wind the moment the song is played. After I got the album (courtesy of Sherry who asked her sister to buy it from Taiwan - by the way, thanks Sherry cox I remember she bought the David Tao's 1st album from Taiwan for me as well cox at that time, no one knows him and his album was not released here) 乡愁 (Home Sick) really got me addicted. The song is so touching and melancholic suiting the theme itself and if you are really home alone in the foreign land, I think it's not a surprise if you find yourself shedding a tear listening to it. A little trivia is that he's actually a police. How cool is tat?

It's a great effort from the music label TCM (Taiwan Color's Music) to produce and release albums from these unique tribes in Taiwan, who's famous with their singing ability. The album by Pur-dur and HaoEnJiaJia that I owned were released by them and Bravo!!!

P/S : Aborigines in Taiwan are well known for their singing talent. Think A-Mei 张惠妹, Power Station 动力火车, Shan Feng Dian Huo 山风点伙 (Jeff, you should blog about them - remember them? 深藏不露。。。。。。), Zhang Zhen Yue 张震岳 and Landy Wen Lan 温岚 (some aborigine blood) etc...

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