The polyphonic strains of the lusheng are common accompaniments to the rituals, festivals and dances of several ethnic communities in southwestern China. The lusheng is a mouth organ made of bamboo pipes, each fitted with a metal reed, that are connected to a blowing tube made of hardwood. The instrument can be as short as four inches or as long as thirty-three feet, and a professional version may have more than 20 pipes. In Miao communities, the lusheng is a “talking instrument,” whose musical tones mimic the tones of speech, and is considered an important means for communicating with the divine or deceased.
Mo Ming performs as part of the Leishan Miao Music and Dance Group on Sunday July 13 at 3pm.
PRICES
Everyone: FREE
Saturday, July 12, 2014
12:00PM – 8:00PM
North Exhibition Common
235 Queens Quay West, Toronto Ontario
Sunday, July 13, 2014
12:00PM – 6:00PM
North Exhibition Common
235 Queens Quay West, Toronto Ontario
Mo Ming 莫铭
Mo Ming is a musician and fifth-generation lusheng maker from Paika, a village in Guizhou Province that is famous for lusheng making. He majored in lusheng performance at Guizhou University. He has also helped innovate on the traditional design of the instrument by combining stainless steel and bamboo. His uncle, Mo Yanxue, is a recognized master instrument maker who can make lushengsof more than twenty pipes.