Edmonton Heritage Festival: A Collection of Newa Cultural Performances (2011-2019) скачать в хорошем качестве

Edmonton Heritage Festival: A Collection of Newa Cultural Performances (2011-2019)

This video was the collection of Newa cultural performances performed at the Edmonton Heritage Festival (also known as Servus Heritage Festival) in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada between 2011 and 2019. The Edmonton Heritage Festival (also known as Servus Heritage Festival) is one of the largest multicultural festivals in the world. It honors Alberta’s vibrant cultural heritage and diversity. Each year, this festival held at Hawrelak Park in Edmonton. In the Edmonton Heritage Festival, many pavilions from around the world (including Nepal) are set to showcase their unique culture and arts and serve ethnic food items. The three-day long heritage festival takes place during the long weekend of August. Each year, hundreds of thousands of people (over 450, 000 in 2017) attend this heritage festival during the three day period. Nepal along with other countries has been participating in the annual Edmonton Heritage Festival. NECASE (Nepalese Canadian Society of Edmonton), a local Nepalese organization, has been coordinating/managing the Nepalese pavilion at the heritage festival to showcase Nepalese culture, arts and cuisine since 2000. In the Nepalese pavilion, many ethnic groups of Nepal including Newa ethnic group have been jointly contributing to showcase Nepalese cultural heritage. In the Edmonton Heritage Festival, many ethnic cultural performances of Nepal are performed at the Nepalese pavilion. Some of the popular Newa cultural performances are: Lakhey mask dance, Dhimay dance, Bhairab mask dance, and Kumari Charya dance. These ethnic dances are performed by local artists trained by Newa Cultural Society of Alberta (NCSA). Meanwhile, NCSA is a non-profit local organization to practice, promote and preserve Newa cultural heritage in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. NCSA was incorporated in April 22, 2013 under Societies Act of Government of Alberta, Canada. Dr. Hemanta Joshi is the founding president of NCSA. For more information about the organization, visit www.ncsacanada.com. Below are the brief description of Newa ethnic dances performed at the Edmonton Heritage Festival in Alberta, Canada. Lakhey mask dance is one of the most popular and terrifying ethnic Newa dances of Nepal. It is characterised by wearing ferocious mask of Lakhey, colorful costume and mane of black and white hair and performing wild movements with thumping music. This mask dance is accompanied by traditional music of Dhimay (a special drum) and Bhushyah (a pair of cymbals). Lakheys are man-eating demons in Nepalese folklore and are believed to reside in the forest. According to legend, a Lakhey falls in love with a young girl in Majipa of Kathmandu and starts visiting the girl in human guise. But when he is captured, instead of punishing him, the locals offered him impunity and allowed to live freely with his lover as he promised to give up his carnivorous appetite and protect the children. Since then, Lakheys are considered as the protectors of children. Dhimay dance is one of the popular ethnic Newa dances of Nepal. This dance is especially performed by Jyapus (people with agricultural occupation) of Kathmandu valley playing the musical instrument of Dhimay (a special drum) along with Bhusyah (a pair of cymbals). Dhimay is considered as the oldest ethnic musical instrument of Nepal. According to the legend, this instrument was invented and played by Mahadev, the Hindu god of destroyer. It is played in almost all ceremonial occasions. Dhimay is constructed from cylindrical hollowed tree trunk with leather pads at both of its ends. Its left hand side sounds louder than the other side which carries a tuning paste inside. The main feature of this instrument is its capacity to produce a multiple reverberating echo. The left side (Mankhan) is played directly by hand and the right side (Nasah) is played with a thin stick, made of cane, which is normally curved at one end. Bhairab mask dance is an ancient mask dance performed by Newa people of Kathmandu valley and Pokhara of Nepal. This mask dance is named after Bhairab, the god of strength. This mask dance was originated in Bhaktapur, an eastern city of Kathmandu valley. This mask dance is usually performed during Indra Jatra festival in September. This dance is performed in a group of twelve deities where Bhairab leads the group. The Kumari Charya dance is one of the ancient classical Newa dances of Nepal. This sacred spiritual dance is named after Kumari, the virgin living goddess or representation of goddess Bhagwati (the mother of the Hindu universe). This dance is based on Vajrayana, the practice of visualizing oneself as the deity. The postures and finger positions (mudras) in the dance have significant meanings. The tradition of worshipping a virgin girl as a living goddess Kumari started from 1756 AD. This year, the 47th Edmonton Heritage Festival is going to be virtual from August 1-3 due to COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit www.heritagefest.ca.