Chinese Cultural Day

Yesterday I went to Liberty State Park to play zither(a Chinese traditional instrument) on the Chinese Cultural Day. My friend and I took a train transfer lightrail and walked 20 more minutes to get there. The weather was good.

The Libersty State Park is big, u can see the Statue of Liberty from the back. And then I started to think that it's kind of unfair, that Statue of Liberty belongs to New York, not New Jersey, while the liberty park is on our side. (:

My zither teacher decided two days ago that every member of the ensemble will also play solo at the performance. The songs we're going to play individually will be those we played in the recital concert in May. I got nervous because I'm still not comfortable for my solo, but then I said to myself:"Well, it's ok. I'll just play it. Who knows me? Audience don't. lol."

The performance went pretty well. Six girls in total, we had six solos and one ensemble. I wasn't really nervous. Because the atmosphere of the Cutural Day was convivial and lively. And I felt that I was doing a meaningful thing, making efforts to spread my culture. I love zither so much that I play the notes from my heart and listens to it with all my sense organs. The special tamber generated by zither is energetic, beatiful and unique. (Here's a youtube video: zither and piano. just giving an idea of the sound of zither.http://youtube.com/watch?v=cctwUsknGhs) I can easily lose myself in the music. I did, during the performance.

The Cultral Day is for families who adopt Chinese children. Through this event, the adopted Chinese kids are able to learn about their culture. I saw many families with their adopted Chinese kids that day. My feelings were ineffable. I think I was as thankful to those American families as the kids were.

I was kind of proud that I've only learnt zither for 5 months and I'm able to perform on stage with other youth in the zither academy who have learnt zither for at least more than one year. By listening to their solos, I learnt a lot and realized that I needed too much improvement. I need to work harder (:.

pictures on the performance(right hand corner). The background painting is the image of New York City in a way sort of like Chinese traditional painting. We wore red tops and black long dress that are traditional and festive.