Some exceptional Ontario musicians of Asian ancestry will perform at this year’s Lunar New Year celebrations in the Deacon Room at the Varley Art Gallery of Markham.
As part of LunarFest GTA, EnCello Toronto will kick things off with a show called The Sound of Renewal at 12:15 p.m. on Saturday (February 1). This collective of top-tier cellists bridges cultures and generations through community engagement.
Founder Wendy Shih holds a master’s degree in cello performance from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the U.K.
“Through concerts, workshops, and community events, EnCello provides emerging cellists with enriching opportunities to learn, grow, and excel, fostering a vibrant musical community,” Shih states in her biography.
EnCello will be followed at 1:30 p.m. by Eunice Keitan, a soulful singer-songwriter with Malaysian and Hong Kong heritage. At the last Jade Music Fest in Vancouver, Keitan shared what it was like being a young musician of Asian ancestry in an industry and media environment that almost exclusively showcased people with European features.
“Music became like home to me,” Keitan said. “It was like the ultimate expression of freedom and where I felt my authentic self.”
Her intense and hypnotic song “Smoke and Mirrors” addresses how mass media shapes people’s realities.
Meanwhile, Keitan has woven aspects of Malaysian and Hong Kong cultures into her official music video for “No More Secrets”. Listen for the guzheng—an ancient plucked instrument—and observe the graceful Malaysian Zapin dance in the video below.
Watch Eunice Keitan’s video (above) for “No More Secrets”.
Juno winner Jacq Teh plays LunarFest GTA
At noon on Sunday (February 2), the Ho Deng Music Ensemble will perform. Founded by Taiwanese Canadian musician Jeanette Teng in 1997 to encourage youths to play traditional Chinese instruments, Ho Deng has grown into an award-winning musical group.
“Our goal is to provide a platform to introduce and broaden the knowledge of Chinese music through a mix of instruments to different cultures,” the Ho Deng Music Ensemble states on its website. “With years of diligent training and practice, our members have grown from amateurs to stage performers and show their talents in numerous community activities, corporate events and universities’ functions.”
At 3 p.m. on Sunday, jazz lovers will be in for a treat when Juno Award–award winning songwriter Jacq Teh performs. Teh is a vocal jazz instructor at the University of Toronto, as well as executive director of St. James Town Community Arts. She is also one of Canada’s foremost improvisational jazz singers.
One of her recent songs, “Like U”, includes Mandarin lyrics. Teh told the Toronto Spark last year that she has also started writing music in Hokkien, which she grew up speaking with her parents.
Jacq Teh recently released “Like U” (above).
The final LunarFest GTA musical performance will take place at 4 p.m. on Sunday. Roa HY Lee plays a traditional Korean instrument, the gayageum, which is a plucked zither. But she emphasizes that music has no boundaries and she passionately embraces fusion and new music. Below, you can see her 2019 collaboration with Sina Bathaei Santur at the Small World Music Centre as part of the Café Music Concert Series.
Watch one of Roa HY Lee’s collaborations (above).
Workshops, artisan market, and film screenings
LunarFest GTA embraces the theme of “fluidity in diversity”. The snake demonstrates its fluidity and ability to adapt to change. And festival organizers say that this philosophy underscores the celebrations.
They point to the exhibition of six artistic Lunar New Year lanterns in the Varley Art Gallery Courtyard as an example. The artists come from diverse cultural backgrounds.
In addition to the musical performances and festive lanterns, LunarFest GTA will offer interactive workshops and an artisan market. Plus, there will be two free film screening of Chen Yi-jung’s absurdist comedy, Granny Must Die, in the Deacon Room of the Varley Art Gallery. The first showing will be at 3 p.m. on Saturday; the second will be at 1:15 p.m. on Sunday.
Furthermore, the Varley Art Gallery exhibition Better Bitter coincides with LunarFest GTA. It features monoprints by Markham artist Karen Kar Yen Law, who combines printmaking with painting. These monoprints will remain on display in the gallery until May 4.
“Law’s work is deeply shaped by her Chinese heritage, particularly its cuisine, where balance in flavour—such as the transformation of bitterness—is essential,” the gallery states on its website. “In her latest work, the bitter melon serves as a symbol for exploring the concept of bitterness, both as a flavour and an emotional experience.”
Event details
The Arts for Canadians Tomorrow Society, Asian-Canadian Special Events Association, and Varley Art Gallery of Markham will co-present LunarFest GTA. It will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Varley Art Gallery (216 Main Street Unionville) and McKay Art Centre (197 Main Street Unionville) on February 1 and 2. All events are free. For more information, visit the LunarFest GTA website. The LunarFest GTA lanterns will remain on display in the Courtyard until February 16.
Learn more about the communities that make up Canada on the Toronto Spark website. Follow Charlie Smith on Bluesky @charliesmithvcr.bsky.social. The Toronto Spark is also on Bluesky @torontospark.bsky.social.
