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Archive for the AFC Events Category (78 posts)

Homegrown Plus: Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers with Chum Ngek Ensemble

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In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series with a concert and oral history with the Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers with Chum Ngek Ensemble.

A woman dancer in traditional Cambodian performance dress performs with another dancer wearing an elaborate monster mask. Musicians can be seen in the background.

The Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers and Chum Ngek Ensemble perform at the Library of Congress in 2017. Photo by Stephen Winick.

The Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers and Chum Ngek Ensemble presented a program of classical Khmer dance and music from the Cambodian court repertoire at the Library of Congress on May 25, 2017. This classical art is associated with the Angkor Empire (802-1432), a time when Cambodia was large and powerful. In traditional Cambodia, music and dance were always respected as offerings to gods, ancestors, and teachers. They could also connect the human world with the supernatural world.  Since the fifteenth century, Cambodia has shrunk in size and has become poor as a result of centuries of invasion, colonization, war, and political upheaval, but these art forms preserve the learning of a more peaceful and prosperous time. Cambodian-American Heritage, Inc. is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of Cambodian arts and culture here in the United States through its dance troupe and music ensemble.

Two female dancers dance on top of lotus blossoms.

Two Apsara, divine female spirits, dance on top of lotus blossoms on a stone at Angkor Wat. The main temple at Angkor Wat was built between 1113 and 1150. This photo was made between ca. 1900 and 1930. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3c12999

Cambodian classical dance, music, and song are connected to the Hindu history of the country and dances done as an offering to gods. Although dancing spirits, Aspara, are depicted on the walls of Angkor Wat and other ancient sites, there are no surviving written texts connecting modern artists to the meanings and traditions of dance as depicted in ancient sites. Still ancient reliefs and sculptures of dancers continue to inspire the living tradition. As the country became primarily Buddhist by the 13th century, the dances were adapted to the new religion. Dance, music, and song was also a part of official ceremonies and the Kingdom of Cambodia until 1970 had a large royal performing company. When the Pol Pot regime came to power all this was destroyed, as the new government tried to obliterate everything and everyone associated with the former government and Buddhism.  It is thought that between 80 and 90 percent of performing artists were killed or died in work camps during this time. Many of the survivors fled the country and did not return. Since the restoration of the monarchy in 1993 there has been a great effort to recover what was lost in Cambodia. Cambodians in the diaspora have also been working to revitalize their arts. Experienced teachers are treasured resources as they bear the traditions that must be passed on and have joined in an international effort to restore Cambodian arts.

Musician and composer Chum Ngek and dancer Sam Oeun Tes are two artists who escaped the Pol Pot regime and found their ways to the United States. Chum Ngek fled first to Thailand and then immigrated to the United States in 1982. Sam Oeun Tes cam directly to the United States in 1971. They have dedicated their careers to presenting, teaching, and preserving the performing arts of Cambodia. They collaborated in this special performance of the The Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers and Chum Ngek Ensemble. Enjoy the video and then scroll down for the oral history (direct links for both videos are in the Resources section at the end of this blog).

Principal musician Chum Ngek is one of the few living Khmer music masters worldwide who possess a vast repertoire and command of multiple instruments across various genres. He is a longtime teacher of Cambodian musical arts, and is the 2004 recipient of the Bess Lomax Hawes Award, the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship conferred upon an artist who has significantly benefited his or her tradition through teaching and preserving important repertoires. Chum has also received honors from The Maryland State Arts Council. He also teaches at the Cambodian Buddhist Society, Inc. in Silver Spring.

Principal dancer Sam Oeun Tes was trained in classical court dance at the Royal Ballet of Cambodia from Cambodia’s top dance masters. She performed for many guests of state before migrating to the United States in 1971. Since the early 1980’s, Sam Oeun has been the principal teacher and dancer of the Cambodian American Heritage Dance Troupe. She has also performed and conducted dance workshops in many colleges and universities on the East Coast. She regularly leads her troupe in both local and national performances at venues such as the Smithsonian, the Kennedy Center, the Library of Congress, the White House, and a host of other federal agencies and festivals. She has performed throughout the world in countries such as Egypt, South Africa, Turkey, and Taiwan. In 1998, Sam Oeun was awarded a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts.

In this interview, Sam Oeun Tes, Chum Ngek, dancer Chhim Bonavy and musician Chum Sovann (son of Chum Ngek) talk with Joanna Pecore, Asian Arts and Culture Center Director at Towson University, about their art and what it means to them (2017).

Resources

Cambodian American audio recordings and photograph documented as part of the Lowell Folklife Project, Library of Congress. (Lowell Massachusetts)

The Cambodian-American Heritage Dancers and Chum Ngek Ensemble, May 25, 2017 (webcast). Also on Library of Congress YouTube.

Oral History with Sam Oeun Tes, Chum Ngek, Chhim Bonavy, Chum Sovann, and Joanna Pecore, May 25, 2017 (webcast). Also on Library of Congress YouTube.

Hall, Stephanie, “A Dance for the Birthday of the Buddha,” Folklife Today, May 12, 2016. A discussion of the performance of the Lao Natasinh Dance Troupe of Iowa at the Library of Congress in 2006. A video of the performance is included.

Hall, Stephanie, “Dance!” Folklife Today, April 19, 2016. Includes links to more videos and blogs.

Homegrown and Botkin Plus: Ethel Raim and the An-sky Yiddish Heritage Ensemble

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In the Homegrown Plus series, and the Benjamin Botkin Folklife Lectures Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts and Botkin lectures that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole Homegrown Plus series here, and find the whole Botkin Folklife Lectures Plus series here.) For Jewish-American Heritage Month, […]

Homegrown Plus: Onnik & Ara Dinkjian: Armenian Song

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In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series with a concert and oral history with Armenian American musicians Onnik and Ara Dinkjian. Onnik Dinkjian, 89 years old at the time […]

Homegrown Concert Series 2019 is Underway–Find the Schedule!

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The Homegrown 2019 Concert Series is underway! All the concerts are free, noontime concerts in the Library of Congress’s Jefferson Building. Tickets are not required. This year’s series features Tuvan, Irish, Gospel, Blues, Balkan, and lots of African music! As always, you can find the series listed in several places on the Library’s website, including the daily event listings.  One handy spot listing the whole series is the Folklife Concerts page at //www.loc.gov/concerts/folklife/?loclr=blogflt

Homegrown Plus: The Sattriya Dance Company with the Dancing Monks of Assam

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In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series with the Sattriya Dance Company with the Dancing Monks of Assam Traditional Dance from Assam, India. This is one of two related […]

Homegrown Plus: Kalanidhi Dance Company Performs Kuchipudi Dance

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In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series with a performance of Kuchipudi dance by the Kalanidhi Dance Company from Maryland and an oral history with their director, Anuradha Nehru. This is […]

Homegrown Plus: Sheila Kay Adams

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In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) We’re continuing the series in Women’s History Month with Sheila Kay Adams, a singer, banjo player, and storyteller from North Carolina. Like Flory Jagoda, whom we featured last […]

Homegrown Plus: Flory Jagoda

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  In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. (Find the whole series here!) This is a special post for Women’s History Month, featuring an artist who exemplifies the importance of traditions passed from grandmothers to their granddaughters. She is […]