Reflection about Drumming Performance Sept. 1: Taiwanese Festival

On September 1st, 2014, the Dharma Drum Mountain Drum Ensemble had an excellent performance in Downtown Vancouver at the Taiwan Festival. The day started bright and early at 9 am at the temple. We had a complete rehearsal with the kids group and the adults. There was a bit of confusion with the gong and the orders, but overall everything ran smoothly. Once again, thank you to all the volunteers for the delicious lunch to keep us energized for the long day ahead of us.

At 12:30, we started going to the event downtown. My dad and Elaine’s dad put the drums in their cars, and we got a special parking spot. My sister and I felt so happy and important, just because of that one parking spot.

There were many people at the festival, but I was already familiar with the stage because I had performed there the day before with my tap dance group. I do remember feeling very nervous because I was never really clear about my gong section and the exact order of the performance. When we started however, I just focused on the beat of the drum and immersed myself in the rhythms of the group.

There were a few mistakes here and there, but, overall, the performance was memorable and excellent. We even got to share the eight-form moving meditation. I did not know we were expected to do it until a few seconds prior to the event. It was a great feeling to share the practices of Dharma Drum Mountain with others in our community, and I feel honoured (as I’m sure many others do) to perform our drum pieces. Thank you for reading my reflection.

Until next time! Amituofo!

(Shared by Julianne Nieh, Dharma Drum Vancouver Center )