Flushing Town Hall Celebrates Lunar New Year

On Sunday, January 26, experience the traditional wind and percussion music which has accompanied birth and death celebrations of the people of Central-Eastern China for more than 600 years when Flushing Town Hall presents the acclaimed Zhou Family Band.

Coming from Lingbi, Anhui Province, part of the Central Plain area which formed the cradle of Chinese civilization, the Zhou family have been musicians for seven generations, and are bearers of a tradition that represents the finest of Chinese folk music – Bolin Laba, a national intangible cultural heritage of China as declared by the Chinese government.

The BBC raves that the Zhou Family Band has “tremendous energy” and The Guardian calls them “China’s avant-garde,” and The Sunday Times raved about one performance, declaring it “a joyful, exuberant set, quite novel to western ears.”

The Zhou Family Band performance at Flushing Town Hall is co-presented with World Music Institute. Tickets—$12 for members and students, $18 for non-members, and free for teens—to the 2:00 PM performance are available at www.flushingtownhall.org.

Zhou Family Band performs at weddings, funerals, and rituals of worship to their ancestors and welcoming deities. They play suona shawm, sheng mouth organ, dizi flute, Chinese drums and cymbals, kaxi (a combination of voice and blown instrument played by the same musician to imitate opera singing), and often blend theatrical stunts and music, to make their performance even more spectacular. In recent years, they have also performed at international festivals such as WOMAD (UK), Sfinks Mixed (Belgium), and World Music Festival Chicago.

Zhou Jingzhi, founder of the Zhou Family Band, played in the Royal Court of the Qing Dynasty. After the era of dynastic China came to an end, later generations of the family made their living by playing at local ceremonies. Now more than 100 members of the Zhou family and over 1000 students are active in playing at rituals in their hometown and the adjacent areas.

The event is among an array of Lunar New Year activities presented by Flushing Town Hall in celebration of the Year of the Rat. Flushing Town Hall is hosting weeks of activities in celebration, providing audiences of all ages with multiple opportunities to experience and revel in the festivities.

Flushing Town Hall is accessible by car, bus, train and foot—located a short distance from the 7 train—at 137-35 Northern Blvd., in Flushing, Queens. Access for wheelchair users and individuals with limited mobility is available. More information is available at www.flushingtownhall.org.

In 2020, Flushing Town Hall will continue to open its doors to teenagers for free. Under the “Teen Access Program,” all 13- to 19-year-old boys and girls (whether a member or not) will be welcomed to attend any performance for free. The program is designed to appeal to students and help foster a greater love in the arts and culture.

—World Music Institute co-presents this special performance on January 26—

“tremendous energy” – BBC

“China’s avant-garde” – The Guardian

– Tickets now on sale at www.flushingtownhall.org –