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Entertainment Columnists / James Reaney

World beat goes on

By JAMES REANEY, The London Free Press

Last Updated: July 8, 2011 10:09pm

Somewhere up in bluegrass heaven, there's a big ol' Sunfest smile all over Bill Monroe.

The late, great bluegrass master would have been pleased Friday to hear a surprise and perfect tribute to the Americana music he shaped on the second day of TD Sunfest 2011.

The surprise was that it came from four Chinese women, now based in Vancouver, called Red Chamber.

The group's excellence explains the perfection of their take, using Chinese instruments, on a traditional Monroe-tied bluegrass tune Katy Hill.

"We call it 'redgrass,' " Red Chamber's Mei Han, aka "the Zheng master," said in talking about the tune at the Kiwanis bandshell at Victoria Park. Redgrass is also the name of Red Chamber's album with Katy Hill as the last track.

"We're not trying to take American jobs. We just admire their music," Han said. Han learned about Monroe and bluegrass from a friend in music.

In playing Katy Hill late in a well-received set where the B.C. quartet's music could be traced from Red Chamber's homeland to Borneo and beyond, Han traded her zheng, a big instrument, for a liu qin. It's a Chinese mandolin -- and mandolin was the instrument the virtuoso Monroe handled on many speedy breakdowns.

Red Chamber is saving one of its Canadian tunes, a fiddle piece arranged for such instruments as the Chinese lutes known as the pipa and the ruan, for its weekend appearances.

Maybe it shouldn't be a surprise to hear something as new and old as "redgrass" when it's time for Sunfest. The four-day free world-beat best has 35 groups from Canada and around the world, all of them seemingly capable of blending sounds and beats from anywhere and everywhere.

Sunfest continues on the weekend, ending on Sunday night.

Colombia's Systema Solar and Chicago's Hypnotic Brass Ensemble had Friday's late-night shots.

Among the wittiest and coolest acts at Sunfest on Friday afternoon was New Zealand's The Mamaku Project.

Co-led by two francophone Kiwis, singer Tui Mamaki and effects and keyboards master Monsier E, the group was off to Europe on Friday night and should be preparing for a Sunday gig in Bremen, Germany by the time Sunfest's Day 3 is heating up the downtown London park.

"We let them dance on the inside," Mamaki said of the way her band helped Londoners find their groove under Friday's hot sun.

When it comes to moving with grace, Monsieur E has suggested the New Zealand outfit's music makes elephants want to dance.

A helpful visitor after their Sunfest appearance at the WestJet north stage suggested the tragic death of Jumbo, the huge circus elephant, at St. Thomas in 1885, might be something to inspire The Mamaku Project.

Some loud elephant-like sounds of lament from Monsieur E were heard immediately.

The group also had the wit to fend off cliche questions about knowing other New Zealand icons because it's such a small place.

They knew the famed spoof duo The Flight of The Conchords long before North Americans, it turns out. Mamaki and company knew them when they were "props for the All Blacks" - the rugby-loving New Zealand equivalent of a claim to have known the Tragically Hip when they played for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

On a more serious note, they recommended fellow New Zealanders Moana & The Tribe, who play Sunfest stages on the weekend.

Around Sunfest on Friday, there were sounds from Haiti, the Balkans via France, South Asia via the blues and many other delights.

Two of the scheduled acts, Niger's Etran Finatawa and Colombia's NVOZ, were kept from the fest by visa issues, possibly delays in their applications being processed. A new schedule was being distributed.

In addition two high-profile stage announcers, Philly Markowitz and Tim Tamashiro, have had to cancel Sunfest duties because of other commitments. Their slots are being taken up by other announcers in the Sunfest extended family.

With such changes flowing here and there on the weekend, it's good to have a friend like Juno-winning engineer Kevin Doyle of London around the bandshell stage.

Doyle is helping out as a stage manager for Sunfest 2011. Such a task brings challenges. The bandshell stage crew has already switched quickly from a 12-piece African ensemble to a seven-piece Peruvian act on Thursday's opening night.

Such changes are nothing new to someone like Doyle. He's perfect for multi-genre Sunfest.

After all, he's the only man alive to have worked with KISS and Glenn Gould in the same era.

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IF YOU GO

What: TD Sunfest 2011, a four-day world-beat fest.

When: Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. both days.

Where: Victoria Park.

Details: Free. Visit sunfest.on.ca or call 519-672-1522.

Read James's blog or follow JamesatLFPress on Twitter.

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