A tiger chases a train, a dragon flies through the sky, women with pink flower petals transform the landscape, and a thoughtful girl rides the train through the Taiwanese countryside in this music video for Diu Diu Deng. The folk song is performed by Elena Moon Park & Friends from Rabbit Days And Dumplings, an album born from her efforts to increase representation of music from East Asia in the family music scene.
Animation and puppetry for Diu Diu Deng are by Maiko Kikuchi, who also introduced the dreamlike elements. Elena Moon Park explains:
The song is about a train chugging through a tunnel as drops of water fall from the tunnel ceiling onto the roof of the train. The drops make the sound “Diu Diu,” like a flipping coin landing on the floor. I listened to a number of versions of the song in both Taiwanese and Mandarin, mostly by vocal choirs, and oftentimes in rounds. The melody is believed to have come into existence around the beginning of the nineteenth century…
I think Maiko’s magical visuals can capture the imagination of the young and old. I also think Diu Diu Deng is a fantastic, catchy song that can be enjoyed and sung by anyone, regardless of your familiarity with the Taiwanese language. I am excited to share a beautiful work of imagination and tradition with the world.
The song also features Wu Man on the pipa (a plucked Chinese string instrument) and Dan Zanes on the banjo.
Follow this with more explorations of art, history, and culture: Traveling Through Brush and Ink: Stop-motion set in four ancient Chinese paintings.
Plus, Katie Melua’s Perfect World and more animated music videos.
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