Austronesian Musicians Unite for Cross-Border Performance at Beinan Site

Taitung County Government is hosting the "2026 International Austronesian Music Project Residency" culminating in a large-scale concert titled "Resonance of Sound: Deep Mountains 30 Hours Away and Islands 4,000 Miles Away." The free event will take place at the Beinan Cultural Park's visitor service center plaza, featuring a two-hour performance by cross-national musicians and dancers.

The concert showcases a collaboration between six musicians from Fiji and Southeast Asia and three local Taiwanese indigenous music groups. This year's program highlights the participation of two theater and music artists from Fiji, marking their first visit to Taiwan. Their collaboration stems from a visit by the county government to the University of the South Pacific in Fiji in 2025. The Fijian artists spent a month in Taitung, co-creating a musical and theatrical work with the local group Paliulius, which has received the US LIT Music Award.

Cultural Affairs Department Director Li Chi-Chung stated that the performance integrates ecological perspectives and climate observations from the Bunun, Beinan, Paiwan, Taroko, Rukai, and Amis tribes, alongside Fijian insights. These elements transform the global concern of "contemporary climate change" into a tangible artistic creation that resonates with audiences and encourages local reflection and action. The residency program also includes a return mechanism, inviting nine former resident musicians from Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines back to Taitung.

These returning artists will perform alongside local groups such as MAFANA, Dongbuqing, the Beinan Youth Choir, Sang Mei-juan Seredaw, and Balai & GaGa. The collaborations will also be recorded to preserve the valuable outcomes of these cross-national creative efforts. The event aims to foster cultural exchange and artistic innovation, drawing on the rich heritage and contemporary concerns of Austronesian communities.

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This work combines the ecological perspectives and climate observations of Fiji, Bunun, Beinan, Paiwan, Taroko, Rukai, and Amis tribes, transforming the global situation of 'contemporary climate change' into a creation that can be heard and felt, driving local reflection and action.