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Masks and drums from the Lion Dance at Canton Shrine; The lion’s dance is performed to chase away ghosts and evil spirits, and since the monsters, ghosts, evil spirits and giants like ‘Nian’ are afraid of loud noises, the dance has become a natural complement to the fire crackers' noise. Clashing cymbals, a gong and drums usually accompany this lively scene. The lion’s every movement has a specific musical rhythm. The music follows the moves of the lion, the drum follows the lion, the cymbals and the gong follow the drum player. Throughout the performance, the Lion will mimic various moods and demonstrate similar physical gestures allowing the Lion to look life-like. The lion dance combines art, history and kung fu moves. Normally the performers are kung fu practitioners; China Town, Bangkok

Photographer:Valeska Gehrmann
© 2008:Valeska Gehrmann at nationsonline.org