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Jade Music Fest 2025
Panel: Multilingual Music in Taiwanese Indie Scene
Date: 5 November 2025 (Wednesday)
Time: 12:30pm - 2:00pm
Venue: Coach House, UBC Green College
Address: 6201 Cecil Green Park Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1 | Map | Parking
In Taiwan’s vibrant indie music landscape, multilingualism has become more than a form of expression—it’s a statement of identity, creativity, and belonging.
This panel brings together indie musicians HoNi 好日樂團, Shu Chan Chiu 邱淑蟬, and Shallow Levée 淺堤, whose works traverse languages such as Mandarin, Hakka, and Taiwanese, reflecting Taiwan’s cultural and linguistic diversity.
The conversation explores how language shapes musical style, storytelling, and audience connection.
From questions of linguistic equity to the creative possibilities of multilingual songwriting, this discussion invites audiences to rethink how sound and language intertwine in Taiwan’s evolving indie scene.
This is part of the Jade Music Fest 2025 program.
Sharing in English and Mandarin, with English interpretation provided.
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About the Musicians
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Shu Chan Chiu 邱淑蟬
A singer-songwriter from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, who creates music primarily in her mother tongue—Hakka. In 2023, she independently released her debut full-Hakka album Shape of Life, a folk-inspired reflection on growth, family, and hometown roots. With warm, expressive vocals and gentle acoustic melodies, her music carries the tenderness of daily life, offering a contemporary and heartfelt interpretation of Hakka folk for a new generation. the Arts – Asia.
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Shallow Levée 淺堤
Formed in 2016 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Shallow Levée is an alternative rock band whose music—primarily written by Yi-Ling—combines poetic reflections on self and society with a gentle warmth rooted in their hometown. Their debut single Excavator earned a Golden Indie Music Award nomination for Best Rock Song in 2016, followed by the acclaimed EP Soup & Ocean (2017) and performances at major festivals including Megaport in Taiwan and Greenplugged Gyeongju in Korea.
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HoNi 好日樂團
HoNi (“Good Days” in Hakka) is a Hakka folk band featuring vocalist Yizy, guitarist Mei Hsiao, and cellist Sheng Zhi. Blending heartfelt lyrics, traditional and modern instruments, and fluid classical-pop sensibilities, their music creates a warm and distinctive sound that invites listeners on a reflective journey through life, memory, and culture.
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Jade Music Festival 2025
From November 5 - 8, Jade Music Festival 2025 will host numerous performances across venues in Vancouver, with the aim to provide stages and linkage for underrepresented Chinese-language artists. Click here for more details. |
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Ticketed events in focus
Voices of Our Generations: A Tribute to the Mandarin Classics of the 70’s and 80’s
Date: Thursday, November 6, 2025
Time: 7:00pm
Venue: Waterfront Theatre
Address: 1412 Cartwright St, Vancouver, BC V6H3R7 |
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Forbidden City: A C-Pop Drag Extravaganza
Date: Friday, November 7, 2025
Time: 8:30pm
Venue: Revue Stage
Address: 1601 Johnston St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3S2 |
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The Circle: Jazz
Date: Friday, November 7, 2025
Time: 8:30pm
Venue: Performance Works
Address: 1218 Cartwright St, Vancouver, BC V6H3R8 |
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VKA Newcomer Awards 2025
The Vancouver Kaifong Association (VKA) has created an award for Hong Kong newcomers in British Columbia, Canada, who are applying or planning to apply for Permanent Residence. The VKA is a registered not-for-profit organization in British Columbia.
The application deadline is November 14, 2025. Read more
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In Conversation with “Finch & Midland” Director Timothy Yeung, Producer Ridley Tsui & Actor Jaden Kwan
October 5: The UBC Hong Kong Studies Initiative, with support from UBC Asian Studies, hosted Finch and Midland Director Timothy Yeung, Producer Ridley Tsui, and Actor Jaden Kwan for an in-person conversation moderated by Canada Research Chair Dr. Helena Wu, prior to the film’s world premiere later in the evening, at the Vancouver International Film Festival 2025.
The afternoon began by a sharing session from the guest speakers, and was followed by trailer screening and an open Q&A session. The event attracted nearly 100 participants who engaged in conversation with the three guests. Questions ranged from the director’s creation of the script, to the producer’s logistics of producing a Canadian film, and to the actor’s experience on set. (photos).
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Eco-documentary Screening + Conversation: “City of Shells: Our Forgotten Oyster Reefs” and “Breathing Room”
October 23: Co-presented by the Sustainability Initiative of the Department of Asian Studies and the UBC Hong Kong Studies Initiative, the event screened two eco-documentaries, directed by Mike Sakas and Daphne Wong respectively, that discussed the ecological status of oysters and Chinese White Dolphins in Hong Kong.
The event is followed by an virtual Q&A session with Marine Thomas, Associate Director of Conservation for The Nature Conservancy (TNC) Hong Kong, and Viena Mak Hei-man, Vice-chairperson of Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society, moderated by HKSI Student Associate Tim Pit.
The screening sparked engagement from the audience, asking questions related to ecological policy-making, and raising awareness on environmental degradation. The event drew close to 80 participants on the Thursday evening. (photos).
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Please kindly consider a tax-deductible donation to HKSI (support.ubc.ca/hksi). Thank you, as always, for your support of the UBC Hong Kong Studies Initiative.
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