Ninette Cheng
By Ninette Cheng
Northwest Asian Weekly
Happy spring! This month brought some new beginnings for some Asian celebrities. In Tiger Woods’ case, he attempted to turn over a new leaf. Padma Lakshmi introduced a new baby girl to the world, Zhang Ziyi opts out of a film, and the cast of “Glee” is invited to the White House. I will also update you on how Asian American U.S. Olympians finished! Read the full story
By Peter Kelley
For Northwest Asian Weekly
Gabriel Manalac at work in a tiny room at the top of Denny Hall. He plays the carillon three mornings a week for about 10 minutes. The sheet music shows that he's playing the Beatles' Yesterday, which Robin McCabe, his instructor and the School of Music's former director, also played on the UW's carillon when she was an undergraduate. (Photo by Mary Levin/University Week)
Resonant, bell-like tones from Denny Hall sound the Westminster Chimes and mark the hours each day. But — have you heard? — three mornings a week, those magnificent chimes play music, too. Read the full story
By Samantha Pak
Northwest Asian Weekly
Year of the Dog
By Henry Chang
Soho Press, Inc., 2008
From the outside, New York’s Chinatown may appear to be a united community filled with not just Chinese — both immigrants and American-born residents — but an array of individuals with many different backgrounds.
But NYPD detective Jack Yu from the Ninth Precinct knows better. Having grown up in the neighborhood, he knows that there is a difference between individuals with roots planted in Mainland China, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, especially when it comes to the local gangs. Read the full story
By Andrew Hamlin
Northwest Asian Weekly
Chung-ryoul Lee’s documentary “Old Partner” begins with pain. An old man climbs a long set of steps to a temple. He carries a cane. He pauses after each step. He inhales sharply after each step, wondering if he will ever get to the top. The notion of enduring pain and suffering continues throughout the film.
Most of the film concentrates on a real-life family in rural South Korea. We see the old man, farmer Won-kyun Choi, his wife Sam-soon, and their draft animal, a seemingly-unnamed ox. Read the full story
By Ninette Cheng
Northwest Asian Weekly
Looks like it’s time for another update on your favorite Asian American celebrities! This past month, Tila Tequila made a fool of herself, Yao Ming finds out that he is becoming a father, the Black Eyed Peas head home with three Grammy awards, John Park makes his mark on American Idol, and “Lost” returns. Plus, I have updates on awards, television shows, and movies. Read the full story
One of high school student Steven Cong’s greatest passions is hip hop music. This is why he’s organizing a concert called Words of One People with some of his favorite Asian American artists. They are 1: Canary Sing 2: Know Choice 3: G.O.W.E. 4: Massiah 6: Nam and 7: Inglish (Photo 5 is Know Choice (right) with his co-performer DJ Rise.)
By Vivian Nguyen
Northwest Asian Weekly
For most high school students, typical after-school activities may include competing in a high school sport, performing in a music group, or planning the layout for the school yearbook. Read the full story
1: Michelle Yeoh, 2: Sheryl Crow 3: Masi Oka 4: Heidi Montag 5: Thakoon Panichgul 6: Rosie O’Donnell, 7: Rafael Nadal 8: Apl.de.ap 9: Kofi Annan 10: Cassie 11: Lady Gaga, 12: BoA
By Ninette Cheng
Northwest Asian Weekly
Happy Lunar New Year! This year marks the year of the tiger, the big boys of the safari. Like the animals, those born in the year of the tiger are known for their courage, intelligence, and strength. They are also honest (almost to a fault), resilient, competitive, and vain. Read the full story
Left: “Namaste Boy” by Cora Edmonds (Photo provided by Shelley Seale); Right: The facade of Cora Edmonds’ ArtXchange Gallery in Seattle
By Shelley Seale
For Northwest Asian Weekly
Sometimes, the smallest moment and a chance encounter can change the course of your life and lead to an adventure beyond the imagination. For Cora Edmonds, director of the ArtXchange Gallery in Seattle, that moment came in a mountain village in a remote region of Nepal. Read the full story
By Vivian Miezianko
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Apart from opera singing, what does Yu Seok Oh, a 30-year-old, Korean-born baritone based in Shoreline, have in common with renowned opera singers Renée Fleming, Ben Heppner, and Hei-Kyung Hong?
Fleming, Heppner, and Hong were participants in the Metropolitan Opera National Council (MONC) auditions in the 1980s. Oh also participated and won at the MONC Western Washington & Alaska District Auditions last October and is going to sing at the MONC Northwest Regional Auditions on Feb. 7 at Meany Hall.
MONC auditions
The Metropolitan Opera (the Met) in New York City began an auditions program for young singers in 1935. In 1952, the MONC was formed by a group of opera devotees from around the country to support the Met through financial contributions and volunteer work, according to the MONC auditions handout. The goal in having the council organize and establish regional auditions was to make the auditions a nationwide event.
Yu Seok Oh (Photo by Vivian Miezianko/NWAW)
Participants are to be identified in the district competition, compete in the regional auditions, and go on to the national semifinals in New York. Ten finalists are selected for the National Grand Finals Concert.
The baritone Yu Seok Oh
Yu Seok Oh was born in Seoul. Being the youngest of six children, Oh credited his late father for encouraging him to pursue what he liked. Neither his parents nor any of his five older sisters were musicians. Oh liked rock music when he was younger.
When he was 10 years old, he was inspired by a teacher at school. He was also inspired by opera singers in Italy, especially the late Franco Corelli and Mario del Monaco. Oh started taking voice lessons and studying music seriously. He went on to become a voice major in college, where he met a teacher, Professor Yohan Kim, who inspired Oh to overcome some vocal problems. Oh completed his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree.
At the age of 24, Oh decided to further his voice study in Italy.
Speaking through his niece and translator, Lisa, Oh smiled, recalling, “In Italy, the teachers were strict and anxious about everything. Sometimes they screamed, sometimes they made students cry, sometimes they slapped students.” Oh, nevertheless, was not distressed by his professors. He had good relationships with them, and they liked him — as he was always smiling.
He picked Italy because “opera comes from Italy.”
Not only did Oh learn much at the conservatory, he acquired valuable onstage experience as well. He had the opportunity to sing in opera productions in Rome and other cities during his four-year stint there. He was once invited to perform at a city hall, and Koreans in the area went to support him. They were all very proud of Oh and saw him as a representative for Koreans. Oh also won awards in singing competitions in Italy.
Oh came to the United States in September 2008. He is currently dividing his time between the United States, Italy, and Korea. He performs, coaches, takes lessons from his current voice teacher Erich Parce, and takes care of his 3-year-old daughter. Whether he’s studying in Italy or leading a new life in the United States, Oh, like many immigrants arriving at their destinations, experienced culture shock and faced problems with the new language, people, and environments. But he strives to adapt to his new life here.
As for what his dream is, Oh said, “I’ve been here for over a year now. America has all kinds of music performances. I want to study a lot of things, especially music, and have a lot of experiences here.”
Besides being one of the winners at the Western Washington & Alaska District competition, Oh won the Audience Favorite Award. “I was lucky,” said Oh, modestly. “It was my first competition in America.”
Oh was not nervous about the upcoming regional auditions. He wants to serve as an inspiration to others. “I’ve met a lot of good teachers. I want to inspire other Asians to participate. In Italy, I knew of people being discriminated against because of their skin color. I hope those people can be inspired by me. Lots of Asians are good at singing.” (end)
The MONC Northwest Regional Auditions will be held at Meany Hall on the University of Washington campus on Feb. 7 at 1 p.m. For more information, visit www.nwauditions.com.
Vivian Miezianko can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.
By Irfan Shariff
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
International action film star Jackie Chan wants to prove that he can do more than just stunts. With the release of “Shinjuku Incident,” Jackie Chan proves he has a dark side.
From acclaimed Hong Kong director Derek Yee, “Shinjuku Incident” takes Chan’s character, Nick (a.k.a. Steelhead), and smuggles him out of China into a life of crime in Tokyo. Although, Steelhead tries to lead an honest life, strange twists of fate lead him back to the yakuza, the Japanese mafia.
Yee explains that he first had the idea for the film in the late 1990s when he heard news reports of illegal Chinese immigrants arriving in Japan. As he researched the idea, he became fascinated with migrant communities and their growth.
By Ryan Pangilinan
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Like many Asian Americans, Edwaard Liang spent a part of his youth dabbling in various performing arts, whether it was playing the violin or being involved with martial arts. Yet, it was dance that has allowed him to build a respectable career as one of the most critically acclaimed ballet dancers and choreographers in the world.
“Basically, my parents and my sister [contributed to my career] — they were the ones who opened me to ballet,” recalled Liang.
