“We have different skin colors but become one through music.”
Createdd 2012-06-20 Hit 514
Contents
“We have different skin colors but become one through music.”
(Published June 05, 2012)
‘Angel Crayon’ from Seongnam received the highest award at the 2nd Multicultural Family Chorus Contest
◇ Performance by the ‘Angel Crayon’ chorus team, winner of the 2nd Multicultural Family Chorus Contest ⓒ G-News Plus
“We have different skin colors but become one through music.”
The Angel Crayon chorus group from Seongnam won first prize at the 2nd Multicultural Family Chorus Contest held at the Ansan Arts Center on June 3.
A member of Angel Crayon, Yamanaka Yasuko from Japan, said: “I was worried at first if I would be good enough, but the more I practiced, the more I gained confidence.” She added, “I am very happy that our team received the first prize especially as I performed with my children.”
The Angel Crayon chorus group consists of five mothers and their ten children from Cambodia, the Philippines, and Japan.
Mrs. Yasuko said, “The mothers encouraged each other. We have gathered together once a week for the last three months to practice singing and dancing.” Mrs. Yasuko’s two elementary school-aged sons also performed on stage.
The Angel Crayon chorus group sang ‘Don’t frown’ and performed an exciting dance routine which attracted a large audience.
Established in 2010 with children from multicultural families in Seongnam and Gwangju, the name ‘Angel Crayon’ represents the role of multicultural families in society: different colored crayons create pretty pictures together.
Mrs. Yasuko, who came to Korea fourteen years ago, said, “Nowadays multicultural families are widely known, but I had difficulties with my children’s education and other issues when I first came to Korea.”
“Government support and benefits for multicultural families have increased greatly. I want to raise my children well and return the favors we have received from Korea back to Korean society in the future.”
◇ The Angel Crayon chorus group won KRW 3 million in prize money. ⓒ G-News Plus
On the day of the contest, an audience of about 700 people filled the hall and overcame barriers of language and race to become one.
The 2nd Multicultural Family Chorus Contest this year was planned by Gyeonggi Province in order to improve the public image of multicultural families and support an atmosphere of healthy multiculturalism in Korean society.
Under the sponsorship of the ministries of Law, Public Administration and Society, and Gender Equality and Family, fifteen teams participated in the contest. Besides the winner, Angel Crayon, the ‘Hanpil Hanmaeum’ chorus group from Ansan sang ‘Paran Nara’ and earned a commendation award. ‘Happy & Dream’ from Seoul sang their own song, Happy, happy, while ‘Bingbongbang’ from Yongin sang the Doremi Song, with the two groups finishing in joint third place.
A government official said: “Gyeonggi Province plans to hold the multicultural chorus contest annually to promote a happy environment for multicultural families and expand healthy social recognition of multicultural families.”
A representative of Daumnuri Corporation, Lee Yeong-seong, said of the area from which Angel Crayon originates, “About 120,000 multicultural families reside in Gyeonggi Province. We hope children of multicultural families can grow healthily through singing and identify themselves as Korean.”
◇ Participants in the Multicultural Family Chorus Contest ⓒ G-News Plus / Yu Je-hun
ⓒ G-News Plus News | Lim Jeong-seon jslim123@kg21.net
http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201206051450107055C048&s_code=C048
