Hijos del West Marimba Group Goes to Taiwan

Hijos del West Marimba Group left Belize today for a month-long performance in Taiwan. The group out of Benque Viejo del Carmen was invited to attend the Yilan International Children’s Folklore and Folkgame Festival, where Belize will be the only country representing Central America and the Caribbean. The ten-member group that was formed back in 2013, will see five members, from as young as nine to fourteen-years-old, attending the festival. The performers will be performing Mayan cultural, contemporary and popular music. We spoke with an excited Ian Yacab who shares what they will be doing in Taiwan.

Ian Yacab, Hijos del West, Benque Marimba Group

Ian Yacab

“We will be one month in Taiwan doing folklore presentation for a festival named Yilan International Children’s Folklore and Folkgame Festival. We are very excited. This is the first time we are going to be attending an international event as going into a festival and we have been waiting a lot for this day. Since we started back in 2013, three years we have been waiting for this moment to step out of the country and hopefully other organizers of other festivals can put an eye on us and we can continue going out sharing our culture that we have in Benque Viejo.”

Andrea Polanco

“When you say folklore presentation – talk to us about what that entails?”

Ian Yacab

“In our presentation we are taking traditional music from Benque Viejo – original music, especially. We are taking Belizean music as well, like music from Lord Laro, Lord Rhaburn, Leela Vernon, Mr, Peetaz and so it is a variety of music that we are taking, as well as music from the Garifuna.  So, we are taking a variety of music, not just from Benque Viejo but from the entire country; from the creoles, the garifuna, the maya – mestizos.”

Andrea Polanco

“Played just on the marimba?”

Ian Yacab

“Yes on the marimba – played on the marimba.”

The group is being supported by NICH, as well as a number of other organizations and individuals. The group also worked with music enthusiast Carlos Perrote to prepare for the festival.