The 7th Shanghai Baoshan International Folk Arts Festival ends tomorrow in the city's northern Baoshan District.

About 20 art troupes from home and abroad performed during the weeklong festival. The performances were watched by about 3,000 enthusiastic spectators.

Launched in 1995, the festival has featured 83 ensembles from 42 countries and regions over the years.

"I hope we can display some colorful folk arts to the world through this festival, leaving everyone a beautiful memory," said Wang Hong, acting director of Baoshan District, at the opening ceremony last Sunday.

The festival also featured several special activities such as "Folk Culture in Parks," "Friendly Visits in Communities" and "Campus Gathering," which provided a good chance for visitors to learn about the district's folk arts.

This year's festival featured groups from Israel, India, Hungry, Austria, Czech Republic, Spain, Congo, Brazil, Russia, Costa Rica and South Korea.

Also featured in the festival included dance and music performances along with folk painting, photography and crafts. Besides theater and open-air performances, there were also family visits by foreign troupes, community get-togethers and sightseeing trips.

Among the folk arts, some are listed as Shanghai's Intangible Cultural Heritage, such as Yuepu Drum and Gong, as well as Luojing Cross Flower Embroidery.

Drum and gong

Yuepu Town is well-known for its drum and gong tradition. During the Baoshan International Fork Arts Festival, Yuepu held its 11th Drum and Gong Festival on Wednesday.

About 28 performing groups gave a variety of drum and gong performances, folk dance and dragon dance shows on the street. Eight international art ensembles from Europe, Africa and the United States also participated.

"Of the town's 80,000 people, more than 1,000 are drum and gong performers, ranging from kindergarten kids to retired people," said Bao Yongming, an organizer. "We are very proud that we have 18 drum and gong teams in our town. They give performances at big festivals and sometimes are invited abroad."

Yuepu Drum and Gong is listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Shanghai. The first museum of its kind, Hundred Years Drum and Gong Museum was established in Yuepu in 2005.

It displays various types of drums and gongs.

The drum-and-gong performance has become one of the must-see programs at traditional festivals and ceremonies. The ensemble in Yuepu Town gave more than 20 performances at the World Expo last year in Shanghai.

It originated from the Danpi (Single-Face) Drum in the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). But Yuepu Drum and Gong evolved by mixing styles from around China, especially from Shanxi and Sichuan provinces.

"Yuepu has about 30 different ethnic groups and this cultural diversity led to Yuepu Drum and Gong culture, which is regarded as haipai (Shanghai style)," said Li Zaidi, 64, leader of two drum-and-gong teams in Yuepu.

The Wuhan native participated in the first Yuepu Drum and Gong Festival in 1994, which is now held every two years. Now she leads two groups - a waist-drum group of 80 people and a jin drum group of 30 people.

Almost all the players in the groups are retirees and aged from 45 to 75.

"We look much younger and are more energetic than our age," Li said.

"Playing the drum and gong is not merely an art but a good form of exercise and social event for us."

The drum-and-gong troupes created some new programs like "Celebration With the World," "Water," "Nezha Stirs Up the Sea" and "Shanghai's Warm Water."

"Based on traditional Chinese drum and gong skills, we created these new drum programs to enrich our performances," Li said.

Flower embroidery

Cross Flower Embroidery in Luojing Town is another traditional art in Baoshan District.

The art is passed down from generation to generation, but is close to extinction.

"There are currently no more than 1,000 people who know this ancient art and almost all of them are very old. We hope we can save this cultural heritage," said Yan Yuejin, from the Luojing Culture Center.

"I remember my mom and grandmother embroidered patterns like flowers and birds on cloths, scarves, shoes, pillows and so on," said 64-year-old Chen Yu'e, who was born and raised in Luojing.

Chen is one of the few masters of the art and she now tutors young people.

The embroidery is known for its simple but colorful patterns - generally flowers, vases, butterflies and some other Chinese traditional patterns that refer to luck and happiness, according to the cultural center.

But the stitching is not easy. Only embroidering with the pin and the cotton cloth, it is time-consuming and requires good eyesight. It takes three days to finish a small 400-square-centimeter piece of cloth.

"All the stitching is according to the lines of the cloth. When you finish embroidering a pattern, the opposite side of the cloth is leveled off as well. It's one of the features of Luojing Cross Flower Embroidery," Chen said.

The skill dates back about 400 years.

"There were three different colors used at the time - dark blue, white and sky blue," Chen said. The dark blue was for older women; white was commonly used; and sky blue was for newly married women.

Chen is now a grandmother of two young girls. She said that although they can buy many beautiful dresses and shoes, she still enjoys embroidering for her granddaughters.

The town organized a three-month course for free in July.

Chen and seven others gave lectures to 100 young locals around 30 years old, teaching them hand by hand.

The skill was also exhibited at the World Expo last year. Embroidered products were presented as gifts to all participants at the 6th Baoshan International Fork Arts Festival.

Introducingforeign troupes

? Edelweiss Folkdance, from Austria
Founded in 1936, the group preserves traditional Carinthian dancing from southern Austria. From different backgrounds and professions, the group members have kept the tradition alive.

? Bumba Meu Boi de Morros, from Brazil
Founded in 1971, the ensemble preserves the oldest cultural tradition of the Maranho inhabitants in Brazil. Today it is one of the most important groups in Maranho. The themes of their shows are usually related to love and fraternity.

? Kiters Dance Crew, from Russia
The group is known for its slightly rebellious dances. It takes various styles such as American tap dance, waltz, flamenco and creates something new. The crew is led by a choreographer who has more than 20 years of experience.

? African Congo Jambo Starts, from Congo
This band is known for its passion. They excel at creating wonderful rhythms and beats. The performers exude charisma and usually are a hit with spectators.

? Matambu Folkloric Ensemble, from Costa Rica
This young group was founded in early 1998 and has strong reputation in performing arts. They chose the name Matambu because of their objective of preserving traditional cultural features in dance and music.

? Pisecan Folklore Group, from Czech Republic
This group was founded 35 years ago. With about 40 members, they take an active interest in the customs, songs and folk dances from south and west Bohemia.

? VRSATEC, from Slovakia
VRSATEC was founded in 1953. Young people of different professions who have a passion for traditional folk arts have joined this talented ensemble.

? Escola de Ball de Bot Calabruix, from Spain
The group is mainly dedicated to preserving the dance and music traditions of Mallorca. They also organize workshops to spread the arts while also performing around the world.

? TOKOL Folk Dance Ensemble from Hungary
The songs and dances of different Hungarian regions and the folklores of the local people form a significant part of its repertoire.

? Santhi Budaya Art Foundation North Bali, from Indonesia
The group performs traditional dances and music from the island of Bali in Indonesia.