Music fills the air at the Juneli School of Nepali Language and Culture in southeast Edmonton, where about 20 children are learning instruments ranging from guitars to the traditional Nepali sarangi.
The Juneli School is an extension of the Nepalese Canadian Society of Edmonton, which has used a $12,000 grant from the MusiCounts TD Community Music Program, a national music education charity, to launch a music heritage program .
“Part of the goal of our organization is to transmit the cultural heritage and musical traditions to the young generation,” said Nami Shrestha, Vice President of the Nepal Society.
The Society used the grant to purchase guitars, traditional Nepalese instruments, and other equipment such as microphones and speakers.
Samriddhi Shrestha, a 12th grade student at Old Scona Academic High School, first learned to play the sarangi – a traditional Nepalese stringed instrument – while visiting her family in Nepal.
The violin-like instrument is known for its soft yet haunting sound. It is held vertically, much like a cello, and played with an arched horsehair bow.
The instrument is carved from a single block of wood, with two openings. Lizard skin is stretched at the base to cover the lower opening and keep the sound stable and deep. Traditionally, the playing strings were made from sheep gut, but Samriddhi said theirs were made from nylon.
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“I practice at home and take online classes,” Shrestha told CBC Edmonton AM. “I want to infuse that into my own kind of music that I’ll make later, so I can think about my culture.”
In her free time, Samriddhi does voluntary work with her parents in the Nepalese society.
Her father, Deepesh Shrestha, is the music coordinator at Juneli School. He introduced children to the sarangi and the tunna, a stringed instrument popular in the Himalayan region.
He said he has found it difficult to get children interested in the instruments in Canada and often has to give demonstrations.
“In Nepal, the children would look at them and see these instruments and they would be interested immediately,” he said. “Anyone can play a guitar, but this instrument is unique to them.”
Children are taught to play the instruments through virtual learning by teachers in Nepal.
Nami said it’s not always easy teaching children the Nepali language, but she’s found the music to be a great way to fuel ongoing interest.
“I think they’re more comfortable and like learning more about our culture, our heritage,” she said.
The Edmonton Nepalese Society was established in 2000 to promote Nepalese culture, art, music, tradition and heritage.
