Van Lefan (Taiwan / Canada)
- 2 days ago
- 1 min read
Van Lefan is a Taiwanese interdisciplinary artist based in Vancouver whose work moves fluidly between sound, dance, Northern Shaolin kung fu, theatre, and visual arts. Singing in Mandarin and English while accompanying herself on guitar and flute, she blends folk, pop, and experimental textures into songs that explore ancestry, identity, and belonging. Her debut album What Holds Us Together? (2022) weaves poetry and soundscape into reflections on ecology and social justice, and her second album Unsent Letters: To Whom It May Concern (2025) continues that inquiry. In addition to performing at festivals in Taiwan and Canada, she also works as a theatre sound designer and spatial audio technician, approaching music as both craft and ritual.
Featured Song:
“Green Island Serenade” is a beloved Mandarin classic from 1950s Taiwan, reinterpreted here as a personal lullaby and a love letter to home. “This green island is like a boat / Gently rocking in the moonlit night / Oh girl, you are also drifting in the ocean of my heart.” As breeze and water carry unspoken affection, the imagery glows softly: “Long shadows of coconut trees / Cannot hide my feelings / The bright moonlight further illuminates my heart.” In the quiet refrain, “Oh girl, why do you still remain silent,” the song becomes both longing and gratitude, bridging childhood memory and distant homeland.
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