Interviewing people outside of a hardcore show at The Haven in Pomona, CA about the craziest things they've witnessed at a HC show. 

Thank you for The Haven for letting me do this, my good friend Armie for helping me with this project, and especially Harv, Emma, Salem, Moses, Omar, Daniel, Abbey, Chris, Desirae, Cour, and Tiernan.

Hardcore At The Haven

Myanmar immigrants are often separated from their families and 2nd generation refugee children have minimal connection to their motherland however, the music and sounds they grew up listening to, although unrecognized, is a form of cultural place-making. Whether it is hearing the music played at family gatherings or single mothers playing their favorite oldies on a cassette tape player in a two bedroom apartment shared by eight people, these are all ways immigrants reminisce and cherish their memories of the homeland before the war and living in the refugee camps.

 However, people like Ni Ni Win Shwe and Dr. Min Swe and are one of the few preserving the dying art of classical Burmese Music. Mahar Gita, which means “great music” in Sanskrit, refers to the historical musical ensembles played for the royal court, and have their roots in poetry. Nowadays, Mahar Gita is rarely heard elsewhere apart from weddings and there is a growing lack of commitment to keep this tradition alive from the younger generations. Unexpectedly, the sounds of Mahar Gita are still shared outside of Myanmar in the Western countries where many Myanmar refugees and immigrants made a new home.

Musical Placemaking Away from the Homeland: The Power of Song in the Myanmar-American Diaspora

Myanmar immigrants are often separated from their families and 2nd generation refugee children have minimal connection to their motherland however, the music and sounds they grew up listening to, although unrecognized, is a form of cultural place-making. Whether it is hearing the music played at family gatherings or single mothers playing their favorite oldies on a cassette tape player in a two bedroom apartment shared by eight people, these are all ways immigrants reminisce and cherish their memories of the homeland before the war and living in the refugee camps.

However, people like Ni Ni Win Shwe and Dr. Min Swe and are one of the few preserving the dying art of classical Burmese Music. Mahar Gita, which means “great music” in Sanskrit, refers to the historical musical ensembles played for the royal court, and have their roots in poetry. Nowadays, Mahar Gita is rarely heard elsewhere apart from weddings and there is a growing lack of commitment to keep this tradition alive from the younger generations. Unexpectedly, the sounds of Mahar Gita are still shared outside of Myanmar in the Western countries where many Myanmar refugees and immigrants made a new home.

Valerie Naing

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