Ministry of Culture

• Chinese Name: 新寶島康樂隊
• Year of Establishment: 1992
• Did You Know That… ? New Formosa Band names most of its albums to date in numerical order. The titles all begin with the band name, followed by homophones of the numbers. For example, the latest album is "New Formosa Band: Vol. Dog” (新寶島康樂隊：第狗張) because "dog” and "nine” are pronounced the same in the southern Fujian dialect (Hoklo).

New Formosa Band, formed by Bobby Chen (陳昇) and Ayugo Huang (黃連煜) in 1992, is known for using humorous and ironic lyrics to raise awareness and concern for local social phenomena and problems. The issues the band has sung about ranged from ethnic harmony and controversy over nuclear power plants to schooling for children in remote areas.

The different ethnic backgrounds of New Formosa Band's members have also contributed to the ensemble's use of the unique blend of various dialects spoken in Taiwan, including Mandarin, Hoklo, Hakka, and indigenous languages. Its music is a rich fusion of many genres, including the traditional style of Taiwanese songs, aboriginal music, world music, and techno.

Over the past decade, the bandhas grown into an important force that has helped shape New Taiwanese Music, which refers to Taiwanese pop music that is more native conscious and often deals with local politics and social issues.

One of the band's most popular songstitled "Song for Jolly Gathering (歡聚歌)” represents its core concepts and music style. The song, which is sung in three dialects, urges the Taiwanese people to get along well because they all call the island home despite different ethnicities. "This beautiful island has mountains and rivers, and the four seasons there are distinct. We are all one family,” the lyrics go.