- 2010 City of Bhangra Festival April 29-May 8, organized by the Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration (VIBC) Society, at various locations. For details go to www.vibc.org.

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If you've never experienced Bhangra before, you've been missing out.

Hailing from the Punjab region of India and Pakistan, the art form is a lively blend of words, movements and most importantly music, trademarked by its use of the traditional dhol drum. While bhangra dates back as far as the 14th century -- when it became popular amongst Punjabi wheat farmers trying to pass time -- these days it's been fused with different types of music including everything from hip hop to folk. And there's no better place to take it all in than at the City of Bhangra Festival, on now until May 8.

Sure to be one of the most diverse events of the festival is rePurcussion -- a show that will bring together drummers from around the world to create an entirely unique sound at the Vogue Theatre tomorrow night.

"The styles that people are going to be exposed to is a combination of Indian music, Japanese drumming, Afro-Cuban drumming, Brazilian drumming and some experimental stuff that none of us know," explains Sal Ferreras, a Puerto Rican percussionist and music educator who will be co-ordinating the show for the third time.

Ferreras is aiming to play around with the talent as much as possible -- think marching bands mixed with bhangra beats, beat boxers and rock drummers.

"One of the most important things about these shows is to try stuff outside of your comfort zone," he says.

Since many of the drummers are coming from out of town, the group doesn't have much time to rehearse in advance, so everything the audience hears is fresh, Ferreras adds.

"We move into 'what can we do together that would be a lot of fun?' and usually somebody will start some sort of a beat and people start jamming along and before you know it, it's just taken off and the problem is not starting it but stopping it."

"We're all drummers, we all come from different traditions, and we all have an appreciation for each other's styles and each other's particular take on rhythm."

But don't expect to just sit back and watch -- Ferreras makes sure that the audience is a part of the show as well.

"I (get) the crowd involved in clapping along in all sorts of complex rhythms. . . . So what the audience can expect is to be deeply involved in a program of really hot rhythm, excitement, tons of fun."

Another act that's sure to be entertaining is the Downtown Bhangra Concert, a free outdoor show that will be held at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Friday, May 7.

Among the performers will be San Francisco's BlacKMahal -- a group that marries funk, hip hop and Punjabi folk -- and Danish singer Anita Lerche, the first non-South Asian woman to release an album sung entirely in Punjabi.

She was inspired to learn the language while visiting India in 2005.

"I was invited to Punjab, where the Punjabi music basically took my heart by storm. Within one week I decided to stay back in Punjab to record an album," explains Lerche via e-mail.

"It is the drive in the music I love -- it is so energetic and reflects the colourful and rich culture of Punjab. Somehow I feel that I connect with it on a deeper level."

Her first album, Heer from Denmark, was well received by critics and won the award for Best Debut in 2006 from the Punjabi music channel MH1. She's currently working on a new Punjabi album to be released later this year.

"I am really excited and proud of being invited to this big celebration of Bhangra and this will also be my first performance ever in Canada. I am especially looking forward to experiencing the atmosphere and meeting some of the Punjabis settled in Canada," says Lerche.

The festival's grand finale will be a Bhangra competition held on Saturday, May 8, at Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Eight teams from Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Calgary, Vancouver and for the first time Punjab, India will be giving it their all for a total of eight minutes each in the hopes of winning a grand prize of $5,000. They'll be judged on their dance moves, synchronization, competitiveness and team spirit.

To learn more about the festival or to purchase tickets for any of the events go to www.vibc.org.

mkrishnan@nsnews.com