BEIJING, June 23 (Xinhuanet) -- There's a yearly event to promote original music traditions from all parts of the world. It's Shanghai World Music Week, and this year, it's been transported into the World Expo Park.

23 folk troupes from around the globe are forming a world map of music with their diversity and contrasting styles. Let's drop in to listen.

Cuba's Moncada Band opened the Shanghai World Music Week within Expo Park on Monday night. They brought in a music tradition stemming from African song and dance, and Spanish folk music. They also impressed the audience with their enthusiasm. With a population of just over 11 million, 400-thousand are registered musicians. And from that number we can see Cuban's love for the universal language.

Cuba's Moncada Band leader said, "Although we're from the other side of the world, the audience showed Cuban-styled enthusiasm to respond to our music. We really didn't expect that!"

With a theme called "Dialogue," the music week features two performances each night. Using the contrast to explain the notion of "world music," folk artists from northwest China's Shaanxi province performed after the Cuban musicians. What they are performing is Lao Qiang, a form of folk music that falls somewhere between storytelling and folk opera. The tradition is often performed along with shadow play, and features boorish vocals, a signature of its place of origin - the loess plateau.

Dang Anhua, director of Shaanxi Laoqiang Protection Center, said, "They are now performing around China, and across the globe. They are more open than before, unlike in the past when they didn't pass the skill to females or other family clans."

"Dialogue" was really carried on, when Lao Qiang's very own musical instrument tickled the fancy of the Cuban musicians, who had a try at plunking the strings.

World Music Week will close on Friday, and will return once in August again in October, with fifty performances from a medley of folk art troupes from all around the world.