HAHA, Geraldine uploaded two more new videos! These were from a concert at the Esplanade, my one and probably only time that I ever got to perform there. I think this concert precedes the one previously posted. Oh wait, Kailiang's in it as well! So yeah, it REALLY precedes the other concert then!
Honestly, the quality of this particular song was quite bad. HAHA. There were obvious blemishes and 管乐's 音准 was erm... not that good eh? And I remember that I never practiced this song properly! So yeah, wonderful memories!
I've performed this song like dunno how many times liao. Nice song though. Brings back lots of memories with the 中阮 people. Good times, good times!
It's probably going to be harder identifying me in these, because the camera guy didn't really focused on me. Again, really funny. AND WTF! I HAD DAMN BAD POSTURE WHILE PLAYING THE INSTRUMENT! Should have gotten a backbone then man! ________________________________________________________
Thanks to Geraldine, I'm ON youtube!
From some long forgotten era where I still played a Chinese Orchestra instrument called the Ruan (阮) and still looked like an anorexic nerd. Oh wait. That hasn't changed at all! I STILL look like an anorexic nerd! TRY AND FIND ME! A free drink for anyone who manages to find me in that mass of people!
If you looked carefully, there's this part where the video caught me changing notes halfway through the song, because I came to the realization that I was playing the WRONG note! Its quite funny when you realized that your mistakes on stage actually got caught on camera! But then, I wasn't that conscientious a musician anyway. Because I was so lazy, I didn't have the patience and will power to practice diligently, so I never mastered my instrument properly. But then again, that's a recurring theme in my life - I'm quite smart and talented enough to be okay in stuff I pick up, but because of my fickle-mindedness and laziness, I can never ever be perfect in them. Jack of all trades, but master of none.
On another note, it feels really WEIRD to see yourself on youtube. Now I know why certain actors never like to watch themselves on the screen - its just weird. It must have been weird for Gladys to discover that she was on youtube ages ago as well - boy, how I used to make fun of her when I discovered those videos! So I apologize Gladys, for any trauma I might have caused!
I actually think I made quite a number of mistakes in that performance! This is so funny! I think this video convinced me to not ever pick up that instrument for at least the next five years. I think I'm so much better off listening and appreciating it than being involved in producing it! Hehe.
A BIG SHOUT OUT to Geraldine for recommending me this youtube video! ITS ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS! If you find Communist propaganda videos amusing (like I do!) watch it for have some pretty good laughs! In fact, everyone should watch it! And if you do watch it, YOU HAVE TO WATCH the whole thing! I promise you that you won't regret it! (it doesn't last very long, just roughly 5 mins or so!)
Its a recorded performance of the "Yellow River" Piano Concerto done in the 1970s, and the way the film is cut and filmed, is classic Communist propaganda, which makes it so funny, I was left in stitches after watching it!
Favourite moments: 1. The way the hair of the pianist bounces along with his body movements - I think it almost manages to steal the show away from the pianist's amazing bouncing hands! 2. The whole orchestra's body language - if I didn't know better, I would have thought that this was a piece performed by some cyborg orchestra or something! FREAKY the way they move in unison! 3. The sudden close up on the Pipa-ist for his solo! He was playing with so much passion and enthusiasm you could really almost feel his heart bursting in praise of his Motherland's greatness! (I also love the fact that he is literally pouring his heart and soul into his solo, which only lasts like what? One line?!)
4. The conductor - first of all, he looks like a male version of Miss Piggy from the Muppets. Secondly, his movements are hilarious, the way he swings his arms with so much gusto, the way he sticks out his massive spare tire, the way he looks imperiously around like his some Emperor or something. But best of all is his expression near the end, his look of sheer reverence for the something hanging upon the wall, which incidentally turns out to be item no.5 on this list! 5. The close up of the portrait of Mao Zedong hanging upon the wall! OH MY FREAKING GOD! THIS IS THE SINGLE MOST HILARIOUS PART OF THE VIDEO! I love the way the conductor first puts on this look of reverence before the video suddenly zooms in on the portrait! And kudos to Geraldine for spotting that cause I didn't catch that in my first view!
6. The way they zoomed out to capture the whole orchestra performing the climax of the concerto, with Mao's portrait hanging high above them, overlooking his beloved subjects, who are so obviously filled with love, passion and respect for the Motherland, so much so that they are willing to channel all their heart-felt emotions into every single fibre of muscle to perform such beautiful music! ALL IN PRAISE OF MAO'S EXTRAORINARY VISION and CHINA'S AMAZING MIGHT! LONG LIVE THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA! WOO HOO!
I sincerely hope the Chinese authorities do not stumble upon this entry. But I've got to admit though - the music is AMAZINGLY GOOD. Just that well, the hilarity of the communist undertones sorta makes it hard to focus on the music. *Chuckles*
10/05/07 I woke up at the unearthly hour of 0600 again. This time, it was so that I could go down to the Singapore Conference Hall to get tickets for the Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging for Chinese Orchestras from Junior Colleges. I've been pretty hyped up for this year's SYF, even more so compared to the years where I was actually competing in. Been looking forward to it since the end of Pros really, and the couple of times where I've went back to listen to the Juniors' practice sessions. I must say I was quite worried because in the last practice session that I attended, they weren't spectacular. But Alex told me that they improved tremendously over the past few days, and that they were definitely of 'Gold with Honours' standard now. So I was quite excited about their performance.
I reached the SCH at around 8, after hitching a ride with my Dad. It was a rather frosty journey because he was still mad at me. But anyway, he dropped me off at Aljunied MRT near his office, and I took the train down to Tanjong Pagar. Received a couple of rather distraught messages from Alice saying that there was no one there. Turns out that they were only distributing tickets at 0830 in the morning, so naturally most people were going to turn up at around that time. Ended up waiting for people to arrived. Quite a number of supporters from my batch and senior batches turned up. And then we went in at around 0845 or so, to watch the whole tedious proceedings.
The most difficult thing about sitting through an SYF central judging is the fact that you have so many schools, playing the same set piece over and over again. I mean, its okay if the set piece is nice, or if the schools are able to perform the set piece well... But very often, you get a set piece that isn't erm... fit for human appreciation, or schools that aren't of a sufficient standard to perform a rather challenging set piece. This year's set piece was rather nice, and a piece I was quite familiar with considering the fact that I'd been back for so many practice sessions. But sad to say, it was a very challenging piece to perform, and *cough* most schools were lacking in skill to perform it. So after awhile, I found myself hopelessly exasperated over the lack of standard and couldn't help but day dream. Geraldine, who sat beside me, was trying to overwrite her instincts to micturate, despite having a full bladder that probably reached the level of her umbilicus and all. But due to the fact that they juniors had a balloted slot in the late morning, we didn't really have much of a choice. We had to sit through a mind numbling amount of schools' performances before they performed.
I was very nervous for them. I was so distracted by my heart beat (that sounded strangely magnified during the set piece) that I didn't really pay attention to their performance. But listening to the recordings now, I must say they executed it well. A little mistakes here and there but that's entirely normal in SYF performances. I think their set piece was the best among the schools I heard that day, and I say this not out of biasness but based on what I know about Chinese Orchestra music. But their set piece wasn't what impressed me. It was their choice piece - by then, I had managed to calm myself down and was able to truly appreciate it. It was fantastic. I think it was so much better than my own batch's performance, and that it was on par to the performance my seniors executed to clinch the champion spot in 2003. It was very well executed, very well expressed. They did everything perfectly. It was very inspiring to see them excel on stage. I felt an upsurge of emotion during their song, something which hasn't happened to me at a concert for a very long time. And they did what my seniors managed to do 4 years ago - to not just perform a piece, but to make inspiring music.
There was such a marked difference in the kind of music the Juniors produced compared to the rest of the schools, so much so that there was a subtle difference in the way the audience reacted. It was quite amusing, because we were sitting in front of a row of TJC seniors. They kept expressing awe about our juniors' performance, and we couldn't help but over hear some of their conversation - "This is what is called 'Gold with First Class Honours'!", "Their pieces were so well executed! They sound so different form the rest of the schools! They are literally of a different level compared to all of the rest!", "This is why HCCO is the front runner of JC COs." Geraldine's friend who was in NJ and also present at the judging messaged her, telling her that 'HCCO come here and spoil market one! If you guys don't get GWH, the judges ought to go and die!' So it was quite amazing to see other school's seniors singing our juniors' praises. We were all so proud of them.
In the end, the juniors did it. They got the Gold with Honours. Kinda expected really. Haha. But I felt that even if some freak accident happened and they didn't get the Honours, I would still feel proud of them, because their performance was just so inspiring. The passion for Chinese Orchestral music that has been lying dormant in my heart has been reawakened by their performance, which is a feat that no one has been able to do over the pass 3 years. Kudos to them. Congratulations kiddos!
ARGH. Shit. Its 1128 and I'm supposed to meet the class guys for Dim Sum buffet at 1230. And I haven't showered yet. And I still have lots to blog about... cause my day hasn't ended. I'll just continue later.
Name: voldemort33
XY, 01/06/1987, s'porean typical geminian free-thinker moody & eccentric thinks far too much for his own good med student (be afraid. be very afraid!) demon45_6f@hotmail.com
crazy craves
music (jazz, rock and lounge) day-dreaming drawing & photography animals (sheep!) chocolate and tea! seafood, noodles and soup!
pet peeves
noisy crowds over-possessive, insecure, whiny people two-faced hypocrites housework and homework being called 'rich' rushing to do stuff crying, pesky kids
deepest darkest desires! (aka wishlist!)
to be a doctor (with a heart of gold!) a dog my own condo apartment a driving license and my own four wheel drive my own comic line someone to hug
