"Reminiscence III": Maha Bodhi School Alumni Band Concert

REMINISCENCE III

MAHA BODHI SCHOOL ALUMNI BAND/SYMPHONIC BAND/JUNIOR BAND

QUEK BOON HUI/YEO JIE YUAN, CONDUCTORS

CRISTOPHER YONG LIN, FLUGELHORN/TRUMPET

SINGAPORE CONFERENCE HALL

20TH DECEMBER 2014

The music scene in Singapore owes much of its vibrancy to an extremely active culture of participation in various arts groups during early education. Almost every educational institute is home to a symphonic band, string ensemble, chinese orchestra, choir, or various dance groups.

It is thus inevitable that many of our prominent performers received their first exposure to their instruments in these settings, and their mentors such as veteran conductor Quek Boon Hui (conductor of the Maha Bodhi School Symphonic Band) simply do not receive enough credit for their tireless work. Balancing the tremendous pressure to produce results with the unenviable task of nurturing young musicians is no easy task.

The concert-going public generally snub their collective noses at such "non-professional" groups, but it is most admirable that despite their busy work or school sch

edules, former band-members are reluctant to hang up their instruments and continue to devote time for rehearsals and performances.

Anyone attending such concerts would be forgiven for expecting an enthusiastic performance littered with imperfections, considering the limited practice time most of the performers are able to dedicate, but the night's proceedings were anything but flawed. Through their obvious passion for making music and performing together, the alumni band and its younger counterparts epitomized the spirit of music.

Despite a hesitant and nervy opening, the alumni band, led by young conductor Yeo Jie Yuan, oozed substance throughout. With Yeo ever faithful to the finer points of the score and pacing the music admirably, they captured the processional atmosphere of Laudate Regem perfectly with the trumpets and trombones in particular delivering with startling warmth and precision, a feat they would sustain the whole concert.

The emotional contours of An American Elegy, a moving tribute to the victims of the 1999 Columbine shooting, were manoeuvred with grace building up to a powerful climax that tugged at the heartstrings.

The Maha Bodhi School Symphonic Band has established itself as one of the top symphonic bands amongst primary schools in Singapore, and understandably so. Twice named Band of the Year at the Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging, the young performers clad in their blindingly-red dinner jackets and with Quek on the podium, belied their tender age and managed their instruments with gusto. The resonance they produced in the notoriously unforgiving accoustics of the conference hall was most commendable, and even the French Horns, so often the achilles heel of ensembles, shone through brightly. Even the Junior Band members conquered stage fright to deliver the familiar nursery tunes in Rockin' To The Rhymes with child-like cheekiness.

Otto Schwarz's Solo Bossa saw alumnus Christopher Yong Lin take centerstage as soloist on the Flugelhorn and Trumpet. His suave and laid-back execution of the solo frills and runs spoke of his natural feel of the genre, and reflected his technical and styllistic brilliance on his instrument.

It is perhaps telling, that the ensembles were at their best when they were most engrossed in the music. The infectious energy of the percussions in Hirotaka Izumi's Takarajima was lapped up by the audience, and the various sections took their turn delivering ad lib solos. Despite opportunities to simply blast the roof off the hall, Yeo maintained a modicum of control over the ensemble and resisted all temptations to wreck havoc with their dynamics.

Closing the programme, the alumni band and members of the symphonic band joined arms in Tabidachi No Hini by Sakura Gakuin, a popular song often sung at graduation ceremonies in Japan. Albiet somewhat cheesy, it was most apt as the performers celebrated their departure from school to their various paths in life, only to still be connected by their love of music.

Enthusiastic curtain calls from the audience and several acts of fanboy-ism later, the band oblidged with a high-energied rendition of Happy by Pharrell Williams. After a night like this, it summed up the mood of everyone present.

Take a bow, bands of Maha Bodhi School.