hari gerko came and went on the 15th of January. we are almost stepping into the end of April so the new members are not exactly new anymore now. :) everyone has slipped into the routine of band practices and is familiar with the activities of the band.
currently we are having practices for the upcoming Sports Day. this year we are doing it quite differently. instead of only a parade and a static performance later, we are replacing the static performance with formation performance. so we are practising really hard now as they are more things to cover, such as American march, formations, the songs (which are Mambo, Somewhere, Tonight. all three songs are from the famous musical West Side Story), and marching while playing the songs. sounds difficult? it is rather, but it would be worth it. one more plus point is the new deputy drum major will be leading the members! we are all waiting in suspense for the announcing of the new deputy :)
orientation day on the 30th of December 2009 the board for hari gerko the arrangements of instruments in the band room on hari gerko
On the 19th of december 2009, all the band members woke up at the unearthly hour at 4am, just to prepare to reach school by 5am to make the final preparations for our trip to singapore.
firstly, we would really like to thank the parents of a few members who were very kind to help us transport our heavy stuff from the sports center to the esso station outside of our school :D if it weren't for them, our departure time would have been delayed due to the overwhelming amount of stuff we had to carry.
however, we departed at around 8am because the bus for members had some problems. we stopped at a few rest stations during the journey to singapore and reached the customs at around 1pm. all the procedures went smoothly, and off we were to jurong junior college(hereafter referred to as jjc), which was located at jurong east. due to the confusing roads, we were running late.
alas, we reached jjc at 3pm, which was already late, as we were expected to be there at 1pm. the jjc-ians provided us with a huge and warm welcome, and we got into our respective groups. the group leaders brought us to our dorms and we had lunch at 4pm.
we met all of the peirce members during dinner. afterwards, there were rehearsals and practices until the night. of course, there was the required telematch/games in all camps (for the singaporean band members, they got to jjc in the morning as this was a camp for all us actually. it was entitled "Camp Reverie".) we went to all the "spooky" places around the jjc campus, and enjoyed ourselves very much. we finally got to rest at around 12am.
20th Dec 2009
we had individual practices and rehearsals scheduled for the rest of the day, and also a visit to singapore's famous Esplanade for a concert (which was performed by singaporean and european bands).
we also had the chance to take a walk around orchard road, which was full of fairy lights and sparkling decorations in conjunction with Christmas which was around the corner. the temperature was just right(at around 19C, which we have not experienced for a very long time in malaysia) which made us felt like we were in a christmas wonderland. the downside of it is orchard road is a very, very crowded place. but still, the astounding decorations and amusing performances such as street performers and parades were worth it all.
we reached jjc at around 1am, and off we were to sleep as there will be an intensive practice schedule tmr and a performance at night.
21st Dec 2009
it was a very busy day for all of us. we had practices from morning till the afternoon. it was our last chance to perfect our songs, to do what we can to improve our performance.
a concert entitled "REVERIE" was scheduled at night. well you may be wondering, why did they name it reverie?
Reverie means to daydream, building castles in the sky. This concert is named Reverie as it was a dream to come together and be on the same musical journey. It has become a reality for different people from different countries and schools to be on the same musical journey today. Anything is possible if we put our minds and hearts to it. This event is a proof that dreams do come true.
(above information taken from the concert booklet provided)
we started preparing for the concert at around 4pm. guests started arriving at around 6pm+, as the concert was scheduled to start at 7pm sharp.
Here are the recordings made during the Reverie Concert. Recorded by Roger's friends,video made by Roger.credits go to the them and JJC Band's blog which posted this.
first up was the jjc band, with guest players from hougang high school band and shuqun high school band. their repertoire consisted of:
Welcome - Tokio Mashima
American Graffiti XIX - Arr. Naohiro Iwai
Disneyland Celebration - Michael Brown
next up were the peirce wind symphony band members. their repertoire was the following songs:
Flight of Valor - James Swearingen
Whistle While You Work - Frank Churchhill
and next was us! we have practiced for this moment for the whole of our school holidays. of course we were very excited! our repertoire was:
Karachi Boulevard - Willy Fransen
Blaze Away - Abe Holzmann
Bravo Brass - Takashi Hoshide
and lastly, all 3 bands combined together and formed a huge symphonic band, with more than a 100 players! as expected, the music produced sounded very grand. we played:
Festa Paesana - Jacob de Haan
and of course this is a must, as christmas was around the corner, and this was actually a christmas concert :
Christmas Recollections - John Edmondson
after our last note rang off in the auditorium, we were greeted by the thunderous applause of the audience. the support of the audience brought a big smile to each and every of the conductors' and performers' face. as a surprise for the audience, we started playing another song when they were still applauding. the song was :
Jounetsu Tairiku by Hakase Taro, Arr. by Endo Yukio.
the saxophonists walked up to the front and started their soli, thus surprising the audience. that was our last song for the night. after the concert, we had a photo session and gift exchange session. the peirce wind symphony, hougang high school band and shuqun high school band members went home afterwards.
little did we CHS Band members knew what the JJC Band members had in store for us. boy, were we surprised. we were told to go to one of their lecture halls after we kept our instruments and cleaned the hall. guess what they had prepared for us? A PARTY! one of their member's mother had prepared a feast for us. we were delighted with the food as we had been eating the same food over and over again for the past 2 and a half day. this simple feast was absolutely scrumptious. as we were eating, the band major of JJC Band told us that we were going to have a song-singing session! suddenly, all the fatigue in us seemed to have disappeared into thin air. everyone was hyper and singing their hearts out. we even had a brass vs woodwind vs percussion cheer competition! it was definitely our best night yet. some of the members started feeling too tired to sing anymore and started sleeping at around 3am. we were allowed to go off at 3.30, while the others who were still energized could stay and sing until 4am.
22nd Dec 2009
we woke up at around 9am and had breakfast. our next stop was the Singapore Science Center. we were lucky as there was also a Body World Exhibition going on. all of us had fun in the science center, reminiscing about our childhood times when we first went to science centers. the various exhibitions there were certainly different from our country's science center. there were so much to see and touch and investigate that we couldn't finish visiting all the sections in the science center. we took our photos with the jjc band members and said our goodbyes. there were even a few members who shed tears. band members will always be like a big family aye? though we only met for a few days, it was as if we had knew each other for our whole life.
afterwards, we were told to buy lunch at one of the shopping malls as we were in a rush to get back to kuala lumpur. after buying lunch, we left singapore for our home sweet home, and arrived at kuala lumpur and around 8pm.
this interaction trip has indeed made us experience different cultures (though not that distinctly different). we also had the chance to perform with a band from our neighbouring country, which is quite rare. I hope all of the band members had a great time during the trip!
a bigbig thank you to all the members of the JJC Band who were our awesome hosts! and also to the Peirce Wind Symphony members, we enjoyed our stay with you very much! to the Hougang and Shuqun High School members, we are glad to have known you! hope to meet all of you again soon, adios :D
photos coming up soon! meanwhile, enjoy the recordings above (:
well, we do not know the answer to that question yet.
however, luckily we do not have to wait long for the unveiling of the new deputy drum major, who in future will be the (no prizes for guessing this one!) DRUM MAJOR of the band! on the 23rd of April 2010, keng xin, the current drum major, will be announcing his successor. whoa. sounds grand, doesn't it? it most certainly is a grand affair.
according to the tradition of the band, only the drum major and his trainees can touch and hold the mace. if you are unsure what a mace is, Google it. or you can just refer to the photographs attached. the stick-like thing is called the mace. back to the topic. the drum major leads the band during parades and marching events, and he takes care of the standard of British march of the band. the mace is his symbol of authority, so to speak. during parades, he commands the members by making certain signs using the mace and hand signals. plus, according to tradition yet again, no one can cross over the mace. we must only walk around the mace. so if by any chance the mace blocks a doorway, we can walk through it until the drum major, deputy drum major or the trainees remove it. but that doesn't happen. at least, not yet.
so isn't being a drum major glamorous? it is, considering the fact that only guys have a chance to be one, and only one girl in the history of the band ever got chosen to be a trainee. while leading the band with the all-powerful mace is cool, there is hard work involved, too.
the trainees who are up for the post of deputy drum major are Lim You Zhi, Nai Hai An, and Kendrick Wong. they each have their own unique qualities, so it's rather difficult to make a choice. let's just hope the Chosen One would bring the band to greater heights and fall short of the great expectations placed on him!from left: Kendrick Wong, Lim You Zhi, Kok Keng Xin, Nai Hai An
"Quick, quick, switch off the lights! they are coming! be quiet!". sounds like what a captain would say to his troops in a battle, doesn't it?
surprise, surprise. those urgent commands were uttered by none other than the organizing committee of the Farewell Party (FP) on the 7th of November 2009 as the Form Five ex-members of the band were making their way up to the band room. the theme of the FP this year is "Aloha", which means "hello, or goodbye". goodbye, to the ex-members, but hello to the new and better things which are yet to come. but i digress.
back to the scene where the head of the program department calls out to us to switch off the lights and turn on our flashlights and take our places to welcome the ex-members with a bang. as they made their way in on red carpet to the makeshift stage at the other end of the room, we flashed the flashlights in every direction and waved cards with their names and stuff like "i love you!" or "you rock!". the room was even darkened with sugar paper stuck on the windows so the paparazzi effect was maximized. as cool and Hollywood-ish this seemed, nothing could beat the balloons falling down from the ceiling as the ex-members were in the middle of the room. it was fabulous.
moving on. the ex-members and members sat down at the foot of the stage so the dramas prepared by each form for the ex-members can be performed. after a speech by the teacher adviser, Madam Hardeep, the Form Ones got the ball rolling as they performed first. the dramas were lame with funny bits, and everyone burst into laughter. what helped in adding more fun into the whole programme was the right company. we all knew each other pretty well, and spending time together, joking and fooling around was the best way to deepen friendships. then it was the time to listen to the ex-members' recount of their experiences in band, and lessons we could learn from them. the recount was quite moving as they shared their struggles, and the joy of being in the band, and also when they gave encouraging messages and gifts to fellow juniors. indeed, band life is not a bed of roses, there is much hard work involved, but the friendships and good memories found in the process are worth it. this was the message we gleaned from them. when they presented us juniors with thoughtful presents and encouragement, we were very touched. of course, we and the organizing committee prepared presents for them too. at the end of the FP, all of us rushed to give our beloved Form Fives gifts and take photos with them.
that wraps up the Farewell Party 2009, and we wish ALL THE BEST TO THE EX-MEMBERS! the backdrop glittery cards greeting the ex-members pitch dark surroundings for maximum "camera flash" effect cupcakes! the form fives of year 2009
hari gerko came and went on the 15th of January. we are almost stepping into the end of April so the new members are not exactly new anymore now. :) everyone has slipped into the routine of band practices and is familiar with the activities of the band.
orientation day on the 30th of December 2009
the board for hari gerko
