Sunday, 30 November 2008

Faith, Hope, and Love.

What an eventful night it was!

I am sure every single CHSSB member had a great concert with Mr Tan, and we will never forget what he had taught us during his period of one year +++ in CHSSB.

Well, I am here to share my reflections with you guys. You know, many may see "Faith, Hope, and Love" as just an ordinary concert. For some, it may be their first formal concert in their Band life. But for me, or rather for the CHSSB, its not only a farewell concert for Mr Tan, but it is a night to impress the audience and show them what CHSSB has got to offer.

For me, it was a spectacular night. Sure, there are many important lessons for us to learn, and many mistakes and issues for us to reflect on, but wouldn't you agree that the concert was such a successful one? The magnificence, the energy, the "high"-ness--it was all there, be it in CHSSB, CHIJ Concert Band or St Margaret Symphony Band.

Basking in all the "high"-ness was probably one of the highlights of "Faith, Hope, and Love".

Now it has come to an end, and I would really miss it. And I am sure not only the members of CHSSB, but also CHIJ and St Margaret would miss both the concert and Mr Tan.

Oh well, all good things must come to an end...

Friday, 28 November 2008

The Day

It's quite pointless to create a new post at this time...no one will read it...probably after the concert...anyway..

Tommorow is the day, most likely the last performance with Mr Leonard Tan...sad indeed...
But remember to be positive, have self-confidence, and don't give Mr Tan a bad impression on the performance. I'm sure that we all won't want to let Mr. Tan down.
Show Mr Tan how great is your playing, give him your best shot! Make the performance a memorable, magical, ...etc... one! Be passionate, be musical!

"Music is in between the notes!"
"Play like you are the best musician in the world!"

REMEMBER TO WATCH!
Let's own this concert!

Advertisement.

Hey Band People...band camp was great wasn't it? :D

Here to advertise for a concert..usually seniors come to advertise concerts in which they're playing but this is an exception. 'Threnody' is part of the concert...do come and support those ppl playing my piece! :D



4 December THURSDAY

NOEL' 08

BY
Hwa Chong Symphonic Band
Hwa Chong Institution Military Band
Nanyang Concert Band

VENUE | TIME
Hwa Chong Institution (College) Auditorium 7PM

PRICE
S$6

CONDUCTOR/S
Ms Samantha Chong | Mr Darence Leng | Mr Daniel Kiang

REPERTOIRE
Theme from "Superman"
Machu Picchu
Gelato Con Caffe
Threnody
Warabe-Uta Fantasy
Blue Ridge Saga
Celebrate
Pachelbel's Canon in D
Crest of Nobility

CONTACT
hcband.hcisb@gmail.com

You can approach me for tix. =D

Wednesday, 26 November 2008

Band Camp Reflections 08

Guess its my turn to do the reflections, not that there's a schedule or anything, just that if Poh does it and then another guy does it, i guess its like an obligation or something. Ok, enough digressing.I'll probably recount what happened then proceed to give my thoughts, easier that way.

1st day: Report for practice, break for lunch, games, practice, dinner, sleep.Oh yes, day spent trying to fruitlessly convince Band that there is no Amazing Race, success within own room! yay!

Thoughts: A fairly reflectionless kind of day, thoughtworthy point would have to be the games. Personally felt that the memory race was abit saddening....biased towards fat people! The cavadi on the other hand was biased towards skinny people, so yea...evens out i guess.I don't really know if any team bonded within this period of time, having just been seperated into teams, people are probably more concerned about why their friends aren't with them at this point in time.

2nd Day: Morning PT, Breakfast, practice,lunch, free mingling time, dinner ,practice,sleep. Continued fruitless attempts at decieving Band, illusion in own room starting to break down.

Thought: Fairly disappointing reaction from Band at sight of breakfast, issue already covered by previous 2 reflections, but i'll do it anyway. Bread is considered a staple by most, at home while rushing to school, the most basic breakfast would be either biscuits or bread. I'd dare say that even the most privilledged(yes i know, probably spelled wrong) of us eats bread for breakfast. So whats wrong with bread for breakfast in camp. By right, food at camp should pale in comparisons to food at home, so by right, if we eat bread at home, we should be eating...i dunno... hardtack??

3rd Day: morning PT, breakfast, practice, amazing race( full day sectionals), seoul garden(osaka garden), sleep, nightwalk,sleep.Finally we can drop the facade, end the charade etc etc.(i think i used facade wrongly, but what to do, vocab expansion)

Thoughts: I guess personally, i allowed Guo Zhi to have too much freedom during the amazing race and we made a couple of wrong decisions, but i feel that over the course of the race, our team bonded alot. After all, the team that takes the-train-to-the-wrong-station-then-takes-a-1hr-bus-ride-followed-by-a-15-minute-walk bonds together.
At night, we had a real eye-opener by the teachers, so thank you for that.
Followed by a really refreshing and new way of an exco meeting. Really looking for more meetings of that type.
Refreshed and energized by the new direction, we proceeded to prepare for the night activities. Some Sec 3's really bonded while making the maze.
Unexpectedly, Band, wasn't really that angry at being woken up in the middle of the night. Went through night activities with my sole team mate Wei Nan. Completed a surprising lot. Completed personal time of 1 min 17 seconds for obstacle course while blindfolded. Supposed meeting turned into a snoozefest.

Day 4: breakfast,practice, home!
Thoughts: A really tired Sec 3 batch stayed awake throughout practice and promptly fell asleep during skit prep time, or at least, i did. Skit time was fun. Mike was funny, all the usual stuff, Band has resumed its normalcy.


I know, this is more of a breakdown than a reflection, but this is how i do it

Tuesday, 25 November 2008

Band Camp 08' After Reflections

WEll,,thanks HS for summarsing what I wanted to say actually. Just wanted to let your know that this year, our camp was..how should I put it..more fun and more enjoyable?

I believe that this year, our camp was a enjoyable one for several reasons:

1. Drills and PT were minimal. Reflecting on the PT and drills part, we spent a total of less than 2 hours doing PT and drills. 1 hours each on Day 2 and Day 3, gosh.l..that was so much better. I think it also helped as we were able to focus better during practice on Day 2 and Day 3.

2. Food was good to a certain extent. yes, I agree that bread with kaya and magarine is not exactly the ideal stuff we would want to have for breakfast, but we just got to accept it right? Andrew, Avan and us were like discussing into the middle of the night till 2am regarding the breakfast issue, until we had no choice but to give you all bread and kaya for breakfast. Maybe we should let you know the reasons:
a. Our budget was not suited to provide a cooked, nice breakfast
b. Our time was running out. Which crazy food caterer opens in the middle of the night even if we wanted to order?
c. Our lunch and diiner for Day 1 and 2 is considered very sumptuous.
So I hope you can understand the reasoning behind it.


Writing to this point, I thought of something very important to say to the Secondary 1s. Sec 1s, regarding the Junior Band Examination, our selection basis was solely on the prepared piece: Golden Jubilee. To tell the truth, though we graded the Theory Test, Sight Reading and Scales, yet we did not take any of the 3 into account. We announced the results solely based on what Mr Glosz felt. He knew very clearly who had the potential, who could play, etc.

Therefore, please do not mistake us for the Exam being biased. IN the first place, Mr Glosz does not know any of you all. In fact, that night was the first time he ever knew that you were in the Sec 1 band. Mr Glosz will be discussing with the teachers to see if we can arrange another Exam for you guys. But the thing is, some of you are taking things too hard.

Especially when we break camp, the way some of you guys carried yourselves, we could clearly see that you were disappointed, some even depressed. We feel for you too, and will try to arrange a second round. But the thing is, do not get too discouraged. This is life...I am not trying to be some philosopher, but sometimes, you just gotta get over things.

Let us just take this as a stepping stone for us to further progress. This coming concert, play your best. As I have mentioned to you guys (Sec 1s) before, that comparing is no good, but lets face it, the 700+ audience WILL compare you with other Junior Bands. Whether they say "Cat High Junior Band are so great!" or "Cat High Junior Band has a long way to go" is all up to you.

Put the SYF issue aside for the time being. Let fate rest in its own hands and move on. If you face any difficulty and need to talk to someone, your SL or any Sec 3 will be always be there for you. Remember, we are one band, one sound, one brotherhood.

I do so miss the times of band camp...how I wish that we could frequently have band camps; bond us so closely together and help us grow together...

Ending off on a light note, band camp has been a fruitful one for one and for all, and we definitely have grown to become a more matured band. YAY! :)

Sunday, 23 November 2008

Band Camp '08 -- My Reflections

Hi Guys! It has been so long since I have posted. Hope everyone has enjoyed the Band Camp, because I know I sure did!

I am actually here to share with everyone my reflections for the camp. Though it was fun, tiring, and mind-boggling considering that it was somewhat hard to handle my Group (specifically Xian Zhe =P), there are so many learning points for me. So, I am here to share them with you, not as Media Head, not as French Horn section leader, not as a member of the leading batch of Secondary Three, but as a regular, normal Band member.

First of all, I like to clear some misunderstandings on an issue. The Band camp was not meant to be a vacation or a holiday. It never, ever was, and would never, ever be. We all are lucky to have Andrew Lai as our Welfare Head and Avan as our Enterprise Head, and our Council Members + Qin En to order good lunch and dinner, good facilities and classrooms, and fun games.

Believe me, Band camp was a hundred times more torturous when I was a Secondary Two.

So, we should never, ever complain. I know many did complain about the breakfast and all, but wasn't it good enough? I personally felt that the Kaya was great! NEVER TAKE THINGS FOR GRANTED. Why should we complain? If we did, does it mean that we are pampered?

I think it does. And Band doesn't really need pampered members, does it?

Second thing, another important thing I learnt is that RESPECT AND TRUST IS EVER SO IMPORTANT in Band. To trust is believing in your team members that they can do it. To respect is to listen to others and work together as a team. I have attended SO MANY camps in my 15 years of life, and whenever there is a camp reflection, I would put down on the booklet :"I learnt that teamwork is very important" "I learnt that coordination is very important" "I feel that togetherness in our team is why we won"

Frankly, everyone, even me, gets tired of "Teamwork is very important" reflection. Without Respect, without trust, can there be teamwork? If we think long and hard, we would realise that the world works not because of money, fame or fortune, but because of trust, respect and love. Only then, do we have teamwork, friendships, and relationships. Have we respected and put in trust in our peers during the camp?

At some periods of time, I haven't. Honestly speaking, I don't think anyone has for the entire camp.

And then, I learnt that we should never belittle other people, or should we ever taunt other people just because they have lost to us. And I believe that many, if not all, are guilty of this, including me. Stop the sarcasm and insults.

Aren't we all not the gentlemen and bilingual scholars of Catholic High?

Every camp that you have attended aims to mould you into another person, one that is tougher, more robust, and more passionate. I have many, many other learning points, but I don't think I have the ability to squeeze everything in here.

So, I will summarise all my learning points: COMMON SENSE. Yes indeed, I learnt that whatever we do, be it in Band Camp or during practice, the first thing we need to have is common sense.

It is common sense that teaches us to put our trust into our friends and care for them when they fall. It is common sense that tells us to endure all the tribulations we have encountered and lift our heads high to show others how proud we are as a musician. And it is common sense (conscience) and that nags at us in the ear that we should never put down our friends.

So, these are mainly what I have learnt in the camp. You don't really have to remember all that I have said, but you have to remember this: Whatever you are doing now, are you going against your principles? Are you going against against your own conscience?

Are you hurting your own friends? Or are you just a selfish dummy who is doing it for the sake of fun?

Really, 人之初,性本善。Everyone is born to be a good person, and everyone WILL grow up into a better person.

Bottomline, I have learnt that whatever I do, I just have to ask myself this question to make sure that I am doing the right thing: Are you using your common sense?

Tuesday, 18 November 2008

Packing List for Camp (with $$ included)

Here's the packing list for the camp TOMORROW with the money you need in cash and ez link included:

EZ-link card (fully functional with at least $10 in it)
Plastic mug (cups not provided during meals)
Handphone (optional for members, compulsory for mentors/ helpers)
String/Laundry Line (dry clothes)
Poncho/Small Umbrella
Torchlight
Old Rag x1
Toiletries
Writing materials
Sleeping bag x1
Trash Bags
Home T-Shirt x2
Section T-Shirt x1
Polo T-Shirt x1
PE T-Shirt x1
Home Shorts x2
School Shorts x1
PE Shorts x2
Underwear x4
Towel x1
Shoes x1
Slippers x1
Socks x4
Money ($10 to $20)
DO NOT BRING:
· Snacks
· Entertainment devices (e.g. MP3, MP4, iPod, cards, PSP, Gameboy).

Hope to see you guys fresh and alert tomorrow! :D

Monday, 10 November 2008

Get ur Secion tee done!

Guys... I ma having some competition coming up and will be selling custom tees and badges.

So, for those sections,..in fact all except sax, who haven't make your section tee, come to me and I will make it for you; in any quantity, just for $18, dri fit. Compared to the normal price of $20 outside with a minimum of 10 pcs, why not just come to me and save...quality guaranteed. money back guarantee...

So for those who want, come to me asap so that I can make for u before band camp....thanks so much!

Thursday, 6 November 2008

An upcoming concert by most beloved alumni

HEY BAND!

Luke here. Here's an advertisement for the concert "Not So Silent Night" by Victoria Junior College Symphony Band:

Not So Silent Night 08'
Victoria Junior College Symphonic Band
12th December 2007
7.00pm
Victoria Junior College Performance Theatre
$10
Repertoire: March Blue Sky, O Magnum Mysterium, Philip Sparke: Prelude to A Celebration, Percy Grainger: Children's March (conducted by Dr. Goh.), Skit (no, it's not a piece, it's a skit), Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Two for Christmas - medley of Christmas tunes including Silent Night, Galaxy Express 999. The alumni band will be playing some stuff before the intermission.

Contact Ingmar at 97735600 for information or me at 92356756 to book orders for tickets.

Enjoy your holidays!