April 24, 2009
worlds apart
Remind me again – how did I ever agree to pay for concerts held by a certain premier local orchestra? And (much less ridicuolously) how did I willingly part with 80+ bucks for just about any foreign orchestra that set foot on the little miserably music-deprived island?
My yardstick for a city’s greatness is now as such – if it doesn’t have a good orchestra, it isn’t one (note: not an if and only if statement).
July 26, 2008
Protected: Seriously Incapacited Beyond all Function ’08
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July 13, 2008
speechless
the most emotive kind of music is one without words. somehow if syllables are added to a tune it loses its magic completely; it seems that the words serve a purpose, that is, to accentuate (or perhaps even conjure) a message for the notes to carry.
and therefore a song without words (“song” is inaccurate, but I had to make the mendelssohn reference) extols the most.
May 23, 2008
parlay
nothing to break the silence like a good ol’ blog survey – the kind that screams “SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENT” but strangely entertaining to both the taker and the reader. I think surveys/quizzes posted on blogs are somewhat like an extension of the blogging philosophy: exhibitionists for voyeurs (this better not turn up on any google searches man haha).
owl was doing this so I decided to try, for the lack of anything better to do.
How to Play
1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question even if it doesn’t make sense. No cheating.
4. With the answers, give your own comments on how it relates to the questions.
5. Tag 5 people.
hmm I forsee some problems. much of my music is on an external hard drive and not my comp and there’s a disproportionately high number of classical tracks which wouldn’t make much sense with their titles. but that’s not that point is it haha we should get in the spirit of things here.
oh and after reading the blog I got this quiz from I deduced that it’s probably rather easy to fall into the trap of OHMYGOSH THIS QUIZ IS FREAKILY ACCURATE – but obviously we being gullible, susceptible, weak-minded human beings will tend to focus on the strangely coincidental (and that’s all there is, coincidence) accuracies and blissfully ignore all the misses. oh well anyway here goes:
How are you feeling today?
Childhood – Michael Jackson
hmm no relevance as far as I can see, not that I should be expecting one hahaha.
Will you get far in life?
Little House of Savages – The Walkmen
oh probably unrecognizable to most it’s one of those indie tracks from the oc, only for those with the most ecclectic of tastes hahaha. anyway irrelevant once again.
How do your friends see you?
Hungarian Dance No. 5: Allegro – Vivace – Johannes Brahms
haha this had to come out during the first direct question about myself eh perhaps this is rather apt after all.
Will you get married?
Just Like Christmas – Low
wow this one has a catchy beat – and yes you guessed it, from the oc once again. I like christmas – probably the defining holiday that we both asbolutely love haha.
What is your best friend’s theme song?
Enigma Variations: Theme – Edward Elgar
oh this one’s quite amusing haha. could have been very convincing had I decided on if I had a best friend. hmmm.
What is the story of your life?
Tico-Tico – Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra
I know I know it’s not the composer, but in this kind of music the performer usually matters more haha. and I wish my life were all about samba and disco and jive and whatever. actually maybe not it’s all a little too.. exotic for me haha.
What was high school like?
Global Variations – Nigel Hess
I did travel a bit.. ugh this is getting tiring.
What’s in store for this weekend?
Dare You to Move – Switchfoot
doesn’t make much sense.. surprise surprise.
How’s your life going?
Barbara’s House (Notes on a Scandal Sountrack) – Philip Glass
okay now this is freaky. it’s playing in the background now and glass is just not something you hope your life will um sound like.
How can you get ahead in life?
Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 - I. Allegro ma non tanto – Sergei Rachmaninoff
yes if I master this I’ll be unstoppable indeed, no doubt about that.
What’s the best thing about your friends?
RJC SYF’07 – RJCSB
…and it isn’t even our year haha.
What song will they play at your funeral?
Eine Alpensinfonie: Sonnenaufgang – Richard Strauss
wow the only way this might even happen is if I enlist into the marines and become a war hero or something hahaha. translated it says “An Alpine Symphony: Sunrise”. supposedly one of the finest orchestrations ever, and it’s a symphonic poem depicting some travellers hiking up a mountain. sunrise is the second of it’s 22 parts which are seemless and it’s indeed magnifique. best thing is I’m catching it in london this june by no less than the LSO haha.
How does the world see you?
Concerto for Left Hand – I. Lento – Maurice Ravel
wow what a simplistic, single-faceted view. but yes I’m a left-hander haha.
Will you have a happy life?
Eine Alpensinfonie: Auf der Alm - Richard Strauss
what were the chances haha. but I have two recordings of this so not that low I suppose. this one’s the 13th, and it’s “On the Pasture”. mm does sound promising.
Do people secretly lust after you?
Useless – Imogen Heap
totally senseless hahaha. but yes I was wondering when she’d show up, considering I have her whole discography. but what a question to pop up at.
How can you make yourself happy?
Remy’s Revenge (Ratatouille Sountrack) – Michael Giachinno
tsk. haha it’s a really cute track though (as are most of the others in the movie).
What should you do with your life?
Reason is Treason – Kasabian
another oc alt-rock thingy. yes I should throw caution to the wind and live like they do in the oc, indeed. oh look I was about to move on to the next question and the lyrics just went “K. I. L. L. fight, fight, fight, fight..”
Will you ever have children?
Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23 – Frederick Chopin
such a beautiful work of art. his ballads are always sentimental and romantic, as the names suggest. realize I’m not even bothering to answer the question anymore haha.
What song would you strip to?
Eine Alpensinfonie: Gefahrvolle Augenglicke – Richard Strauss
ohmygoodness enough of this already. this one’s the 12th, “Moments of Danger”. why do I get the nagging feeling that this survey is targeted at females? (or maybe, male readers)
What does your mum think of you?
When You’re Gone – Avril Lavigne
oh no I thought this would never surface haha. yea it’ll be tough when I go overseas I guess for everyone. okayokay she’s whining too much I can’t stand it next next.
What is your deep, dark secret?
Stalking (Notes on a Scandal Sountrack) – Philip Glass
hahahahah WTH.
What is your mortal enemy’s theme song?
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 – Erich Korngold
one of the rare hollywood-classical crossbreeds (and hence very much neglected by the latter world). supposedly it’s a compilation of much of his film scores, but I’ve no idea which.
What’s your personality like?
Also sprach Zarathustra: The Song of the Grave - Richard Strauss
a piece with a famously overplayed opening, but what a section to choose for my personality.
What song will be played at your wedding?
You’ll Never Walk Alone – Liverpool Fans
not the original, but it’ll do =) hmm but when it’s time to choose it’ll be difficult I can forsee that. but definitely a whole lot of fun haha.
evidently my music library isn’t very suited for pop-culture-inclined quizzes like these. but wait till paul does this the results will be quite a sight to behold.
March 27, 2008
of strings and winds (and many sticks)
(I was afraid that snyo would show up in many google searches – but this is just as likely isn’t it.. oh well)
I never know what expect when going for an snyo concert (and a testimony to my age is that I still recognize it more as syo). they’re the only properly recognized amateur orchestra in singapore that you hear performing regularly and hence there’s never a benchmark to compare them to (nope I doubt we get to hear all the foreign and supranational amateur orchestras much on this island).
and obviously it’s hard to offer an opinion when you don’t even have a benchmark haha. you can’t compare them to the sso (though I think these professionals should be duly embarrassed after tonight), and yet all the other orchestras in singapore are hardly existent enough.
but I was rather impressed – shostakovich’s festive overture was bright enough, lifted very much by the brasses who were nicely compact for most of the piece. the other winds were very much coherent enough. strings were a little all over the place though (and their tuning problems were very much prevalent for the whole concert). at times it was all a little flimsy but still the piece was overflowing with exuberance and energy, thus thoroughly enjoyable.
haydn’s concerto for trumpet in E flat major was pulled off rather well by wen rong. aside from the irritating noises from the air and fluids (a second row seat does more than give you an obstructed view) the technique and musicianship were very much applaudable. the high level of control he had was well-exercised too. haydn is never easy - much less on a trumpet – and the clarity was indeed commendable. although probably it wasn’t that savvy a choice for the orchestra – such transparency demands total precision and unison and evidently it was just all too demanding.
tchaikovsky’s symphony no. 5, like the overture, seemed to be a wise choice of repertoire. all that power and intensity seemed to suit the orchestra rather well. the emotion and musicianship were once again apparent, especially towards the finale. in between it was a little too tightly-strung (especially the middle movements) and sometimes everything kinda collapsed messily before picking up hastily again. but other than that it was a convincing effort on the whole, saved by the sheer power of the brass.
I always feel a little jealous when I see them enjoying themselves on that stage – and orchestral pieces are just so much more complex, so much more emotional, so much more moving; they were what I was brought up on. sometimes I wish could experience that at least once in my life from elsewhere other than the audience (or between earphones).
I guess that means kudos for a good concert.
