JJCSB!

Monday, April 26, 2010 @ 1:45 AM

It's over...!
Well done, Band! Great concert!
*applause!*

For the record, joie de vivre pronounced 'zhwah duh veev-ruh' ><
And I strongly believe you should kill those who voted for it, not the guy who suggested it
We have put in a lot of effort these past weeks, and so now (I guess) it's time to re-direct some of our efforts back to school work.
NB : I said 'some'. I know nothing can stop you from thinking about Band :P

Oh, and for those who are curious, NB is the abbreviated form of 'nota bene', which means 'observe carefully' in Latin.
O.o
It does not stand for 'hotpot' in Japanese.
To those who feel that you could have done much better, please do not lose heart. There is a saying, "The journey is more important than the destination". It is true. While it may seem that results are all that is important, please bear this in mind : It is never the result which changes you, but the process in which you achieve that result. The world will never know the challenges you encountered, the hardships faced, the sacrifices made, the amount of effort put in, and most importantly, how you coped. But you do, and to me, it's all that matters.

To quote Mr. Lim, "When one phrase ends, another begins" (I believe he was talking about Hymn).
Granted, the quote's taken out of context, but J1s, it's your time. The J2s have stepped down.
Though we're never far away :)
It's your Band now.
It's time to turn your reveries into reality.
Time to make things happen.

Thursday, April 22, 2010 @ 11:49 PM

Dear Band,

Mr. Lim was clearly unhappy with today's rehearsal. Ignoring the fact that it's less than 3 days (!) to concert, we have done better, could have done better, and you know it.

*Edited 25 Apr, 2.50am (!)
14 hours, 10 minutes to Joie de Vivre!

Anyway,
Some words to jolt your memory :

Play with common sense (hais... NOWHERE else will this ever make sense)

Energize!

Strategic crescendo

Phrasing (esp. long ones)

Quiet excitement

No pulse = No rhythm

Poise

The above list is, unfortunately, non-exhaustive, and is in addition to having all the correct notes, tone, good intonation, being in time, and looking at Mr. Lim before you start playing.

Also, some gentle reminders :

Before Enemy God and Starlight, watch Jia Wei (from Flute) for cue to stand

Between pieces, please do not talk. Use the time to scan through your score, to refresh your memory and prepare yourself for what needs to be done.
Optional : Similarly, I refrain from talking before a concert begins (maybe half an hour before or so) to do a mental run-through of the entire concert, focusing on things like who I need to listen out for, what kind of emotions I want to portray/evoke, what kind of emotions Mr. Lim wants us to portray/evoke, how he goes about doing that (tempo changes, phrasing, articulation etc.), and where these things happen.

For Castles (and So-ran Bushi *crosses fingers*), when it's time to shout, shout! It's part of the performance, so don't need to shy; it's probably just as important as playing in time, in tune, in tone, in style. Hey, if it helps, think of it as a note, and 'play' it loud

The acoustics at NAFA LFT will be very different from that in our Bandroom and in the Hall, so please watch Mr. Lim for directions how to make your sound sound better

Look at the countdown. Less than 12 hours to concert!
Please do not let all the hard work we've put in over the past weeks go to waste.
Make this concert just as enjoyable for your audience as it is for you, if not more.
Please let J2s step-down with a peace-of-mind
And a phrase never more apt than now :
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