Sinfonia da Vita, Op. 1
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
People built machines.
The machines helped them.
The people benefitted.
Then people started abusing machines.
The machines broke down.
And then the machines tekan-ed the people.
¶ 10/31/2006 12:41:00 am 0 comments
The machines helped them.
The people benefitted.
Then people started abusing machines.
The machines broke down.
And then the machines tekan-ed the people.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
A question in the Esplanade Patron Questionnaire:
Q2. Based on your experience today, how likely are you to return to Esplanade again for a performance?
Q2. Based on your experience today, how likely are you to return to Esplanade again for a performance?
Of course we have to go there if the performance is held there lah, DUH!!!
¶ 10/29/2006 11:29:00 pm 0 comments
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Check out this animation, very cute and very touching and meaningful:
¶ 10/28/2006 12:54:00 am 0 comments
Christmas musical written by Dwayne and his sis Daphne, I'm the arranger. Lots of cool music, from country to rock to hip hop to classical to musical theatre to...!
Check out the blog/website: http://www.thegreatchristmasescapade.blogspot.com/
Friday, October 27, 2006
Let’s face it,
English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in the eggplant
No ham in the hamburger
And neither pine nor apple in the pineapple.
English muffins were not invented in England
French fries were not invented in France.
We sometimes take English for granted
But if we examine its paradoxes we find that
Quicksand takes you down slowly
Boxing rings are square
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
If writers write, how come fingers don’t fing?
If the plural of tooth is teeth
Shouldn’t the plural of phone booth be phone beeth?
If the teacher taught,
Why didn’t the preacher praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables
What the heck does a humanitarian eat?!
Why do people recite at a play
Yet play at a recital?
Park on driveways and
Drive on parkways?
How can the weather be hot as hell on one day
And as cold as hell on another?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy
Of a language where a house can burn up as
It burns down,
In which you fill in a form
By filling it out
And a bell is only heard once it goes!
English was invented by people, not computers
And it reflects the creativity of the human race
(Which of course isn’t a race at all).
That is why
When the stars are out they are visible
But when the lights are out they are invisible.
And why it is that when I wind up my watch
It starts
But when I wind up this poem
It ends.
Richard Lederer
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 87
¶ 10/27/2006 10:00:00 pm 0 comments
English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in the eggplant
No ham in the hamburger
And neither pine nor apple in the pineapple.
English muffins were not invented in England
French fries were not invented in France.
We sometimes take English for granted
But if we examine its paradoxes we find that
Quicksand takes you down slowly
Boxing rings are square
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
If writers write, how come fingers don’t fing?
If the plural of tooth is teeth
Shouldn’t the plural of phone booth be phone beeth?
If the teacher taught,
Why didn’t the preacher praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables
What the heck does a humanitarian eat?!
Why do people recite at a play
Yet play at a recital?
Park on driveways and
Drive on parkways?
How can the weather be hot as hell on one day
And as cold as hell on another?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy
Of a language where a house can burn up as
It burns down,
In which you fill in a form
By filling it out
And a bell is only heard once it goes!
English was invented by people, not computers
And it reflects the creativity of the human race
(Which of course isn’t a race at all).
That is why
When the stars are out they are visible
But when the lights are out they are invisible.
And why it is that when I wind up my watch
It starts
But when I wind up this poem
It ends.
Richard Lederer
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 87
Why English is So Hard to Learn
We must polish the Polish furniture.
He could lead if he would get the lead out.
The farmer used to produce produce.
The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
The soldier decided to desert in the desert.
This was a good time to present the present.
A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
I did not object to the object.
The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
The bandage was wound around the wound.
There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
They were too close to the door to close it.
The buck does funny things when the does are present.
They sent a sewer down to stitch the tear in the sewer line.
To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
After a number of injections my jaw got number.
Upon seeing the tear in my clothes I shed a tear.
I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 65
¶ 10/27/2006 10:00:00 pm 0 comments
We must polish the Polish furniture.
He could lead if he would get the lead out.
The farmer used to produce produce.
The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
The soldier decided to desert in the desert.
This was a good time to present the present.
A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
I did not object to the object.
The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
The bandage was wound around the wound.
There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
They were too close to the door to close it.
The buck does funny things when the does are present.
They sent a sewer down to stitch the tear in the sewer line.
To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
After a number of injections my jaw got number.
Upon seeing the tear in my clothes I shed a tear.
I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 65
When it’s English that we SPEAK
Why is STEAK not rhymed with WEAK?
And couldn’t you please tell me HOW
COW and NOW can rhyme with BOUGH?
I simply can’t imagine WHY
HIGH and EYE sound like BUY.
We have FOOD and BLOOD and WOOD,
And yet we rhyme SHOULD and GOOD.
BEAD is different from HEAD,
But we say RED, BREAD and SAID.
GONE will never rhyme with ONE
Nor HOME and DOME with SOME and COME.
NOSE and LOSE look much alike,
So why not FIGHT, and HEIGHT, and BITE?
DOVE and DOVE look quite the same,
But not at all like RAIN, REIN and REIGN.
SHOE just doesn’t sound like TOE,
And all for reasons I don’t KNOW.
For all these words just prove to ME
That sounds and letters DISAGREE.
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 111
¶ 10/27/2006 09:46:00 pm 0 comments
Why is STEAK not rhymed with WEAK?
And couldn’t you please tell me HOW
COW and NOW can rhyme with BOUGH?
I simply can’t imagine WHY
HIGH and EYE sound like BUY.
We have FOOD and BLOOD and WOOD,
And yet we rhyme SHOULD and GOOD.
BEAD is different from HEAD,
But we say RED, BREAD and SAID.
GONE will never rhyme with ONE
Nor HOME and DOME with SOME and COME.
NOSE and LOSE look much alike,
So why not FIGHT, and HEIGHT, and BITE?
DOVE and DOVE look quite the same,
But not at all like RAIN, REIN and REIGN.
SHOE just doesn’t sound like TOE,
And all for reasons I don’t KNOW.
For all these words just prove to ME
That sounds and letters DISAGREE.
Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena; Abraham, Sunita Anne. The Language of Language: Core Concepts in Linguistic Analysis (Second Edition). Singapore: Prentice Hall / Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd, 2006, pp. 111
From an email:
7 reasons not to mess with children
A little girl was talking to her teacher about whales.
The teacher said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a human because even though it was a very large mammal its throat was very small.
The little girl stated that Jonah was swallowed by a whale.
Irritated, the teacher reiterated that a whale could not swallow a human; it was physically impossible.
The little girl said, “When I get to heaven I will ask Jonah”.
The teacher asked, “What if Jonah went to hell?”
The little girl replied, “Then you ask him.”
___________________________________________________
A Kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they were drawing. She would occasionally walk around to see each child’s work.
As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was.
The girl replied, “I’m drawing God.”
The teacher paused and said, “But no one knows what God looks like.”
Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing, the girl replied, “They will in a minute.”
_____________________________________________________
A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year olds.
After explaining the commandment to “honor” thy Father and thy Mother, she asked, “Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?”
Without missing a beat one little boy (the oldest of a family) answered, “Thou shall not kill.”
____________________________________________________
One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette head.
She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, “Why are some of your hairs white, Mom?”
Her mother replied, “Well, every time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white.”
The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then said, “Momma, how come ALL of grandma’s hairs are white?”
____________________________________________________
The children had all been photographed, and the teacher was trying to persuade them each to buy a copy of the group picture.
“Just think how nice it will be to look at it when you are all grown up and say, ‘There’s Jennifer, she’s a lawyer,’ or ‘That’s Michael, He’s a doctor.’”
A small voice at the back of the room rang out, “And there’s the teacher, she’s dead.”
_____________________________________________________
A teacher was giving a lesson on the circulation of the blood. Trying to make the matter clearer, she said, “Now, class, if I stood on my head, the blood, as you know, would run into it, and I would turn red in the face.”
“Yes,” the class said.
“Then why is it that while I am standing upright in the ordinary position the blood doesn’t run into my feet?”
A little fellow shouted,
“Cause your feet ain’t empty.”
_____________________________________________________
The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray:
“Take only ONE. God is watching.”
Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies.
A child had written a note, “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.
______________________________________________________
It doesn’t matter how many people you send this to, just remember if it made you laugh, your friends will laugh too.
7 reasons not to mess with children
A little girl was talking to her teacher about whales.
The teacher said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a human because even though it was a very large mammal its throat was very small.
The little girl stated that Jonah was swallowed by a whale.
Irritated, the teacher reiterated that a whale could not swallow a human; it was physically impossible.
The little girl said, “When I get to heaven I will ask Jonah”.
The teacher asked, “What if Jonah went to hell?”
The little girl replied, “Then you ask him.”
___________________________________________________
A Kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they were drawing. She would occasionally walk around to see each child’s work.
As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was.
The girl replied, “I’m drawing God.”
The teacher paused and said, “But no one knows what God looks like.”
Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing, the girl replied, “They will in a minute.”
_____________________________________________________
A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year olds.
After explaining the commandment to “honor” thy Father and thy Mother, she asked, “Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?”
Without missing a beat one little boy (the oldest of a family) answered, “Thou shall not kill.”
____________________________________________________
One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette head.
She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, “Why are some of your hairs white, Mom?”
Her mother replied, “Well, every time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white.”
The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then said, “Momma, how come ALL of grandma’s hairs are white?”
____________________________________________________
The children had all been photographed, and the teacher was trying to persuade them each to buy a copy of the group picture.
“Just think how nice it will be to look at it when you are all grown up and say, ‘There’s Jennifer, she’s a lawyer,’ or ‘That’s Michael, He’s a doctor.’”
A small voice at the back of the room rang out, “And there’s the teacher, she’s dead.”
_____________________________________________________
A teacher was giving a lesson on the circulation of the blood. Trying to make the matter clearer, she said, “Now, class, if I stood on my head, the blood, as you know, would run into it, and I would turn red in the face.”
“Yes,” the class said.
“Then why is it that while I am standing upright in the ordinary position the blood doesn’t run into my feet?”
A little fellow shouted,
“Cause your feet ain’t empty.”
_____________________________________________________
The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray:
“Take only ONE. God is watching.”
Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies.
A child had written a note, “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.
______________________________________________________
It doesn’t matter how many people you send this to, just remember if it made you laugh, your friends will laugh too.
BWARHAHAHAHAHAHA
¶ 10/27/2006 09:45:00 pm 0 comments
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Four episodes of music for Milly and Molly to be finished by this Monday. Time to cheong!!!
¶ 10/26/2006 01:42:00 pm 0 comments
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Problems with My Hand Phone…
… as I actually write to the shop
1. Takes a very long time to send a message – the SEND MESSAGE indicator will hang, have to press either CALL, CANCEL or EXIT button, after which there will be a delay before the phone returns to the previous/main menu.
2. Phone tends to hang after getting out of a function.
3. Phone will suddenly stop charging – eventually I have to check the phone continuously otherwise the next day I will realise I do not have a full battery. In order to get it working again I have to remove the charging pin and fit it back in again.
4. Problems with file transfer to PC… have to put the phone in a very still position otherwise I will get NO-READING message and it becomes very difficult to get the computer to recognise the presence of the phone again.
My English is on the decline.
Do any of you out there face this problem? (About the phone, not the English)
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Wenfu is having his first solo showcase of his works!
Esplanade Presents:
ONCE FAMILIAR:
An Intimate Evening with Bang Wenfu and Friends
Friday, 24 November 2006
9:30pm
Esplanade Recital Studio
Tickets: $25 from SISTIC
(http://www.sistic.com.sg/cms/events/index.html?content=546)
An Intimate Evening with Bang Wenfu and Friends
Friday, 24 November 2006
9:30pm
Esplanade Recital Studio
Tickets: $25 from SISTIC
(http://www.sistic.com.sg/cms/events/index.html?content=546)
60mins, no intermission
FEATURING: Leigh McDonald, George Chan, Gani Abdul Karim, Dawn Ho & Suzanna Lau
The synopsis from the Esplanade Website:
FEATURING: Leigh McDonald, George Chan, Gani Abdul Karim, Dawn Ho & Suzanna Lau
The synopsis from the Esplanade Website:
(http://www.esplanade.com/SOPApp/espsop/portal_proxy?uri=WZBibmQrNHE!AQnx2I4v,MJbYWEbPLBKdL-vYM1r-lIpKvvp=J,3awpsZF5Aev_xPwSsJFM)
Explore the music of Bang Wenfu as the renowned theatre musician, music arranger, composer and pianist, together with several friends, takes us on a journey through his prolific repertoire, past and present.
The night's concert will unfold to reveal Wenfu's evolving musical styles, including those that no longer exist in his present writing.
Performing with him are fellow artists George Chan, Gani Abdul Karim, Leigh McDonald, Dawn Ho and Suzanna Lau.
¶ 10/24/2006 08:58:00 pm 0 comments
Explore the music of Bang Wenfu as the renowned theatre musician, music arranger, composer and pianist, together with several friends, takes us on a journey through his prolific repertoire, past and present.
The night's concert will unfold to reveal Wenfu's evolving musical styles, including those that no longer exist in his present writing.
Performing with him are fellow artists George Chan, Gani Abdul Karim, Leigh McDonald, Dawn Ho and Suzanna Lau.
Buddhist Fellowship Gala Dinner
On this night Soracco will also be releasing our debut album featuring our original compositions. The songs will also be performed during the musical segment.
Monday, October 23, 2006
I am the accompanist for a friend during a function organised by a university. It's a sort of mini-talentime thing. We've decided to perform a medley comprising of Fly Me to the Moon and For Once in My Life, the sequence which we formulated the night before.
So we're due on stage. I stand at the keyboard to prep myself while my friend announces our programme.
So this guy, who's quite high up in the organising committee and also a musician (he was in a act before us where he strummed and sang) walks past me at the same time my friend introduces our programme and shoots me an incredulous look: "You're playing Fly Me to the Moon!"
I nod my head.
"You want to kill yourself arh." He still maintains that incredulous face.
I nod my head.
"You want to kill yourself arh." He still maintains that incredulous face.
That last statement really irks me. Of all the time he has to do it just before I'm about to play. I don't know and I don't want to know his motive, or whether he has none at all. But as a musician and performer himself he ought to know what a REHEARSAL is and one of its functions is to make sure that you know what the hell you and your fellow performer(s) are doing on stage.
I am quite pissed, but it pushes my determination to prove him wrong. "Watch me." Arrogant snob...
Eventually we win first prize out of a total of six teams. I never bother to look for that guy to see his expression but I am happy that we won. That's enough.
¶ 10/23/2006 11:23:00 pm 0 comments
I am quite pissed, but it pushes my determination to prove him wrong. "Watch me." Arrogant snob...
Eventually we win first prize out of a total of six teams. I never bother to look for that guy to see his expression but I am happy that we won. That's enough.
I’m doing arrangements (minus one tracks) for The Gingerbread Man put up by SRT Little Company with composer/sound artist Darren Ng. It’s a kids’ show, but no tinkling music… expect Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, Chicago, high-school musical and many other kinds of musical styles!
The show’s details:
Dates: 18 Nov – 10 Dec
Duration: Approximately 1hr 45min with 15min interval
Venue: DBS Theatre (Robertson Quay)
Tickets: $19 Weekdays (add $1 booking fee), $24 Weekends (add $2 booking fee)
More details on ticketing:
http://www.sistic.com.sg/cms/events/index.html?content=353
Creative Team:
Book & music: David Wood, OBE
Directors: Tracie Pang & Michael Corbridge
Choreographer: Jackie Pereira
Music arrangements: Darren Ng & myself
Lighting Design: Yeo Shao Ann
Cast:
Herr von Cuckoo: Bernt Windhoffer
Mr Salt: Shane Majuka
Miss Pepper: Josephine Tan
Gingerbread Man: Dwayne Tan
Old Bag: Leigh McDonald
Sleek the Mouse: Jackie Pereira
Synopsis:
Not exactly the Gingerbread Man story we know “Run, run as fast as you can / You can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread Man…” This version (story, lyrics and music) was written by David Wood (http://www.davidwood.org.uk/). The story is set on a kitchen dresser. Herr von Cuckoo – the bird inside the cuckoo clock – cannot cuckoo properly because of a sore throat, and faces the threat of being thrown into the Dustbin. Salt, Pepper and the Gingerbread Man (just baked that day) try to help him by taking honey from the cranky and ill-tempered Old Bag, while contending with a hungry “ruthless” mouse called Sleek. But something happens to Herr von Cuckoo…
¶ 10/23/2006 03:53:00 am 0 comments
The show’s details:
Dates: 18 Nov – 10 Dec
Duration: Approximately 1hr 45min with 15min interval
Venue: DBS Theatre (Robertson Quay)
Tickets: $19 Weekdays (add $1 booking fee), $24 Weekends (add $2 booking fee)
More details on ticketing:
http://www.sistic.com.sg/cms/events/index.html?content=353
Creative Team:
Book & music: David Wood, OBE
Directors: Tracie Pang & Michael Corbridge
Choreographer: Jackie Pereira
Music arrangements: Darren Ng & myself
Lighting Design: Yeo Shao Ann
Cast:
Herr von Cuckoo: Bernt Windhoffer
Mr Salt: Shane Majuka
Miss Pepper: Josephine Tan
Gingerbread Man: Dwayne Tan
Old Bag: Leigh McDonald
Sleek the Mouse: Jackie Pereira
Synopsis:
Not exactly the Gingerbread Man story we know “Run, run as fast as you can / You can’t catch me I’m the Gingerbread Man…” This version (story, lyrics and music) was written by David Wood (http://www.davidwood.org.uk/). The story is set on a kitchen dresser. Herr von Cuckoo – the bird inside the cuckoo clock – cannot cuckoo properly because of a sore throat, and faces the threat of being thrown into the Dustbin. Salt, Pepper and the Gingerbread Man (just baked that day) try to help him by taking honey from the cranky and ill-tempered Old Bag, while contending with a hungry “ruthless” mouse called Sleek. But something happens to Herr von Cuckoo…
Friday, October 13, 2006
Die lah... next week got so many deadlines to meet:
19 October 2006
19 October 2006
1. German vocabulary test (must score well especially after a disastrous mid-term)
2. German project
20 October 2006
20 October 2006
1. History essay
2. Singapore Society essay
3. Music for Milly and Molly
Looks like tomorrow onwards I can forget about sleep.
¶ 10/13/2006 01:52:00 am 0 comments
Looks like tomorrow onwards I can forget about sleep.
Heard from Dwayne that one can take a sabbtical from studies if one is too busy with other stuffs... wonder if Jonathan Leong did that when he got into Singapore Idol and found himself on the stage for each and every episode right till the end... I am very tempted to do this next semester if my projects get out of hand, and the books must be pushed aside...
¶ 10/13/2006 01:51:00 am 0 comments
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Damn sian.
Just want to go and play the two songs, siam everybody and go home without delays.
Need the fever pills again.
¶ 10/10/2006 02:16:00 am 0 comments
Need the fever pills again.
Sunday, October 08, 2006
I thought I overhear my mum commenting to my dad when I am taking a nap in the afternoon, "Our son looks like he hasn't slept for the past few days."
Maybe I should really write a letter to the dean so I can sleep more.
¶ 10/08/2006 11:41:00 pm 0 comments
Maybe I should really write a letter to the dean so I can sleep more.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
I tell the kids in the ballet class who come to the piano, "Don't play, because Mrs Skipp (the teacher) will scold." She doesn't like the kids plinking on the piano because she is usually talking to parents, and the rest of the dance studio is very noisy as there are kids from the previous class, kids for the next class, parents talking to Mrs Skipp, parents and kids asking Michelle and Audrey for ballet equipment, parents fussing over children, the occassional baby cry...
But they continue to plink. They don't even give one look at me. They're not even concerned that Mrs Skipp has scolded them a few times in a row for making a din on the keyboard.
Talk about 耳边风 (literally translates as "the wind that rushes past the ear... the Chinese phrase which means to ignore advice").
*Grammar of "plink": plink (present tense), plank (past tense), plonk (past participle)
Thursday, October 05, 2006
The Philharmonic Orchestra Society (formerly the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra) will be having a concert with music by Mozart and Shos (moi favourite!) Do join them for an exciting evening!
Programme: Mozart's "Linz" Symphony and Shos' "Leningrad" Symphony
The cool poster:
¶ 10/05/2006 11:59:00 am 0 comments
Programme: Mozart's "Linz" Symphony and Shos' "Leningrad" Symphony
The cool poster:
¶ 10/05/2006 11:59:00 am 0 comments
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
I'm going to be playing for this every Saturday from 9 December 2006 onwards. Looking forward to the jamming session, as long as we try to play something different each time! No restrictions on the type of songs. Time to dig out my 1000+ scores.
FIY the Buddhist Fellowship Gala Dinner will be on 14 December 2006, venue to be confirmed, will post more details. Think the debut CD of Soracco will be out then (lim beh si co-composer and co-arranger), so exciting! :D
¶ 10/03/2006 02:34:00 am 0 comments
Monday, October 02, 2006
Damn I haven't studied! I merely visit the library on Friday, freezing in there for 5 hours or so to research for my History essay. And then I look for books about Vietnam. I have been obsessed with Vietnam for the past month ever since SY and I started work on Exit Visa the Musical.
And suddenly I am reading my old notes that I compile from the Cambridge History of Southeast Asia which I compiled back in those JC days for History 2 aka Southeast Asia History.
I have a German test this coming Thursday but I can't be bothered with it. Seriously I don't know how to study for it and it's making me very frustrated. Yet it has killed the queue of work that I have: I can spend more time catching up on my readings yet I am plagued by the reminder that I have to prepare for the German test.
Studying language now is frustrating because there are other things to worry about. It's not like those pay-and-learn courses where you can happily go for class, then return home and worry about the new stuff you learn at leisure. And I am pressured by those in my class who are already able to speak well in German even though we are all at the beginning stage. This is called talent. Talent for languages. Me? I'm still fumbling with pronunciation. And it's do-or-die: if I flunk the whole damn thing my university grades will plunge a step down.
I think I'll just stay for three years and chao, adios, tschus (no auf wiedersehen because I never don't think I ever want to go back there again). I love my subjects but I hate it when I have to hand up my work to the chopping board. What I write will be reviewed and censored ONCE and ONLY ONCE and sorry, you can't make corrections or revisions. Yes you can, but nobody will help you. No third opinions. Professors won't be so kind as to feedback each and every of their 400+ students along the way.
Not like studio work.
"Bro, this one cannot."
"Okay, I'll do another version."
Finish the new version. Go online.
"Hey I've finished the new one."
Listen listen
"Still not right leh."
"Okay, I'll come up with something else."
There's the chance to make amendments, improvements, forgive and forget the lousy versions. The end product is usually something us production people and the clients like.
I find it very hard to do a full-length orchestral composition now, especially when I'm putting so much focus on doing minus ones and writing musicals. Probably my only saving grace is writing good themes for the composition. And writing for orchestra means giving extremely clear instructions to the musicians - I cannot be contented with drip-drap draft scribblings as I always do in my manuscript book before I start to sequence.
Damn I must finish the composition fast... deadline 30 November and I have to get used to the NOTION software, whose function keys differ greatly from Sibelius'. For one the note values are located on letter pad instead of the number pad. Which is quite frustrating for a seasoned Sibelius user.
"Look down, look down, there's no rest day in sight
"Look down, look down, you'll work until you die."
¶ 10/02/2006 04:28:00 am 0 comments
And suddenly I am reading my old notes that I compile from the Cambridge History of Southeast Asia which I compiled back in those JC days for History 2 aka Southeast Asia History.
I have a German test this coming Thursday but I can't be bothered with it. Seriously I don't know how to study for it and it's making me very frustrated. Yet it has killed the queue of work that I have: I can spend more time catching up on my readings yet I am plagued by the reminder that I have to prepare for the German test.
Studying language now is frustrating because there are other things to worry about. It's not like those pay-and-learn courses where you can happily go for class, then return home and worry about the new stuff you learn at leisure. And I am pressured by those in my class who are already able to speak well in German even though we are all at the beginning stage. This is called talent. Talent for languages. Me? I'm still fumbling with pronunciation. And it's do-or-die: if I flunk the whole damn thing my university grades will plunge a step down.
I think I'll just stay for three years and chao, adios, tschus (no auf wiedersehen because I never don't think I ever want to go back there again). I love my subjects but I hate it when I have to hand up my work to the chopping board. What I write will be reviewed and censored ONCE and ONLY ONCE and sorry, you can't make corrections or revisions. Yes you can, but nobody will help you. No third opinions. Professors won't be so kind as to feedback each and every of their 400+ students along the way.
Not like studio work.
"Bro, this one cannot."
"Okay, I'll do another version."
Finish the new version. Go online.
"Hey I've finished the new one."
Listen listen
"Still not right leh."
"Okay, I'll come up with something else."
There's the chance to make amendments, improvements, forgive and forget the lousy versions. The end product is usually something us production people and the clients like.
I find it very hard to do a full-length orchestral composition now, especially when I'm putting so much focus on doing minus ones and writing musicals. Probably my only saving grace is writing good themes for the composition. And writing for orchestra means giving extremely clear instructions to the musicians - I cannot be contented with drip-drap draft scribblings as I always do in my manuscript book before I start to sequence.
Damn I must finish the composition fast... deadline 30 November and I have to get used to the NOTION software, whose function keys differ greatly from Sibelius'. For one the note values are located on letter pad instead of the number pad. Which is quite frustrating for a seasoned Sibelius user.
"Look down, look down, there's no rest day in sight
"Look down, look down, you'll work until you die."
