PHS Symphonic Band

2011-04-11T20:35:00.000+08:00

Hey guys so like by now all of you should know we got a silver for syf'11! I know many of us are not very satisfied with the results, but look on the brighter side. We did improve from the bronze in syf'09. Step by step we'll overcome our own weaknesses, achieving our targets. It's now up to the sec2s this year to lead the band for syf'13 towards a gold/gwh :)

Just wanna say a few things to these people!

Sec4s/5s: I LOVE MY BATCH!!! Thankyou for being such an awesome batch that doesn't have much disputes! It was fun working with all of you, going through both good and bad times together :) It's time to whack the books now guys, for both Os and Ns!!!

Sec3s: The future of this band lies in your hands now, people!!! I hope you all have learnt much these two years and will rise up to the occasion. There's much negativity going around so I hope this batch can learn to settle it well :) you guys also need to learn to be smart okay, DO THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME!!!

Sec2s: The next syf depends on your batch! Please cooperate with the sec3s, don't be rebellious! I see a lot of potential in this batch, so please prove me right :) Hopefully when I visit the band in future, it will be a much better band than it is now! :)

Luv u guys, phssb! Continue to love the band alright :)

-Evian, possibly the last post as a DM lol

2010-12-11T00:24:00.001+08:00

HI GUYS!!PHSSB clinched the Silver award at the Hongkong Winter Band Fest 2010! Let's continue striving hard for better results for SYF, eh? Bandsmen, please remember everything Mr Alvin said. When band resumes on the 14th, I want to see a totally different band!!

Hope u guys are enjoying ur one week break right now, band resumes on the 14th of Dec, 9am - 5pm!

There will be an ensemble competition and concert in January, more details to come in the following weeks! Right now I can only remember we need a woodwind ensemble, brass ensemble, saxophone/clarinet ensemble (can't rmb which), and percussion ensemble. If I'm not wrong, we'll be playing with Mr Alvin's schools. Like I mentioned, more details will be released when everything is finalized. Meanwhile, keep ur eyes open to ensemble scores!! :)

Next few months will be tough, please be prepared for it!!! We're not only gearing up for SYF, but also for sec1 recruitment programme.

-Evian

2010-09-18T16:39:00.000+08:00

Okaaaaay finally got hold of the email and password to this ~~dead~~ blog... Last update in May?! Seriously now I understand why no one visits this blog! Nvm I'm gonna revive it with my first post hahaha

Anyway... I'm sure by now everyone knows that the new exco is alr out! With a new exco, it means a new start! Doesn't mean you're not in exco means you're not important to this band, nor does it mean you cannot make a difference in this band :) Hope every bandsmen from sec1 to sec3 will work hard for HK trip and next year's SYF!!

Like what Mr Alvin said, its only when you have expectations for yourself, then will we improve and achieve success. Hope you guys understand what he's trying to say and be aware that we're really short of time. 1.5 months of practice to HK trip, 4.5 months to SYF. And I'm sure you guys have looked through the 3 new pieces, it is really more challenging than those we've played for SIBF and concert, especially for the sec1s. So please, practice, and expect a lot more from yourselves!

Upcoming projects:

HK Trip (adjudication) - 1st Dec to 5th Dec

Recruitment Drive - January (gonna be super busy!!)
LSDA - 1st week of Feb

SYF'11 - around March?

AND!!! We've just moved into the new band room, so please keep it clean and tidy :)

Lastly, please study for EOYs!! I don't want anyone to do badly thanks!!

-Evian

2010-05-16T20:00:00.002+08:00

Hello! It's been a long time since we've touched our instruments. I hope everyone gets back to shape soon!

BAND PRACTICE RESUMING!!!
Main Band resumes next Tuesday, 18 May 2010
Recruit Band resumes next Thursday, 20 May 2010

Things to note:
- There is no practice for sec fours, however, you are definitely welcome to come back :) But please do come back to return your vest and pay up!!
- Main band, remember to bring $15 (Band Uniform pants) and your vest

Love,
The Committee!

2010-04-30T15:10:00.000+08:00

ALL THE BEST FOR YOUR MIDYEARS BANDSMEN!
Do the band proud!

2010-04-26T21:28:00.002+08:00

Limelight Concert Series

Anderson Junior College Symphonic Band
Tuesday, 4th May 2010
Esplanade Concert Hall, 7.3opm
Tickets priced at $11 each

*Things to take note:
- Not compulsory as it is during the examination period
- However, you are highly encouraged to go as you know, AJCSB won the championship for 2010 Yamaha Australian National Band Championships
- Those interested, you may approach your SL or any Ex-CO member

Hope to see you there!
- The Committee

2010-04-26T13:35:00.002+08:00

CONCERT MARATHON HAS ENDED!

Yay, PHSSB made it through three days of performance! I'm sure everyone is tired and is falling sick now. Rest well over these few days. Don't forget to gear up for Midyear!

We'll see one another soon after the exams! Sec fours, do come back for band festival! *prays that Mr Alvin will not have too many sec four practices*

Rest well, we've been good for the past three nights. Time for everyone to chill out. :D

Take care!
- The Committee

2010-04-25T09:01:00.003+08:00

heyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

Great job for these two days! RADIX concert!
Everyone must be every tired now, but rest well and prepare yourselves for tonight.
Another concert with CTWinds. Let's do our very very best tonight!

PHSSB! :DDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Cheers,
- The Committee

2010-03-24T21:07:00.004+08:00

Hey bandsmen!
Here's the lyrics to the Finale for Radix!

I come before you today
And there's just one thing that I want to say
Thank you lord
Thank you lord
For all you've given to me
For all the blessings that I cannot see (Evian, Firdaus, Rui Ti walks out)
Thank you lord (Evian, Firdaus, Rui Ti dances)
Thank you lord (BAND runs out here.)

**With a grateful heart (Still running.)
With a song of praise
With an outstretch arm (Arm Swinging Set)
I will bless your name (Arm Swinging Set 2)
Thank you Lord (step 2-3 clap)
I just wanna thank you lord (step 2-3 clap)
Thank you lord (points and run off stage)
I just wanna thank you lord
Thank you lord

For all you've done in my life
You took my darkness and gave me your light
Thank you lord
Thank you lord
You took my sin and my shame
You took my sickness and healed all my pain
Thank you lord
Thank you lord

Hope this help in a way or another. We'll do a rehearsal soon!

If you guys want a recording of the song, just ask your Section Leaders/Band Leaders. (:

Section Leaders/ExCo members : Check your @preshigh.edu.sg email for the song! :D

See you guys soon!

With Love,

The (Concert) Committee

2010-03-10T19:12:00.001+08:00

Attention!

ONE FAMILY ONE FLAG!

Featuring St. Andrew's Junior School, Secondary School and Junior College; and the Saints Alumni Band.

Date: 28 MARCH 2010 (SUNDAY)
Time: 7.30PM
Venue: Esplanade Concert Hall, Singapore
Tickets: S$15 (All) / S$20 (for VIP-Box Seats Only)
Conductors: Mr. Sebastian Sim, Mr. Benjamin Yeo

Programme:

ST. ANDREW''S JUNIOR SCHOOL
- A Phoenix Fantasy (by Benjamin Yeo)
- Star Wars (arr. Carl Strommen)

ST. ANDREW''S SECONDARY SCHOOL
- Among the Clouds (by Brian Balmages)
- Green Hills Fantasy (by Thomas Doss)
- My Neighbour Totoro (by Joe Hisaishi, arr. Yo Goto)

ST. ANDREW''S JUNIOR COLLEGE
- Jubilee Overture (by Philip Sparke)
- The Phantom of the Opera (by A.L. Webber, arr. Johan de Meij)
- Japanese Graffiti XII (arr. Takashi Hoshide)

SAINTS ALUMNI BAND
- Silverado (by Bruce Broughton, arr. Randol Alan Bass)
- Hymn to the Sun ~With the Beat of Mother Earth~ (by Satoshi Yagisawa)
- Disco Party III (arr. Toru Kanayama)

COMBINED JC2 with SAINTS ALUMNI BAND
- Flight of the Piasa (by Robert Sheldon)

FINALE BAND (COMBINED)
- When the Saints Go Marching In (arr. Masanori Taruya)

We will ask for interested parties during upcoming band practices. We hope that most of the band can go. And we'll arrange for tickets real soon.

Do turn up! :DDD

Cheers,
- The Committee

2010-03-07T22:30:00.003+08:00

Hi band!

Remember to do the homework that Mr Sim gave and finish it before Tuesday.

Anyway, to find the template on your computer, there're different ways of doing so. The one that I wrote on the board that day was only for Microsoft 2003, the 2007 one works differently.

2003 Version:
- Press F1
- Search for "Music Staff Paper"
- Download the most suitable template and print it
*Remember, no pre-printed Treble Clefs allowed!*

2007 Version:
- Press on the button with Windows' logo on it
- Go to "New"
- Search for "Music Staff Paper" under templates
- Download the most suitable template and print it
*Remember, no pre-printed Treble Clefs allowed!*

Manuscript paper can also be bought from shops.

Have fun doing your work! :DDDD

Cheers,
BM(A)

2010-01-01T17:02:00.003+08:00

Hi Band! :DDDDDD

YAYYYYYY, band camp's over! I'm sure everyone enjoyed themselves during the camp. And I'm sure everyone had a full workout during the camp as we moved up and down and did drills.
And also, something that I'm sure is that THE WHOLE BAND BONDED DURING THIS CAMP! I see father and son popping out (Notices qy and yw), I see couples coming up (I shall not name them) and I see the whole band as a band.

Now, 2010 is here. I hope everyone still remembers what Mr Alvin and Mr Sim has told us during the four days, and will do what they said. Remember what happened during the first night rehersal? Use that as a reminder to do your best, to try your best and never give up! Because that's the spirit of us!

Also, Sec One Orientation is coming up. Please polish up Viva and do whatever's necessary to improve your articulation, rhythm, intonation. We will do our best and show the best of us to the sec ones on Tuesday and Wednesday! SLs, take note of this!

With lots of precious love,
- The Committee.

2009-12-27T20:04:00.002+08:00

Hi Band.:)
Here are some stuff i want everyone to take note.
(1) Be alert at all times.
(2)Be Hyper and show interest in music.
(3) Echo whatever information that is pass down.
(4)Move fast at all times.
(5)Remenber what you all had learn.
(6)Make effort to write down notes.
(7)Be hardworking.
(8)Be aware at all times.
(9)Respond when a question is asked.
(10)Help each other(because you all are one band)
Enjoy band camp tomorrow and DO NOT BE LATE.!

2009-12-21T19:30:00.000+08:00

~~This blog is dead.~~

Hello band!

I hope you all are looking forward to band camp! Because it sure will be lots of fun :D

Meanwhile, do practice on Viva and Beyond the Highlands.

Cheers,
-The Comm.

2009-10-19T11:16:00.002+08:00

Hello Band! :D

This is just a reminder.

All those who have borrowed your instruments back home over the exam period, please remember to do so by tomorrow. The band room will be opened tomorrow after school.

Remember to return and sign out your instruments!

That's all till we meet on Thursday!

- The Committee

2009-10-14T12:11:00.006+08:00

EXAMS ARE OVER~~ *cheers!*

Okay, now that exams are over, its time for BAND!

-EDITED!-
Things to take note of:
1) ALL band members are to report in the band room this friday, 16 Oct 2009, at ~~2pm.~~ 1pm. We will meet at 1pm instead. Attendance is compulsory.
2) Normal band practice will resume next thursday, 22 Oct 2009, at 3pm.

Please take note of all these information. And make sure that everyone in your section knows. Section leaders, please make sure everyone knows this.

Seeya on friday! :D

- The Committee

2009-09-24T22:48:00.002+08:00

ALL THE BEST FOR YOUR EOY EXAMS!

"You don't need luck when you've got skill, so good skill!" - Miss Angela McNoe.

Cheers and WORK HARD!

Exam Fever~
- The Committee.

(P.S: PIRATES IS STILL SO DAMN ADDICTING OMG)

2009-09-23T15:18:00.003+08:00

Hi juniors!

It's great to see the band growing this year. Watching you last saturday made me proud,not because of the sound quality, but because of the sheer hardwork that you have put in for the last month to showcase these simple,yet enjoyable pieces.

Good to have all the sec1s well integrated into the band now. I am definitely looking forward to future performances of the band.

To my Exco juniors,continue to lead the band well and all your hardwork will pay off.
I do apologize for not briefing you guys before stepping down. It must have been scary for you guys to straight away take charge of a young band. I think you guys have down exceptionally well.

That's all from me for now. I'll catch up with you guys in band practices and band farewell :)

Your ex-DM,
Daniel

2009-09-20T13:07:00.002+08:00

Hey guys,

Great job on the performance yesterday! We managed to impress the audience although we only had like 1 month to prepare. We managed to pull through.

I hope all of you have learnt that in a performance, we have to persevere through all obstacles, like the rain, the small lorry, etc. That didn't hinder us from performing in the end. This is the right spirit that we should have. (:

Also, the band has showed lots of teamwork in helping one another in the preparation of the event, like holding scores, stands, and helping to move heavy percussion instruments. We would not have made if not for all of you who had helped us carried and bring the instruments to and fro. (:

Of course, all in all, this performance has brought the band closer, from different levels and different sections. And that is the true glory we get from performances.

We hope all of you have enjoyed yourself on the day and has learnt something from it.
We are one family. We are the PHS Symphonic Band family. (:

So for now, remember to work hard for your exams! We will see each other once again when band resumes after the EOY. All the best!

P.S : A video of our performances will be up soooon. So stay tune.

We made MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE possible!
- The Committee.

2009-09-18T21:06:00.002+08:00

Dear Band,

Just a reminder.

- Report at 12pm SHARP tomorrow in school.
- Bring at least 3dollars for dinner.
- Bring at least 4 clothespegs/ clips for each file tomorrow.
- Attire: Band T-shirt (Pure Black Polo T-shirt for those without band T-shirt)
School bottoms
School shoes
- Bring your waterbottles. We don't want you all to get dehydrated!

Lastly, remember to bring yourself and also your passion for music! Enjoy yourselves tomorrow! :D

The Committee.

2009-09-12T21:22:00.002+08:00

Hello guys! :D

We've added more links and resources under the LINK column on the left. Go go go and check it out!

On a lighter note, band starts @ 1430hrs on Wednesday, not 1500. :D

And for those of you who are here for the first time,
WELCOME TO PHSBAND BLOG. :D

Stay (in) tuned! (:
- The Committee

(p.s: Pirates of the Caribbean is bloody addictive!)

2009-09-10T23:29:00.003+08:00

Hello band! :D

Have you ever wondered why your instruments cost like $8923341234213? (ok this abit kua zhang but you get my point). It's because of the craftsmanship involved! An instrument is not like phones where they can mass produce. Each instrument have its own special characteristics. So now you know why we keep asking you to take care of your instruments.

So the following videos are from the show on Discovery Channel called, How It's Made. The following are the musical instruments that were on the show.

So sit back and enjoy! :D

How It's Made - Flutes!

How It's Made - Trumpets!

How It's Made - Trombones!

How It's Made - Conga!

How It's Made - Cymbals!

That's about all. (: If you are free, you should watch the documentary because it's really interesting to know how things such as cheese and tofu and bubblegum are made.

Haha, hope you guys had enjoyed the videos.

See you around! *waves*

Do The Mambo!
- The Committee.

2009-09-06T21:05:00.002+08:00

Hello band members!

This is a reminder;

Band practices are on :

Wednesday - 9 Sept : 2pm - 5.30pm
Thursday - 10 Sept : 10am - 4.30pm
Saturday - 12 Sept : 9am - 12.30pm

Members are reminded that the reporting time for Wednesday's practice is 2pm. Band rules still apply, which means if you are coming late, a letter or a note from the respective authorities are to be written.

Ms Zhang has reinforce that although it is the school holidays, you are to wear half uniform, which means PE + School bottoms and Band tee (or black tee) + School bottoms (compulsory on Saturdays).

We have only 6 more practices before the performance on Saturday, 19 Sept. So please stay healthy and come for band with the right attitude.

If you guys are facing any unhappiness or problems in band, do not hesitate to talk to an ExCo member. We are one band. All of us should be happy.

Regards,
- The Committee.

2009-08-30T20:11:00.003+08:00

Hello Band!

This is a reminder. The Librarians will be going around giving out the scores of Pirates of the Caribbean before morning assembly tomorrow. So if you were late, please do get it from your classmates in band.

Band! More photos @ Firdaus' facebook.
Click here!

Cheers!
- The Committee.

2009-08-27T21:14:00.002+08:00

Hello members!

ALL band members are to wear either Band Tee or a Black Polo Tee for Saturday practices as of this Saturday (29/08).

Also, please remember to bring $5.00 for Band Fund. Band fund will be collected periodically, or when we see an upcoming need for it.

So do be punctual on Saturday as we will be informing the band regarding upcoming events, rules and regulations, etc.

Cheers!

Mission Impossible!
- The Committee.

2009-08-19T19:58:00.002+08:00

Hey guys,

Band resumes THIS SATURDAY if you didn't know. Yep that's tomorrow's tomorrow's tomorrow. Remember to bring back your instrument and scores. See you there!

Anyway, to the Secondary Ones : Whenever you borrow an instrument, remember to sign out in the logbook (ask Quartermasters/or Ex-Co) and sign in in the logbook when you are returning the instrument. This is important as we need to account for every instrument.

See you on Saturday! *waves*
- The Committee

2009-08-14T20:44:00.003+08:00

The Band Room will be opened on next Monday, 17 August 2009 from 2.00pm to 3.00pm
If you need to borrow an instrument, scores, or anything else, please report to the band room at that timing.

The Committee.

2009-08-08T18:07:00.004+08:00

Hi guys,

As you guys might have heard, band is suspended on the following dates due to Common Tests;

Wednesday (12/08)
Saturday (15/08)
Wednesday (19/08)

Band will resume its practice on Saturday (22/08).

Meanwhile, do keep in touch with your instrument and not lose your embrochure or forget your fingerings. There are some recommended websites that has been placed under the link session.

So do check it out and devote a small portion (like 1 hr or half an hour per day) to music learning. There's alot of good website on the web to self learn.

For those who has brought home their instruments and scores, remember to bring it back when band resumes and report to the Quartermasters (XingZhi and TanWhenn) when you returned it.

Oh and for those who have not inform the Librarians (Melissa and Firdaus) about I Recommend and Japanese Book, do so as soon as possible as we need some time to send them for photocopy.

Also, do keep in contact with other sectionmates or the leaders so that information will be passed down easily. Always check the band notice board. (if you don't know where it is, its the second board after the Poly/JC boards beside Popular.)

Okay so work hard for your common test but do not forget about music. (:

With Musical Love,
The Committee.

2009-07-01T02:16:00.012+08:00

/edited

the concert is cancelled due to H1N1 =.=

~~Sinfonique '09!~~

BAND CAMP 2009 ! :D

2009-06-20T01:42:00.000+08:00

hello!

so this is some photos from the camp, :D

enjoy, & hope you guys had fun at the camp(:

sadly, we didn't take any band photos,

soooo. THE NEXT TIME MUST TAKE! :D:D

(yayyy! band tee :D:D)

2009-04-13T23:00:00.000+08:00

Hi folks!

Just in case you haven't get over the so-called "unfair" judging, let me justify our performance. This is only to clear some doubts and I don't aim at blaming each section for their mistakes.
Please don't be offended by my judgements as I'm only writing from what I hear from our recording.

Overture No.1 (5.5/10)
-Balance wise, it is not that good because the percussion was louder than main band.
-Towards Bar 5 and 6, the winds started to be louder whilst the brass got softer.Hence, you find that the upper winds sounded too loud.
-Part B to F some parts are not clear like the upper winds at C, Brasses at E.
-Part F. Tuba came in too loud, Winds phrasing accurate but not clear-cut.
-Part G.Intonation problems
-Part H.WOOHOO! this part isn't that bad!
-Part I. Percussion came in too loud
-Part L.Super wishy-washy. I couldn't tell which section is playing what
-Last Note.Symphonic Release is not there. I hear the upper brasses cutting off last instead of the basses.Basses cut way too early. upper winds held the note far too long.

Danse Diabolique (7/10)
-Starting Note.Very firm and strong but pity that the band couldnt be louder than the bass drum.
-Bar 26-61.Overall, this part is secure but the balance not quite there, Winds could be louder.
-Bar 62-110. The most secure part of the whole piece.
-Bar 110-148.Able to handle without much intonation problems.
-Bar 148 onwards.Trombone soli was impressive except that 1 note was not in tune. Clarinets had some intonation problems.
-Bar 206.Winds slowed down.Brasses didn't play loud as written.
-Bar 349.Horns' articulations were clear.Subdivisions from the band was clear. Trombone soli was clear and loud. Winds were quite clear in the melody line.
-Waltz- Intonation problems for the high registers. Bass drum too loud for downbeats.
-Bar 397.Winds articulation were impressive. Trumpets articulation can be heard.
-Bar 405.Trombone soli was audible and more importantly, in-tune.
-Ending. Percussion was loud and clear.Unfortunately, it drowned the band towards the ending.
-Symphonic Release.LOL! This erased all our hardwork from the beginning.Once again, the cut-off wasn't a triangle, it was more like a diamond shape,if you know what I mean.

Signing off,
Daniel

2009-04-02T21:25:00.000+08:00

Hi Band Members!

I'm SOOOO PROUD OF ALL OF YOU!
You guys showed the character of a true band. Even though we didnt get our desired medal, We should be proud that we managed to maintain a Bronze. Performing in front of so many people in SYF is not something that a lot of people can do and I'm satisfied with our results. As long as you think that you have worked to the best of your capability, you should be happy with whatever we get.

I hope that the band will learn a very valuable lesson from this year's SYF and that without perseverance and hardwork, there will be no reward.

Dear SEC1s,
You guys are very talented and it took only 3months for you to adapt to PHS band and join the main band. I'm so proud that you guys have made it this far!! All the best as you journey with PHS BAND!!

Dear SEC2s,
You showed a lot of character cos u guys dont have the experience in performing. U guys pulled off an amazing feat in this year's SYF. I hope that you will put in even more hardwork in upcoming concerts and SYF. Lead the band well and dont regret being part of this wonderful band!

Dear SEC3s,
MY AWESOME JUNIORS!!! What a great and talented batch you are. I'm going to miss the times that I've had with you guys. Dont regret over the results alright? I know that you have given your all and I'm very grateful.Continue to lead the band well and help the recruits to adapt to the band. I'm sure that you will do a fantastic job in taking leadership posts in the Exco!

Dear SEC4s,
FINALLY our job is done!! We are a wonderfully,talented,and crap-talking batch. 4 years have been too quick. I can remember on CCA Open House '06 when i stepped into the band room for the first time. I was sooo damn clueless lah.haha! SYF '07 was a blast!!! and then we matured into leaders and a great example for the rest to follow. I'm glad that I was in this batch.
LingChao!Rayner!Darryl!Carissa!Julia! Sharon!Karmen!Alissa!WeiChen!JunHao!HanChiang!WenLong!KangRen!

Thank you everyone for the wonderful memories!
Signing off,
Daniel

2009-03-19T10:38:00.000+08:00

Hi folks!!

It's 12 days to SYF!!

Lets work hard for these last few days and get back that Silver!
Our size doesn't matter.What's important is that we play with our heart and might,surely we'll get our award.

But don't forget, SYF is not everything. Enjoy the moments that you have with the band. It's the process,not the results, that matter. Hope that you will enjoy these last moments with the seniors.
We are going to SCH as a band and leaving as a band, no matter what result we get.

Cheers,
Daniel

2009-03-03T19:26:00.000+08:00

Hey guys! This is the result of the balloting for SYF 2009 Central Judging(Concert Band)

Day 2
19. Chij St Nicholas
20.Damai
21.Greenridge
22.Christchurch
23.Northview
24.Changkat Changi
25.Punggol
26.Presbyterian High (11.15am)
27.Hougang
28.Ang Mo Kio

Results

2009-02-27T21:45:00.000+08:00

Hey!
Its me again. This is a link to Symphonic Suite.The piece was composed by Kelly Tang,the same person who composed Overture 1 and 2. There are some familiar passages in overture 1 that is found in Symphonic Suite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0LA2RcCV_A

2009-02-18T21:46:00.000+08:00

Hey guys!

I know that these few weeks will be quite heavy for all of us mainly because of Common Tests. I'm sure you are all asking why Band is the only performing arts group that continues to have practice during this period.

Let me tell you this, so as not to lose your "touch" and embouchure, we need to continue practising every week. A few days of break can mean a lot to your tone. Playing a good tone takes very long and a committed member to do it.Losing a good tone takes only 2 or 3 days. I hope you guys get the point why we still continue to practise. It's all for the good of the Band.

Do continue to practise the 2 pieces. Please don't forget also to always tune using the Warm-Up Methods given by Mr Tan. They contain the important notes in Overture and Danse.Please get the tuning right before proceeding with the pieces. I'm sure if we practise diligently, we can get the medal that we want. A lot can happen in 2 months.Make it happen.

-Daniel

2009-02-05T19:56:00.000+08:00

Hey people!

Band Exchange
WHERE: Regent Secondary(Regent Wind Symphony)
WHEN: 21st February 2009
TIME:around morning

As u guys know, that exchange is around 2 weeks from now and we are certainly not 100% ready.Please do practise the basic fundamentals and master Overture No.1.
As Mr Tan won't be around for the next two weeks, a guest conductor will be taking us this saturday.

Band Practice
WHERE:Band Room
WHEN: Saturday 7th February 2009
TIME:9am-3pm
GUEST CONDUCTOR: Mr Wong Kah Chun(composition major)
THINGS TO BRING:
-small notebook(every band member should have this)
-pen/pencil

P.S composition major means he specialises in composing and learnt the basic and advance methods in composing.He will be able to see through the lines of Overture and Danse. His advice is very important.Thats the reason why Mr Tan require everyone to bring a notebook each.

Be warned,failure to bring notebook and pen and turning up late for practice will not be tolerated!
Its a privilege that we have Mr Wong to conduct us, so do take it seriously.

-Daniel

2009-01-21T21:37:00.000+08:00

Hey guys

Great job today!!!
All that amount of time we put to practise drills paid off well. Besides a tinge of confusion here and there, on the whole, we did good enough. The hours under the scorching,torturing,menacing,blazing hot sun paid off today!!

Now that SYF drills are over, lets concentrate on SYF itself. We are 2 months away from comp but we are nowhere near our desired standard. Pull up your socks and buck up if you want to erase totally the frightening thoughts of not achieving our ultimate goal for SYF. Time is still on our side,for now,lets do time a favour by committing your utmost guts,strength and sweat into accomplishing what a lot of band members before you failed to do.

It's up to you guys whether you want to leave a legacy in PHS or not. You can continue to trend by getting another Bronze. I'm sure that other people will be most understanding as to why we are of that particular standard. Leaving a legacy means that you stepped into a territory that no one has ever done before. We have been in COP territory before. We have trampled Bronze territory a lot of times. The last time we conquered Silver was 4 years ago. That year's batch left a legacy for us to look up to. Nothing is impossible and I can guarantee you, we can get a Silver. But why not replace the "can" with "will"?

-Daniel

2009-01-17T22:44:00.000+08:00

Hi guys

Great job today. I think we managed to clear a lot of stuff today.
This year Sec1s are just awesome. So many of them can play already!!
1 Double Bass
1 Bass Clarinet
1 Trumpet
1 Trombone+1 Sec2 Trombone
3 Percussion
Awesome!!

2009-01-11T19:40:00.000+08:00

Please be reminded that you are to report @ 3.30pm sharp in the band room for attendance taking tomorrow.

The attire for tomorrow is:
-FULL PE attire
(exceptions only for FBT for girls and casual shorts for guys)

Girls are not advised to wear skirt as we will be doing drills and it will look very obscene if i ask u to lift up your legs 90 degrees. So, pls wear pe shorts. Thanks.

-Daniel

2009-01-08T19:33:00.000+08:00

Congrats to Rayner Khoo for being appointed our new Concert Master!!!

Bite-size info about Concert Masters
(Orchestra)
-They are usually the leader in an orchestra.
-They make decisions regarding bowing and technical details in playing a piece.
(Wind Band)
-Concert Masters are usually the first-chair clarinets
-Leads the band in tuning
-Usually plays all the solo clarinet parts
-Enjoy the privillege of entering the stage individually,take a bow and receive applause on behalf of the band.
-They are usually required to be the best musician in his group,good at learning music quickly,counting and observing the conductor for the rest of the section to follow.

2009-01-02T23:11:00.000+08:00

Hey guys!
First of all, welcome back to school!

It's gonna be a super high speed train ride from now on.We have less than 3 months before SYF.
Some of us might still be in holiday mood but its time to wake up!! Our practices totals up to around 30.This to me, is not a lot.

Of course it depends on YOUR hardwork,perseverance,passion for band. Remember this, we are PHSSB. Our principal even is a tuba player,so we have all the support we need. Don't get intimidated by the Bronze of SYF 2007. Most of u guys didnt take part in that year's competition so we dont know yet what we are really capable of. The members who earned themselves the bronze are not in the band anymore. We are the NEW band. Don't think that 2007 we achieved Bronze and 2009 we are going towards the same path. NO WAY!! I expect more!

Don't give up easily during practices cos your perseverance will pay off.Practice hard and don't slack.Resist the temptation to slack or so-called "socialize" with your friends. and have some respect for the committee members. You should be grateful that we have people in band who go the extra mile to put in their hardwork to manage the band.In 3 months, the sec4s will officially step down and hand over the band to the sec3s. Treasure the time that u have with the sec4s because it will end very soon.

All the best for the year ahead and do the band and school proud!!
P.S i still want my freakin' SILVER!!! who said we cant do it? hahaha
I put my faith in u guys!!
[Band resumes WEDNESDAY 7th January 2009]

Note:

On every Saturday, starting from 10th Jan,you are required to FALL IN outside band room for attendance marking. No one is allowed inside band room before attendance marking,except for committtee members.

Cheers,
Daniel

2008-12-24T23:59:00.000+08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

May all your wishes come true!!!!
Treasure this holiday with family and friends and I wish you a very prosperous
NEW YEAR!!!

-Daniel

2008-12-16T21:59:00.000+08:00

Magic Number #1: 80

If attendance of band does not meet 80% by end of January, MR TAN will cut players from the band. by the way, practices are 3 per week in jan, so its 12 in total not counting extra sectionals.Do the maths very carefully people..

Magic Number # 2: 29

If after MR TAN cuts players from the band and the remaining is lesser than 29 members,we WILL withdraw from SYF. and right now we have 47 members,sooo dont think that u are less important to the band.

*Remember this
The strength of the band lies in its weakest player
So if we want to buck up, make sure that everyone practices together.There's no such thing as " my SL will cover my mistakes".Believe me,those judges got very good hearing.

-Daniel

2008-12-15T21:37:00.000+08:00

Hey folks!!
New blogskin!!!haha
thanks to Carol

I've got nothing to do so shall comment a bit LOL.
SYF Venue:Singapore Conference Hall
The acoustics at SCH is not that good. Our sound won't be able to "ring" that much around the hall. So its very important that we hold the notes for full value. Every note counts in our score,so we must do our best to play every single note to its true value e.g 4 counts must be played 4 counts etc.

Tonality
Do you know what produces that warm,sweet sounding sound from your instruments? Yeah.it is the warm air that we blow out. However, our lungs take a while to warm up the air that we breathe in.To allow for this time lapse, we must breathe at least 2 counts before each bar.

Tuning
The amount of time we have to tune off the stage:5 minutes
The amount of time we have to tune on stage: 8 seconds
It is absolutely critical that we know how tune properly,and fast!!
How to do it is very simple: all u have to do is to sound exactly the same as the person next to you. If u hear a wavy,wavy sound and not a stable one that means u are out of tune or the person next to you is. We have to achieve one stable sound within 8 seconds. While tuning,u are allowed to adjust tuning slide,whatever it takes.Always have a tuner in front of you during combined practices. Request for a tuner from any of the QMs.

Emotion(or some ppl call it passion)
Remember Mr Tan mentioned some time ago that we need to move our body as a way to build up band spirit? I think our band spirit is lacking. I don't think we're united when we play as a band. I know moving our body looks weird from an audience point of view but it is essential in keeping in tempo.For example,when entering into a bar,what we can do is to move our instruments up a bit to show that we are entering together,as a band and not individuals.
We are NOT a one-man-show,we are a symphonic band.and PHSSB stand up as one.

Over-Reliance on Seniors
I hate to say this but to you juniors out there.It won't be long before my batch step down and the next batch take over. Its 4 more months until we step down.Sec3s, U NEED TO STEP UP.STOP RELYING ON AND HIDING BEHIND YOUR SENIORS. Most of the time I can hear the juniors(not specifically sec3s,can be other batches as well) asking the seniors these questions:
"Eh,which bar are we at?"
"Tuning orh,flat must push the valve in or out?"
"I dont know when got band practice cos SL never tell me?"
For goodness sake,I'm tired of these things happening around band.U must stand up for yourself.
Our ex-band major mentioned: what is preventing us from getting that coveted SILVER is the cycle of over reliance on seniors. Every batch,except for the senior batch,never stand up for itself.That is the reason why our band never sounded like we had 47 members.We always sound like we only have 20+ members.For goodness' sake, juniors, its time to stop hiding behind your seniors' back!!

P.S
all the bolded stuff are not threats or scoldings,I just want to highlight the most important things to u guys.

That's all from me
Peace out,
Daniel

2008-12-10T19:25:00.000+08:00

Hey band members.
Just letting you all know that we have one more week of practice then band is closed until next year.

To tell you the truth,I am NOT HAPPY with the current progress of the band. I think that the hours that we have put in for sectionals are down the drain cos some ppl choose to slack and fool around. I'm shocked that some of u DON'T EVEN WARM UP before playing. Warming up is an essential part of playing with a good tone. I dont see why most you are not committing any of yr time doing simple warm-up for at least 30mins. Doing lip slurs and long notes for 1/2h should be gd enough for yr lips to be ready to play.

I think we still have a lot of room to improve.Remember,our soundcheck at Singapore Conference Hall is at 29th Jan. From my point of view, our choice piece is only 60% to Silver. Set piece 50%. So,we still have a lot of things to catch up in the new year.

Anyway,here is a website that can help u guys understand the instruments u are playing.
http://sgbandfusion.com/
Their forum is very helpful to me so I thought I can share it wif u.
To go to the forum,u must first register(dont worry its FOC)

Cheers,
Daniel

2008-11-25T10:37:00.000+08:00

Hey guys!!
It's officially 125 days to SYF '09!!

Let's put in our hardwork to make sure we achieve our desired award:SILVER!!!
I'm afraid that we are not even halfway there as we are still sight reading our set piece.

Things to note for Overture No.1 For Wind Band:
-Emphasize the dynamics,especially the Fp(fortepiano)
-Dont make your own rhthym;play the semiquavers as it is,not demisemiquavers
-Try not to glue the notes together,it will make the piece sound like a funeral song..not a march
-Write down the subdivision marks(hairs) on the score so that u'll be aware of the rhythm.
-At part H, play the notes with power!! u MUST be able to feel goosebumps on your body.Thats an indication of a powerful,glorious passage of the music.
-Follow the tempo verrryyy closely..the whole piece doesn't have the same speed all the time
-Watch the "umbrella" phrases.DONT breathe in between these things!!
-At the last bar, its advisable to use double-tonguing to end the piece.That means more practice!!

I dug out past SYF records of phssb in the internet
Choice Piece
1997-Bronze
1999-Bronze
2001-Bronze Oregon by Jacob De Haan
2003-COP Caccia and Chorale by Clinton Williams
2005-Silver A Colonial Collage by James Hosay
2007-Bronze Escape From Plato's Cave(3rd Mvt)
by Stephen Melillo
2009-???? Danse Diabolique by Joseph Hellmesberger

Hopefully..no repeats of 2003 right?
We WILL get back that SILVER that the judges took away from us last year!!
and i found out that only 25 bands took the risk and played Safari as their set piece.we were one of them.8 of them achieved Gold and Gwh standard,9 achieved Silver,the rest are Bronze. I'm glad Mr Tan took the the risk. It showed that we are able to achieve something better.Unfortunately,the day that we took part,the judges were very buay song....

Signing out
-Daniel

2008-11-18T11:28:00.000+08:00

TAKE NOTE!!

The Poll Officially closes on 26th November 2008. thank you to those who have voted. For those who haven't,pls do so by the above mentioned date.
Band Camp will not be held this yr,due to some band members flying off here and there. it will be better to have it together with sec 1 orientation.

Next band pract:Wednesday 19th Nov 2008 9am-12.

Thanks
-Daniel

2008-11-16T19:40:00.001+08:00

Farewell was a BLAST!!!
Thanks to u all for making it possible,one way or another.
I'll be expecting even better next yr..Mwuahahahaha!!

Oh ya..have to close the poll soon. Whether the band tee is white or black,we still dont have a designer.and the best time to have band camp is probably january,including sec 1 orientation.
we'll discuss abt those things in the coming practices.

Just a reminder,next practice is Monday 17th Nov 9-12am. From this week onwards,thr will be 4 practices per week.

Signing off,
Daniel

2008-11-11T21:27:00.001+08:00

HEY!!!
Announcement:
Band Farewell venue is changed to PARADE SQUARE!! besides that..there will be no other changes!!

Hmm..songs on my mind for next monday:
1.Scootin' On hardrock
2.Seventh Night of July
3.Colonial Collage

if any of u nvr hear these 3 songs before, u are advised to do so.. because they rock!!

2008-11-07T22:01:00.001+08:00

Hey guys!!

here are some of the photos I took during NCO Camp.

Thanks! Elias,firdaus,xing zhi,evian and carol for coming down to support Ling Chao and me.

-Daniel

p.s dun mind me if I'm suppper high tmr..its a syndrome from NCO Camp

2008-11-04T21:12:00.000+08:00

hey guys!
Ling Chao and me are starting to miss band alr!
NCO camp's sooo fun!!

Let me share what happen for the first 2 days of NCO.
Drum Majors
we did footdrills..lots of them! i'm even starting to think like ncc.
then we had display technique. it was so fun!!! I felt like one of those Tanjong Katong Military Band members. So zai!!
The moment was mace technique training. it was so nice to see all the sch's DMs come together as one.we bonded really quickly,though there was a bit of power-hungry ppl here.
we did a lot of displays like left wheel,right wheel,counter-march,salute.

Band Majors
while the DMs were focusing most of their time on outdoor marching,the BM's,like Ling Chao,were busy practising songs for the POP. so,BMs will play songs while DMs will march. Let me tell u, all of them were of high standard n when I heard them play,my heart like want to melt sia. There were like 15++ trombones,9 tubas,15 F.horns(including LC),15++ trumpets. so u can imagine, pro-players coming together and forming a band.Awesome right? Btw,the music director is Leonard Tan(sounds familiar?).he's damn funny and most importantly.....he's a Tuba player hahahahaaha.

Do u know that our new principal,Mr Lim Yan Hock plays the TUBA!!!
WOOHOO!!

see ya on Saturday!!
-Daniel
(wif regards frm Ling Chao)

2008-11-02T21:27:00.000+08:00

hey ppl!

Me and Ling Chao will be away from 3-7Nov due to NCO Camp.

In the meantime,Carissa and Darryl will be in charge for the next 2 practices.
Please show some respect to them as they are also part of the Exco.
I will be hearing reports frm them abt the band's conduct and hopefully I will not hear any bad things abt u guys.

our Passing-out parade is on 7 November 2008,6.15pm @ CCA Branch, Evans Road(near NUS Law School,upp bukit timah).thats the day we will officially be called drum major and band major. Pls ask Mrs Lai if u want to attend. your support is highly appreciated.thanks!

-Daniel

2008-10-28T18:32:00.000+08:00

this is a reminder.

wednesday's practice is from 2pm.
please be punctual thanks.

-Daniel

2008-10-24T17:37:00.000+08:00

hey guys
the links below are other bands performances of danse diabolique.
I'm not trying to compare us with other bands,I just want to point out some differences in the way that we play the piece ,which are not necessarily bad.

Regent Wind Symphony(secondary sch band)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2iLYgypwA8

Original Recording
http://www.imeem.com/plzh-chemicals/music/S7YMY06B/joseph_hellmesverger_joseph_hellmesverger_danse_diabolique/

malaysian band
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp1SilHrZrs&feature=related

Note the tone differences and how the bands handle Tempo Primo at the back.Also, notice how the balances between sections change. The spotlight is never on one section throughout.
Notice how compact and together the bands are in playing the piece.Hopefully,we'll achieve that too.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

2008-10-18T20:21:00.000+08:00

tsk tsk....

2008-10-18T12:22:00.000+08:00

welcome back sec2s!

hope u guys enjoyed the ad. camp.

enjoy the next few days of rest 'cause we are starting proper practice real soon!

Practice resumes on 20th October 2008,Monday.

From next week onwards, we will be having 3 practices per week until school closes.What I mean by school closes is when the sec3s finish their extended lessons.

Regarding attendance,

sec3 maintains gd attendance.sec2s have problems pulling up the attendance while sec1s have the worst records. Mrs Lai will bring up this attendance issue soon.

So far this yr, I have tolerated ppl not coming for band because of nonsensical excuses like:

-too much homework

-overslept

-projects

-didn't know got band practice

For the last time,these excuses are not valid

I will talk to the committee again to address this issue.

As u know,we are in the middle of preparation for SYF. Ask any of the seniors and they will probably say our standard is a bronze or COP standard. We have seen other bands failed to get the award that they wanted. And most of the members were shedding tears. So unless u guys want to put urselves in that position, I want to see an improvement,starting with attendance.

Don't see it the wrong way if I start using corporal punishment on ppl..I'm not abusing my power,we are trying everything we can to improve e band,both musicallly and attitude wise.

-daniel

2008-10-08T18:15:00.000+08:00

band resumes on 11th October 2008!!!

I expect Full Attendance from every section!! EOY's over and there is no more excuse. SLs, its your duty to inform your section of this saturday's practice.

finally after 2 weeks..band wakes up from the dead again. and behold...a dirty,untouched band room!!

looks like we need to do a bit of spring cleaning..not including maintaining instruments. Percussion is sooo dead..

-Daniel

P.S Dont forget to cast ur vote in the band tee survey..

2008-10-01T19:34:00.000+08:00

Hey people!!!

welcome to the new(temporary) band blog courtesy of elias arun.

CONCERT(:

DA CAPO 2008 by NUS Wind Symphony

17th October 7.30pm

CONDUCTOR

Mr Leonard Tan

REPERTOIRE

King Cotton

GR Selections

Chidren's March"Over The Hills and Far Away"

Pictures at an Exhibition

October

Indiana Jones Selection

Sleepers,Awake!

Extreme Makeover

Mr Leonard Tan is the resident conductor of the Philharmonic Winds,where our Mr Tan Wei Boon is the bass trombonist. He learnt conducting under the leadership of Mr Leonard Tan.

2008-10-01T12:40:00.000+08:00

elias here.
at the request of your band president messr daniel palit i made this temporary blogskin.
should hold while the idiot we approached designs the band tee and new skin.
hahahaha

okay new feature of this blog:
POLL.
daniel wants you people to vote on the online poll.
read the questions and decide.
make things easier for the exco lor lah

and dont complain why there's only flute saxophone trumpet and trombone pictures
these are the only pictures that are damn nice
and anyway i only have 4 slots to put pictures

okay so.
good luck to everyone for their eoys!

2008-09-19T22:27:00.000+08:00

Random...

Lehman Brothers bankupt!! AIG almost kena also!! OMG..I've got insurance policies in there.
Hahaha,car kena accident how?

I've got nothing better to do..

Hmm...just thinking of band camp
Should it be a fun camp? intensive-practice camp? or half play,half military bull**** camp?
As retarded as I might be..we need to do a marching drill to enter for SYF '09. Was just thinking..where do we start?

Band Pract:Saturday 20th Sept

astalavista!!
Daniel

2008-09-14T19:20:00.000+08:00

$10 bucks!!!

pls bring your money this wednesday!!

I have some gd news. we might be reading a new piece on wednesday..so say goodbye to danse..for now...

2008-09-13T18:19:00.001+08:00

Oh dear...10more days to golf classics and we gotta perform for vivian balasomething. What if we mispitch in front of balasomething...oh man thats gona suk...lets hope our performance doesnt lose the other ccas...in case u guys dun know, we are playing Pachelbel's Canon which is also Canon in D as a brass quintet...the melodies are a killer. This is the link to the original recording of what we gona play. Its played by a group of old man, about 50-60 perhaps nearing their deathbeds already, but they play like they are 18years old... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlkRI-YmT_E

The golf classics is 12 damn hours so those involved prepare to suffer there doing bullshit and not being able to study for our exams which is like 4days after the golf classics...and miss an entire day of lessons. Doesn't that suck...our school always doesnt giv us excuse to skip any lesson but for this kinda bullshit event the school is extremely magnanimous giving us the chance to pon school the entire day, jus dat i believe nobody wana pon school near the exams period.

Good luck to us...hope balasomething doesnt cover his ears when we perform.

Darryl

2008-09-10T22:42:00.000+08:00

Hey guys

U know the song Oregon rite? we sight-read tht piece a few days ago. Just in case u didn't know,that piece was played by our seniors(samuel:trumpet,weizhen:tuba) as choice piece for SYF 2001. We got Bronze that year under who else but Mr Tan..
Watch it here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjB4ISuZvcQ

Some of u may think that kind of sound should have earned them at least a silver or gold but the truth is,its not that easy. If u ask any of e seniors right,we are just touching bronze standard now. Our target for SYF 2009 is Silver,rmb that. We are still waiting for set piece ahh? I'm freaking praying my a** here so that the piece will be simpler. What I meant was no solos and weird stunt act cos tht will kill our band. Wad we need now is individual talent to come out(saxes that means u!!)So, clear Devil's Dance,tht's danse diabolique, and we are freeee!!
Oh ya..Don't forget your $10 on saturday.i won't send u home to get lah..its just that i'll be damn pissed off.

see ya this sat,
Daniel

hello:

2008-09-04T20:08:00.000+08:00

hi HI HIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI my 2nd post lalalalalala

i'am gonna break all the moms and dads GOLF club and stab them with it

i'am going to be the caddy from hell

*caddy is the dude that help carries the bag 'o sticks around i think*

this post is so not formal at all

2008-08-28T22:11:00.000+08:00

Hey guys!

this is a reminder. Next band practice will be this saturday 30th August starting from 9am.
I have been looking at band lately and I figured its shrinking..I beg u guys who are thinking of quitting to stay. We need u guys for competition!
It might be a bit boring now(a bit might be and under-statement) but this is the most crucial stage of building this band to comp level. Maybe u guys think band is just abt practices. half the time it is..but the rest is about exchanges,camps,concerts and stuff. The only reason why we are not doing all that is we do not have the capabilities,yet to do all this things. U see ah..we are taking so long to master danse diabolique.can u imagine harder songs?

And I hate people saying this: small band=losers
What kind of stupid logic is this!!!
I don't want to hear this kind of nonsense in band anymore.
there are smaller bands out there who are achieving silvers in SYF!!
I see no reason why we can't do this
We should be more united rather cos we're smaller..

GOLF Classic
Here's an update on who will be performing
Darryl
Ling Chao
Jun Hao
Daniel
????

I not biased to brasses ahh..its just tht Mr Tan advised us to set up a brass quintet instead. I'm sure some of u guys dun wan to perform rite?

Logistics stuff
-Pls bring $10 for band fund

Coming Soon
-New band blogskin
I now u guys want a change,its coming soon dont worry
-New band tee
Warning: the nicer it is, the more money u have to wave goodbye..
If i were u, just spend more lah..u wan ugly or nice tee?

-Daniel

Golf classics performance

2008-08-25T18:55:00.001+08:00

As required we have to perform for the golf classics event.
There will be this guest of honour guy called vivian bala something we gotta perform to and its in raffles country club, which is quite a grand place, so we shld put up somethin nice.

We will be playing 2 or 3 songs, Blue ridge saga, mission impossible 2 and maybe raiders of the lost ark respectively.

As for eac song, we will shorten the songs to fit in the time limit which i guess is about 10mins-12mins,considering other performances by other ccas.

The performers will be from:
Tuba (daniel)
Euphonium(kangren)
Trombone (junhao)
Trumpet(me)
Snare drum (xingzhi)
Clarinets( rayner sharon)
Flutes (Carissa Michele)
Horn (Ling CHAO)

Extra practices will be held for these chosen people to rehearse for this thing.Whoever wans to perform can also tell me.
For more info please ask daniel or me~

Darryl

2008-08-21T20:55:00.000+08:00

Band practice resumes on Saturday 23 August 08.
Your attendance is appreciated(that means i want to see ur faces on sat or i'll be really pissed,cos we didn't have band for a looong time)
I'm not angry..just wanna get on with SYF preparations.so,see ya guys this sat!!

-Daniel

2008-08-10T20:17:00.000+08:00

Hey folks!

I learnt a lesson today. Nvr watch an Olympic opening ceremony before NDP,its gonna make u think NDP sux to the core!! No seriously, if guys got watch the olympics opening ceremony, its bloody cool!! from paper scrolls,to 2008 performers every act, then the china torch-bearer got carried up dunno freaking high!!! damn cool lah..still got globe appearing from the ground.I was like OMFG!!

No offence NDP guys,it still was great to watch.finally got to see u in those bird costumes.That made me appreciate the Arise Shine shirt hahaha! but I was proud to see our sch name displayed down there. lol..looks like ur CIP hours gonna explode lyk crazy.

Anyway, now that NDP's over,hope u guys enjoyed having fun,or torture,whichever way u look at it. Now, our focus is on comp nxt year. Just to wake u guys up,we have less than 9 months before syf. and we still haven received our set piece yet.I'm gna pray hard its not going to be another set piece like Night Safari. Seniors should know how boring the piece is. Sooo,after NDP fever and common test period is over..the practices would probably increase.

but until then,I'm gna enjoy life watching the olympics...Indonesia probably not gna win any gold medal..so I'm cheering for Singapore haha!!USA another one!lol..thats the advantage of being ang moh and asian at the same time hahaha!!
Peace out.

-Daniel

2008-08-06T19:56:00.000+08:00

Hey ppl!

Dun ask me why i'm always the one who's updating..the rest of the exco dun bother. Anyway...
here's updates!

Farewell Function
Those who are interested in performing a dedication piece for your seniors pls lemme know ASAP. It will be nice if we play a piece together. Suggested pieces are Raiders of the lost Ark,Pirates of the Caribbean, Titanic(WTF!!) and Mission Impossible. Do let me know if u are interested.

Food catering is a bit of a problem cos we couldnt find any cheap options.Sooo...if any of u got lobang and know where can get cheap cheap catering let me know oso.Thanks!!

PHS GOLF CLASSIC(EXCO better read this!!!)
Exco, u guys are involved in this utterly redundant,insignificant,time-wasting event. Guess what,we are the caddies for the golfers. Who the hell likes golf?? Anyway, CIP hours are for grabs and mrs Lai will accompany us there.Its on 23rd Sept 2008 and held from 9am-9pm.

One last thing, mrs Lai want the band to form a quartet to perform there.guest of honour is Dr Vivian Balakrishnan(hope the spelling's correct).just in case u guys didnt know,a quartet is 4 ppl performing together. My choice would be either saxes quarted or brasses quartet.I haven made my choice yet so if u guys wan to perform, let me know can?

Thats enough from me,
See ya!!

-Daniel

P.S Can the rest of the freaking EXCO update??

2008-07-30T20:58:00.000+08:00

Hey people!!
Here's the updates for practices.

There will be practice on Saturday 2/7/08 from 9-11. After tht, u guys can go do stunts in common test.hahaha jkjk!

I can't seem to upload Danse Diabolique into this blog grrrr!!! Try to get from ur SLs by this Sat can? In the meantime,continue to perspire over this utterly confusing piece which I seemed to get addicted to...hahaha(I'm sure some of u oso addicted to this piece rite?)

Thats all from me..bye

-Daniel

2008-07-26T19:03:00.000+08:00

Sup folks,
The added rehearsals these days are killing me, and if anyone noticed i've been sick for a few days, always leaving early, so sorry if no sound from trumpets. Anyway guys those who nv pon the rehearsals these few days, i really commend u for yr patience and willingness to stay, becuz its as stupid meaningless boring and tiring as hell.
Ahh...POP. Lol it ended much much faster den i thought, such a redundant event...make us all wake up so early, and it seems all they needed was only the bass and snare drum. Well lingchao said we did well, fairly well...ok la not bad, even if we played like the london symphony or whatsoever great bands nobody would appreciate as well. So personally i wouldnt mind if we played like COP standard...Its just a meaningless POP.
And also when i ''ponned'' the practice on friday, i heard elias went crazy. As the previous president, evitably it would be pek chek to see that the band isnt becoming up to standard, and i duno what u all did la dat make him crazy. But to me, he alrdy looks crazy to me, like eg his hair and the way he talk...Anyway the main point is, playtime's over its time to rock and roll when...

*Mr Tan arrives with our comp. piece*

Hell just broke loose. Ladies and gentlemen, you have jus witnessed what is expected from us. The notes alone are already hard, and with the incredible tempo. It jus seemed like a dream, mr tan must be joking huh...and the dream became more real when daniel ass became itchy and he decided to scare us more by playing the song. The bar90 part was like crazily fast, doesnt seemed like human beings played it.

I believe many of us went ''OH DEAR....." I personally stared at my score in disbelief for like 1min, it was far from what i thought was some relaxing song. Its so damn unfair, why trumpet parts so hard!!! but TUBA score so empty!!! So Daniel better do a great great job to lessen the burden...oh dear how are we going to play this...I even took glances at clarinet scores, 1st trombone scores and its aint easy at all.

On the bright side, it must be we have potential dat mr tan decided to choose this crazy song for us. I believe he has a reason tho i seriously duno what the reason is. But trust me, we gotta put in 2 to 3 times more hard work den we did in the previous sectionals, cuz this is serious shit, as in seriously hard, and u heard for yrself the actual speed. Let jus strive towards half the actual tempo for now.

This is so different from the SYF piece we played last year...if joseph's batch was here to witness these i swear they would go..omfgwtfbbq!#@#$!

Anyway, those who god damn sign out your instrument, kindly sign in back. And those who never even sign out before taking home yr instrument, please sign out first , im jus a cupboard away. Thanks for yr cooperation

Darryl

2008-07-25T19:42:00.000+08:00

Hey people!!

POP's tomorrow!!!

Hope u guys are prepared for tmr. I know this is a screwed up performance but no matter, we should be playing wif our heart,mind and soul.(Oh crap!!I sound lyk a teacher)

For those who weren't in sch for today's practice,let me enlightened u on wad happened. Elias was pissed off cos the band stopped playing halfway through High School Cadets during the march-past. and he got every reason to do so mainly because his baton was still moving. As u all know, the baton signifies a control that someone possesses over how the band play.

Sometimes we all haf to learn the hard way..all we can do is suck up the punishment. Hope to see u guys improve on ur profesionalism.

POP performance etiquette

WHISPERing is okay....TALKing loudly is not

Whatever happens,follow the conductor and the baton!!

Maintain upright posture when playing the pieces

Play wif pride and joy!!

and there's no such thing as going home early because u guys can play already. Let me tell u exactly why we ask u to keep quiet during combined rehearsals. Its mainly for letting u hear the strength of other sections..so at least u guys know how loud u need to play to blend. From what I'm seeing, u guys are not one band yet. hope tht by next SYF we will unite as a band.

Okay, for tmr please come in half-u then later change. Pls meet in the band rm by 7.ooam sharp
U guys need these for tmr:
-White long-sleeved shirt
-Band Vest
-School Tie
-Band pants/skirt
-Black court shoes
-Black socks
-A pair of fresh clothes for band prac ltr on

After POP, there will be lunch provided by the school. Pls be back in band room by 12.45pm. Thanks!!!

-Daniel

2008-07-21T20:16:00.000+08:00

Wassup folks,

As you guys know the schedule is sorta tight these days from daniel's previous post i didnt even know there was official/unofficial practices almost everyday. I know some of you all are either getting sian or sian or more sian playing songs u may not like, even me included or even some parts which may be too hard at the moment. But practice makes perfect. Every pro player dont become pro naturally, the hard work they put in is not visible. SO so so...im just turning one big round to tell u guys...PRACTICE makes perfect, cuz u suffer early, u enjoy the rest of the time playing yr instrument when u got good tone and stuff being able to play all the nice songs, then u can go round saying ''wassup man i can play well'' or else we jus gonna get looked down by other ccas. Currently, CO is striving for gold or silver which looks sorta possible n guzheng no nid say they get gold once and i think they can do so again. Choir i aint too sure what they aiming for but they also like quite enthu but at least we should get a silver eh...so hope all of u people more automatic and do whats right and slack less practice more, or at least practice den slack, slacking is inevitable but please know the limits. I really dont wana imagine a COP and if u all duno, our conductor Mr Tan is some big shot guy and having him to help our band is really an honour so we should really put effort and show him as i can see he super patient and a joker now but trust me if u cock up near SYF period u'll get shit from him i gurantee.

Hope this inspires you, i look at this whenever i cant play or feel lazy, you can do so too.

So maybe i go around taking photos of people slacking hopefully i dun take any photos of ppl playing around, or daniel will deal with you even tho i duno wat he plans to do, i'll jus watch. And if anyone has an grievences or unsatisfactory thoughts regarding how the band does things or what feel free to drop a comment or find us to voice out ur views. We will try to give in to yr reasonable request so long its not nonsense like "can the school gimme free instrument" or "my father is the president u better not force me to practice " Lets make the band a better and happier place.

So heres a song to dedicate to you all, Blue ridge saga, a nice song we might be playing in future for practicing purposes.

Good luck for POP....wonder how we will sound...

Darryl here

2008-07-20T21:45:00.000+08:00

hey peeps!

Here are the practices and events for the week. This gna be a busy week so please keep up to date.

Monday 21/07/08-Unofficial practice(buddy system) @2.30-5
Tuesday 22/07/08-Unofficial practice(buddy system)- only saxophone required to come but the rest are welcomed.
Wednesday 23/07/08- Band practice @ 3.00-5.30
Thursday 24/07/08- POP rehearsal with UG @ 3.00-6.oo
Friday 25/07/08- Band Practice @ 2.30-5.00
Saturday 26/07/08-POP!!(report to band rm at 7.00am sharp)
P.S Don't forget to bring Band uniform!!
Sec 1s need to come for all practices(including the newbies). Hopefully, this will help them know the band better.

One more thing,
I need the EDUSAVE and CONSENT FORMS people!!!!

I dun wan to keep chasing after u guys,okay?
besides that, I have opened this blog to the rest of the exco.
I seriously can't let everyone post here cos u guys gna flood the place,sorry.
So, it won't be just me from now on....even your QM Darryl has suggested to take photos of ppl who slack in pract. and post here...
hmmm,its gna be interesting...hahaha

-Daniel

2008-07-16T20:36:00.000+08:00

hey guys,

Discipline

I'm really disappointed by the way u ppl conducted yourselves today. Didn't Elias tell u before that nobody is supposed to be chit-chatting away while a student conductor, instructor or teacher I/C is in front. U guys clearly showed Ms Tan today that u guys haven't been taught simple manners. At least show some respect to her because she is there doing the whole band a favour by teaching us.

I know that her teaching style is different from Mr Tan's way. That doesn't mean u can do your own thing. What u guys did left a bad impression. I expect better things from u guys next time we have any guest conductor coming in to teach us.

Rule#1 No bandsmen is allowed to have private conversations(that includes sms-ing) while a conductor is teaching .

Rule#2 Every member is required to have a writing tool(pencil) during combined practices.

Rule#3 Whether u like a song or not, I expect every bandsmen to play his or her guts and heart out 100%! No more,no less...

Failure to follow these simple rules will result in more punishments

Practice Schedule
U have to blame the UGs for making me increase practices. They informed me late..

Friday 18/7/08 2.30pm-5pm(only those involved in POP)
Wednesday 24/7/08 3pm-5.30pm(everyone)
Thursday 25/7/08 TBC( POP ppl)
Friday 26/7/08 2.30-5pm(POP ppl)
Saturday 27/7/08 Actual POP( 7.ooam-10.30am)

Have fun practising!! lol..i dunno why it's fun either..
Well, u guys have to get used to this because this is how the schedule gna look like before SYF comes knocking.
Okay enough from me,
Bye.

your Drum Major,
-Daniel

2008-07-12T23:02:00.000+08:00

Hey ppl!!

I think u'all will agree with me that today was freaking boring. Unless u come from a communist country, then u wouldn't have played St Petersburg March. No wonder I saw u guys practising other pieces.

I know the "pain" and "horror" u guys experience when playing such pieces lah but please don't stop practising just for that reason. Every band has to go through this experience if they want to improve musically. This is the perfect example of being out of our "Comfort Zone".

Pls dun give the heck care look and forget it okay? U stare back at the score, The score stare back at u. In the end,nth gets done. Next practice I want to see improvement. As a punishment, I will not hesitate to give 40 pumpings to those who slack.

Oh ya!! one more thing,
rmb Edusave Forms are due by next practice, Wed 16 July 2008.
those wif no edusave, I feel for u cos I don't have edusave myself. Pls bring $120 cash. After all, its not your money that you're losing right?

-Daniel

2008-07-09T21:08:00.001+08:00

Hello band members,

Pls ignore previous post. The practice for POP will probably start only on 10th July 2008.
For now, pls continue to practise Carmen Fantasy. About that, hmmm!! I know that some ppl find it damnn boring and useless but the piece is not that bad if we combine. Please resist the temptation to slack!!! I expect everyone who has the piece to be able to play the first page by next next saturday!
If we can master this piece only then mr Tan will give us other shiok pieces to play. Dance Diabolique is still our main SYF piece. The Merry Widow and Carmen Fantasy is our reserves.
So, I expect everyone to not be having chit-chat session during sectionals. SLs will be held responsible for their section's behaviour during practices,and of course that section kanna punish lah...no need to ask orh??
Next practice is this Saturday @9-11am
See ya!!

-Daniel

2008-07-03T19:25:00.000+08:00

hey ppl!!!

this is my first post as pres. I congratulate those who did make it to the new exco.Hope that we can work well together and achieve greater results next SYF.

For those who tried and failed, I just want to say that u guys are also very important to the band. Doesn't mean that u r not in the exco u cannot make a difference to band. Our band is a small band and if one of u guys leave ,it will be a huge blow to us.

Anyway, here's our next project.
POP!!!
Probable song list:
-High School Cadets
-Majulah Singapura
-School Song
-Under the Flag of Glory Ceremonial March
-TBC

Practise for POP will probably start next Thursday @3.30pm. Pls dun forget to be fully warmed up before we start practise.Thanks!!

-Daniel

2008-06-26T18:25:00.000+08:00

i updated the list of band members already. i added the few sec1s that i know, hahaha.

and if you noticed, the names of the current sec4 batch are now in italics. we're gone and no more now. (:

2008-06-20T22:52:00.000+08:00

yeah yeah i know i very lag.
hahahahahha.
and i believe all of you had watched the videos of our performance on youtube.
credits to khidhir!
just wna say, thank you people for making this performance such a success.
you all sounded great, really. (:

2008-04-21T23:02:00.000+08:00

ahh, might as well update. haha.

now no more band! ahh.. peace for the sec4s. we dont have midyears, heh ^^
juniors, work hard for your midyears!!
must at least like, A1 for everything..
hahah thats what i get anyway. LOL.

this is just random(:

exco 2008!

flute!

saxophone!

argh due to time constraints i cannot finish this up
will continue next time

bbye!

-elias(:

2008-04-03T21:53:00.000+08:00

the tagboard is becoming a pathetic place for pathetic chinese pop stars who cant sing for their life to hang out.

HAHA.

ahya anyway
here is centuria.

enjoy(:

2008-03-16T11:16:00.000+08:00

hahah okay im updating.

next two weeks our beloved conductor will not be here, so wednesday will be sectionals with sec 1s, and saturday will be combined with ms tan without sec 1s. saavy?

haha.

all those in alumni band, mainly:

rayner
eugene
shimin
carissa
xingzhi
christopher
jacob
daniel palit
sixuan

get the scootin' on hard rock score either from me or liangzhu and practice them.
alumni are playing scootin' and seventh night of july (tentative) for the june concert.
dont feel inferior to them, learn from them and become an even better player!
(:

so basically, the songs we are playing for the concert that are confirmed are:

the power of josh groban. (with choir)

for alumni band:

scootin' on hard rock.

enjoy(:

-elias.

2008-02-01T21:32:00.000+08:00

orientation!

daniel whacking jacob. hahaha.

bbq!

jacob!

darryl!

3 idiots =D

yujian!

shiming!

elias and yuhyan!

eugene's trademark back!

the 3 princesses!

dew!

mrs lai and her baby!

elias again..

basketball somemore..

games!

forfeit!

hope you guys have fun!

and from the whole band, we welcome all new band members to our family!

2008-01-27T22:34:00.000+08:00

Yo Everyone
Yep Eugene here

Hope You All ENJOYED the Orientation
hahas had loads of FUN!

Shall Post the pictures next time hahas
so yep thats about it LOLS

Oh please do check the band board often
its near popular there. (school bookshop not J8 that one =_=)
aiyah somewhere near the thumbprint machine there hahas
updates will be put up there =)

I think we need to change this ancient skin.. LOLS

ok so thats all BYE!

Eugene. =)

2008-01-06T12:55:00.000+08:00

hahahhahha okay thanks eugene for reminding me the pw again!
LOL

okay so cca exhibition.
the video was nice, i like that version of rise from the ashes.

mrtan is getting edgy tho :O
but i think its all for the better bah.
the discipline is well.. =(

remember wor, next practice is wednesday, 9th of jan.
and the school portfolios with high school cadets, adagio and starchaser!

and im proud to say i pumped 100 yesterday!!
now i owe 60 more. HAHAHAHAHA.
i hope, by pumping 160, it inspires you ppl to NOT COME LATE.
or suffer the fate, you will
muahahaha...

okay and we're reprinting bandtee!
:D

2007-12-30T19:32:00.000+08:00

hahahah finally updated.
profile, committee, everything.

a new year is almost here, 2008!
for the band most would think its slack time.
DONT EVER HAVE THAT MINDSET HORR.
mr tan had planned some practices for us,
tho it may be boring (even i think so too)
it is all the fundementals of playing an instrument
in order to be a good player!
and all this are to prepare for syf2009,
where next year's new sec1s, sec2s and sec3s will take part.
so must practice hard!
cannot slack!!
(:

next year we wld be doing some drills too.
sometimes ppl from moe will come check on various band's drilling
which is mandatory for band, which means,
all band must practice drills!
so please dont complain when we tell you to do so!

and speaking of mandatory,
band is a mandatory band, tgt with ncc and npcc,
which means members cannot change ccas during the 4/5 years of education.
so attendance is very very important.
if you all got anything on, please tell either me or eugene what things you have
at least 3 days in advance
like that at least we know
dont go missing for no reason(:

so yup, i'll try to update the blog occasionally la.
WHICH SOME PEOPLE (points at eugene) dont bother to do.
HAHAHA just kidding just kidding
so yup
until next time!

ps: we're working on the band tee alr
this year's sec1s, be patient!
sorry for the inconvenience =x

elias(:

2007-09-11T20:48:00.001+08:00

http://s241.photobucket.com/albums/ff130/phssb/

check out this web for band photos from year 2003 - 2007

2007-08-19T00:41:00.000+08:00

Yo! people Eugene here

hahas okay updates on practices

Wednesdays 3-5pm or 6pm
Saturdays 9-12pm

For all members
Sec1 to Sec3

ok i know i may be a little boring that now all we are doing
is chorales and basic stuff but hey
this are fundamentals and you have to master them
you can't play songs withdout them
Plus we gotta let the new juniors blend in with the main band

To the juniors :
Welcome to the main band!
work hard dun feel discourage if you can't play it yet
it takes time to learn to play
its not overnight
Jiayous!

alright lastly
I am appealing to the band members
we are designing a new band tee =)
i need people to design it
hahas sorry i can't do that very well
me art C6
ok so if you feel you want to design the band tee please tell me
ASAP

alright thats all
=)

Eugene =)

2007-07-05T22:24:00.001+08:00

2007-06-29T23:32:00.000+08:00

Hi there. sec fours / fives, can you confirm with me if you are playing with the band for sch's NDP celebration by tml ?yeah, we need those list of names for Mr Tan. the celebration will be held at night ( i heard there will be a carnival in the morning / afternoon (: ).

Note: Percussion will be having rehearsal with the UGS for NDP on 10th july, tuesday.

for the rest of the band, please be present for Honours Night (6 july ) next friday in school uniform and tie! Rmb to bring your invitation card! :D

lots of love,
SINYI

2007-06-21T18:28:00.000+08:00

HELLO MEMBERS!
next sat 30june practice will be confirmed again. Do check out the band notice board when sch reopens for the new schedule of main band practices!

loves,
sinyi

2007-05-25T00:55:00.001+08:00

YEPP! band practices have started. its time for sec threes to take over the band (: jiayou & do a good job alright! the new recruits are here! teach them well k, sec threes! have lots of patience and its simply such a joy to see them learn new things every practice! (:

and do check out the band notice board. new band practice schedule probably will be out (???)

alright,tt's for the day.
take care ppl!

2007-05-13T02:15:00.000+08:00

hello members! im glad that this blog is still active > the tagboard i mean. yeah, whoever the band member is, i've added karmen & michelle into the list. sry dearies! i din mean to leave u guys out :/ love you guys k! haha. alright, tt's so random. yay! mid years are over. im back here to blog. i dono when band practices gonna start. june, probably.
CANNOT SLACK OK.! cannot cannot. and i guess, finally the sec one recruits can get started in learning their instruments. seniors, must guide them properly okay! annnd hopefully they are a hardworking batch! :D

the sec fours& fives will be back occasionally, to see if u juniors are working hard!
meanwhille, enjoy your days after exams!

wooohooo! haha

lots of love,
SINYI

2007-04-13T23:23:00.000+08:00

2007-04-13T23:04:00.001+08:00

hello phssb! its me again (: SYF is over, hope u guys had a really good rest these two days! don be so depressed anymore! SMILE, becos we've made it! u guys love phssb even more, dont u? be proud of OUR bronze!
on behalf of the band, i would like to thank the seniors who came back to our band practices to give the band your support, &of cos, the words of advices u left on this blog.
this is really a good experience. we had so much tears and laughters in these few month & of cos, the fun we had - band camp, intensive practices. don ever forget these special memories!

now, its time for seniors to step down from band. i believe the new sec three committee will be really prepared by the time for u guys to take over and lead the band! sec ones and twos, promise us that u guys will be committed and do all your best in band alright!
personally, i wan to thank all of you guys for making my last journey in band so special.SYF 2007 was definitely great.! i believe all the seniors felt this way too! jiayou our juniors! continue to have faith in phssb! dare to believe!

lots of love,
SINYI

2007-04-10T22:46:00.000+08:00

one more night, and the day is here. LETS DO OUR VERY BEST TML! play our very best on that stage, and enjoy the moment playing as one band. its our glorious moment! (: thanks for all the seniors who will be coming to support as tml! our band wont disappoint u guys!

and my dear members, u guys worked hard this last month. hopefully tml will turn out great!practices ended really late these few days,so sleep early tonight! and really feel energetic tml! justina bought honey lemon halls for those who are having sore throat alr! and hopefully mr tan's lip balm works! brasses members, rest ur lips k. and of cos, to those juniors who have yet to recieve the senior's gift today, u guys will be recieving it tml! hopefully our words do motivate u guys ! however, wads more important is to have confidence in yourself! have faith in our band! we can go through this tgt! jiayou jiayou jiayou! the sixty of us. we can do it! :DDDDDD

okay. tml please rmb to bring your BAND UNIFORM1 ( white shirt, vest,tie,stockings,blacksocks, courtshoes, black shiny shoes!)

allllllllllll the best man, my dearest band ppl! we can do it! be proud! becos we are PHS BAND!

lots of love,
sinyi (:

2007-04-09T10:49:00.000+08:00

HEY GUYS.
finally we are at the very last lap of this bloody long race.
Pretty good effort coming tru from u guys, and we sounded REALLY very well.
I dont know whether we will get the gold, but lets keep the fingers cross yeah?

Just some few comments.

We might be able to play the notes now, but i think wad we really lack are the emotions and musicality.

For safari, think of urselves more like an animal rather than just urself. E.g flutes or clarinets must think of themselves as some kind of birds. Tubas, euphos and trombones should play out the low pedal notes - that is to provide the sound of the lions. Trumpets' elephant call is pretty good, just need more of the high C. :) soloists like sinyi and wz need more emotion like eugene.

Safari demands more of ur ability to play in tempo - those coming in from at 2 bars before 14 must be in tempo ; trumpets when playing at 29 shld memo the score and look at mr tan to keep urselves in tempo etc.

Dynamics shld be wide - when climbing a scale, express more on the high notes; cresondos before 15 shld be much much more.

For Escape, try and hold ur notes to full values for every SINGLE bar. e.g the 2/4 bar in the beginning of the piece shld be longg not short. if not the music will like kinda stop and start and stop many times.

Many a times, u need to feel the song moving and going somewhere. For this piece, the beginning is trying to illustrate someone escaping from the plato's cave. Winds need to control ur dynamics. Band not too loud in 18 bars onwards, or it will sound too mellow and bass-heavy. more balance will be good. Trumpets will biting notes in bar 40 something shld do a cresondo ba, that will sound better. :)

Then in the middle of piece is the most emotional part - each section must be damn in tune and the style shld be more expressive than plain. Tubas and trombones shld do 2bar-phrase in bar 75 to avoid sounding too choppy. 1st voices like flutes and 1st trumpets need to come out more in 83.

I love the accel, think that is the most exciting part of all. cresondos are great, just plain GOOD!

the other parts are quite ok, just need to noe ur dynamics like Fp and ur articulation.

other than these, i think u all need the damn stage presence.
Enjoy playing in a band ; playing in with ur sections, ur friends.
Bring out the joy and happiness and all the emotions - touched the judges, WOW the audiences, bring proud to our school.

This shall be the last and only chance for us Sec 4s and 3s to play in SYF as PHSSB le.
I hope that at the end of the competition, we can leave w/o any regrets.
It isnt worth it to cry or be sad if u noe that u did ur best, right?

Know that all ur seniors are behind u, cheering for u, rooting for u.
All the 3 teachers, mr tan, mr ng will always be there for u.
Have faith in us leaders and fret not,
even if we dont get wad we want, we will still be PHSSB. :)

With that in mind, i wish us all the best!

Joseph

2007-04-08T23:02:00.000+08:00

hi guys!
haha in case you're wondering, im that looney senior who went back today :P
so sinyi has kindly invited me to post some of my comments on the band blog to encourage you guys yah.
BEFORE THAT, LET ME SAY GREAT JOB FOR COMING THIS FAR! YOU GUYS SOUNDED PRETTY GOOD JUST NOW.
but as always, there's always room for improvement.

okay firstly, must tell you guys that Singapore Conference's Hall's accoustics is not as good as VCH's.
so most prob your sound is not gonna ring, nor is the hall gonna help you cover up for the mistakes you made, erm in short: you're gonna be pretty damn "exposed".
but fret not lah, make an extra effort to play full value especially for holding notes.
this may help alot to make the band sound more full instead of choppy.

secondly, i notice that the band tends to slow down when playing quavers.
for example, the woodwinds in the beginning of Escape where the saxophones tend to lag behind the upper woodwinds.
also in Safari, the tubas and some others like saxophones tend to slow down at the quavers(i think is around figure14 ba).
try improving by listening to one another when playing the quavers den accomodate to play together as one.
also, you guys can try sub-dividing when counting the rest bars so that you'll be able to play accurately.

thirdly, the soloist like Wan Zhen and Sinyi must try to play more confidently okie!
be it a few shot bars of solo, you can make a difference to the whole piece.
dont be too nervous thinking that you'll be playing the solo, im sure the whole band is behind you :D
oh yah woodwinds pls be confident of your running notes, dont let the judges catch you being scared of the running notes yah. (DONT KNOW HOW TO RUN ALSO MUST RUN! DONT CARE PLS GO PRACTISE HOR!!)

okie thats pretty all lah..
but one observation is that the lower voices tends to cover the upper voices, making the music sound abit too heavy at times.
so the upper voices, like flutes, trumpets and horns can try coming out a little bit more den at least more balanced ok..

now let me share something with all of you.
i heard from somewhere that THE STANDARD OF THE BAND IS EQUIVALENT TO THE STANDARD OF THE WEAKEST PLAYER.
there's no use in having only a few section working hard, and some others taking the back seat.
if you guys want that bloody gold, you have to push yourself and work really hard.
ALL OF YOU.
if you do have parts that you are still unsure, please please please make an extra effort to go through and practise them(but of cos dont over exert yourself k)

i can already imagine all the parents shaking their heads in disagreement, wahhaha but im gonna say this, if you guys can just take your mind off studies for just these 3 days and focus on the SYF '07.
be mentally prepared, be physically fit, be musically prepared as well.
faith is very important, so if you guys believe enough, im sure you guys can do it~!
when you go on stage, pls do not let your anxiety take over you.
pls focus on making good music, put yourself into the music and listen out for one another.
put aside all those politics, put aside all those silly rivalry thingy and play together as one because im pretty all of you wants to clinch that Gold medal yah.

okie lah shall end here.
wish you guys all the best and i'll be there to support you guys.
TAKE CARE AND DRINK LOTSA WATER :D

cheers,
yiyang