Thursday, July 07, 2005

54-50

congrats to london. though i was kinda rooting for paris. or new york. but still...london's not too bad. 54-50 is such a close fight. feel so sad for paris.

today went for njc band concert. me and mum arrived early so we decided to walk around at raffles city. took picture of the olympic rings at the atrium. so pretty. tons of people were standing/sitting around the big screen at the stage which is showing live footage from the happening things happening on the 4th level just upstairs where paris and london were neck-to-neck. so the IOC president announced the vote is closed. and everyone who didn't read straits times would be waiting with bated breath expecting the results to be announced...but no....it was to be announced at 730pm. and there was this collective groan across the entire shopping centre.

so funny. i was laughing.



the 5 rings of olympics.



some nice banners hanging at the atrium.

singapore is one happening place. =)

then i caught sight of the media journalists and delegates at the 4th level preparing to receive the results and beam it back to their respective newsgroups. a lot of policemen were strolling around the shopping centre. as in really a lot. security was very tight outside the roads too. and a few people had the IOC tag around their necks and i was so tempted to steal it from them haha~ so i can get into where the action is.

anyway, nj concert was very very good. i seldom say concerts are that good. but this time it was that good. the pieces showcased their virtuosity and technical abilities, not to mention musicality. the repertoire was a good mix of light and heavy. music from the incredibles was accompanied by clips from the movie - very nice arrangement. of course NIESB's rendition of phantom of the opera was better. cry of the celts (lord of the dance) was alright. though i'm biased 'cos i've heard the original version both on CD and live. nice solos though. esp the lovely alto flute. orient express was very good! i remember why i love philip sparke's work. he's such an imaginative composer.

interval..went to reception and mingle with people. then percussion ensemble...i've yet to listen to an ensemble that is really really good. stage band was alright. alumni band presented 2 pieces. armenian dances is a piece i haven't heard in a long time! nice to hear it again. 2nd one was music from the movie pirates of the caribbean. alright. and as always i'm biased 'cos i have the OST. but very heartening to see the alumni coming back to form a complete band. some very old. some just graduated. i feel so detached from tj band...

then it was jap graft 4. not too bad too. and they ended off the official repertoire with amazonia. their pride and joy that got them one of the 3 gold with honours accolade. can tell that they deserved it. it was very clean. very controlled and well-executed. dynamics intonation musicality together-ness, you name it, they've got it. so proud of them.

after 2 encores to please the slightly older crowd. yours truly inclusive. selections from west side story and selections from ABBA. nice...then nj's college anthem, which they play by memory. 'cos they play it every week.

nice evening. would have been better if paris won.

if only.

This girl posted at 12:13 AM