Konzert.

WARNING: a slightly long post ahead :) its a concert review for VJCSB's school band concert.

Sounds of Grandeur
Victoria Junior College Symphonic Band presents - Majestia XXII
25th May 2007, 7.30
VJC Performance Theatre
Dirigent: Mr Leonard Tan

Programme:
Liberty Bell March - John Philip Sousa
Concertino for Bass Tuba and Band - James Curnow
An American in Paris - George Gershwin
Spartacus - Jan van der Roost
INTERVAL
Medley - Alumni Band
Flight of the Bumblebee - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (Percussion Ensemble)
Tico-Tico - Zequinha de Abreu (Woodwind Ensemble)
Sway - Pablo Beltrán Ruiz (Stage Band)
Third Symphony 'Tragic' - James Barnes

With a relatively short looking programme. the inexperienced concert goer may not know that the highlight of the concert is placed at the very end! That aside, the band was not at its peak on that day, but the performance was still a fantastic one nevertheless. It is certainly interesting to watch a 'superhuman' conductor on the podium with HIS ensemble; one who has brought the standard of JC bands to a new level.

Liberty Bell March was written by John Philip Sousa, father of white march music. A suitable opening piece, the band presented the audience with the full range of its timbres, allowing us to envision what good would come forth next. Mr Leonard Tan did do certain rather awkward looking gestures toward the band that invoked certain irritated responses from a few seats beside me, but it was fine as long as the conductor brought out the music, which he did.

Concertino for Bass Tuba and Band proved to be an eye opener for many. With a rather talented young tubist on the frontline, the audience was treated to the REAL sound of the tuba, unlike the blasting they give you in many secondary school bands. With a tone that was smooth yet crisp, he played through the beautiful colouristic piece without any difficulty. However the trumpets did seem a bit out of place; i wondered if they were ill-confident or simply tired out.

An American in Paris is an interesting composition by George Gershwin, who is better known for his Rhapsody in Blue. However, the inexperience of the student conductor ruined the entire piece; there was no feel at all and it was played very technically indeed. The 'motor horns' were missing too; the french horns blew hard, but the enhancement by the percussion section was nowhere to be heard. I am glad to say that this was the only piece that thoroughly disappointed me. I do not like to hear robots play...

Spartacus was the last piece before the interval; though it was not as good as the same performance on the SYF judging day (which won them a Gold with Honours), it still managed to convey the pain and victory of Spartacus and his fellow men. I loved the crotales's careful and precise playing :)

After the interval was the alumni band, which was exceedingly good! I was rather impressed that even after they had left the band, they could still play so well, or even better! They staged a Jazz item, for which name i do not know. They performed just like a professional stage band, with the colours and feel replicated to the last beat. It was like bringing Benny Goodman and his band from the 1920's to the future hah. I personally thought that they should have been the ones to play An American in Paris instead.

After that came a series of ensembles. Two marimbists played a corny version of Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee, cracking jokes along the way. Their apparent humour and virtuosity managed to mask their technical errors; there were many a mistake that could not be forgiven. Still, it was an entertaining performance, though nowhere near perfection.

Tico-Tico was next. Performed by the woodwind ensemble, it was rather steady and had the jazzy feel at the beginning. However as the complexity of the piece increased throughout the piece, the players slowly became rather discoordinated and nearly fell out of place. I'm rather relieved that they still managed to hold the piece together until the very end...

Sway was definitely a much better performance. I would say that its rather SEXY with the tenor saxophone belting out his jazzy tunes. The ensemble was also rather supportive of the sax solo throughout, though i felt that the violinist was rather redundant as her function was not clear and could not be heard much anyway. That could be the next VJC stage band, mind you. :D

Last but not least was JAMES BARNES'S THIRD SYMPHONY, which was the highlight of the night! Many people who came just to support their friends would not understand why the band had to end with a symphonic piece and not a big pop piece. Well i came SPECIALLY for this...any school band that dares to attempt this technically and emotionally exhausting work is worth watching at any cost. And yes it was fantastic though it was far from perfect (there were too many mistakes and late entrances to be counted); any live performance of the 3rd symphony is always better than a recording. However what i was solely irritated by was that the emcees said to hold our applause to the very end of the symphony, yet they themselves had to interrupt each of the four movements with their announcement of each one. I personally wanted to puke. It spoiled Ruined DEStroyed DEVASTATED the mood of the piece.

Putting that aside, the 1st movement, written almost entirely in the octatonic scale (which is a great feat in itself) was brought out smoothly by the band, and the feeling of helplessness and angst was clearly portrayed. The 2nd movement, still written in the octatonic scale but slowly deviating from it, was also portrayed well, though i would prefer that the baritone saxophone solo near the beginning keep in time and not rush so much...

The 3rd movement was best i would say. It brought tears to my eyes, not to mention the grief of James Barnes himself when his baby daughter Natalie died. I applaud you, Mr Leonard Tan, for bringing James Barnes's feelings to our doorstep. This could be said to be the most emotionally draining movement for the band and the audience.

Finally the fourth movement ended everything with a big bang! In celebration of Barnes's baby boy's birth 3 days after the symphony was completed, this joyous firework-like celebratory movement was brilliantly done, leaving everyone satisfied with the entire symphony.

(Still...I would prefer if you didn't cut the movements at all...someone enlighten me on why every movement was cut in a way or another...)

VJCSB is truly one of Singapore's top JC bands not just for its superb technicality, but its superb sense of emotion too. Thank you for the unforgettable concert, and I must say that Mr Leonard Tan and his band are one of a kind.