KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Tshung Tsin Secondary School concert band will be celebrating its upgrade into a symphonic band with a launching concert on September 10 at 8pm at the school hall.
Tshung Tsin is said to be the only school in Kota Kinabalu to have a symphonic band.
The concert, themed ‘Sinfonia: Rendezvous in Winds’, will showcase the harmonisation of sounds of the different musical instruments.
Apart from a few traditional songs, the concert is bound to mesmerize the audience with a set piece for competitions in Japan, 19th century musical Der Vogelhändler, latest pieces from Satoshi Yogisawa, as well as Chinese pop songs including ‘Ai Shi Yong Heng’ and ‘Xin Bu Liao Qing’.
The pieces for the Chinese pop songs were composed by Malaysian Issac Chia who is currently pursuing his studies in France.
Band director Ho Chee Kiang said Der Vogelhändler was a piece that emphasized on skills, techniques, quality and shape of sounds.
He added that the concert allowed band members to explore Grade Five pieces, with Grade Six being the highest standard.
In addition, an oboist will be performing ‘Sweet Sunset’ at the concert, as well as various solo performances.
The concert will involve 53 band members from Junior Two to Senior Three, whose age ranges from 14 to 18. The concert band has 101 members in total.
There are 13 pieces to be performed with an interval in between.
Ho, the conductor for the concert, said the concert band provided an opportunity for children to learn about ensemble, and to learn classical as well as New Age pieces. Ho has been with the concert band since 2006, and this is his fourth concert with the band.
On the upgrading of Tshung Tsin concert band to a symphonic band, Ho pointed out that the biggest difference was in the different types of instruments added to the band, including clarinet, flute, trumpet and horn.
For instance, Ho said clarinets were further divided into B flat clarinet and E flat clarinet.
A symphonic band also possesses a wider range of band repertoire, he said.
Meanwhile, band manager Golden Chee said the concert band was a beneficial after-school activity for students, which could prevent them from loitering in cyber cafes or spending too much time online.
“Joining the concert band is a cheap method to gain musical knowledge,” he said, adding that members also went to Hong Kong and Singapore to interact with concert band members overseas.
Tickets are priced at RM10, RM20 and RM30.
The tickets will be available for sale at the venue, Sabah Tshung Tsin Secondary School hall on the day of the concert. Alternatively, the public can call Golden Chee 016-8311588, Tan Twan Yun 016-8044714 or Wong Jia Lih 016-8413016 to acquire the tickets.
Also present at the interview was Tan Twan Yun, a former student of Tshung Tsin who has been working with the concert band as band instructor since 2007.