B-BOYS: (From left) Azzoenickry, Stanley, Cornelious and General after a performance at the ‘Vote for Voice’ talent-time competition. — Photos by Chimon Upon.
B-BOYS — a four-piece band made up of visually impaired instrumentalists – hogged the spotlight at a talent-time contest early in the week and proved with their performance that music can transcend boundaries and bring people together.
The crowd at the ‘Vote for Voice’ competition in Samarahan went wild as foursome belted out local hits, including the current favourite — Anak Kampung by Jimmy Palikat.
Screams and wolf whistles from the fans reverberated through the venue even before the band started their show. Despite the technical difficulties encountered during the performance, the boys were still able to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
The band members are vocalist General Lieh and three others in the B1 to B3 sight classification.
Explaining the three categories of impaired vision, General said B1 individuals could not see at all, B2 individuals could still recognise shapes while B3 individuals were partially sighted.
General and bassist-drummer Azzoenickry Gajud from Tarat are in category B3, bassist-drummer Stanley Ngo from Miri in category B2 and guitarist Cornelious Ridan from Padawan in category B1.
“Our disabilities have never made it difficult for us to perform. It’s like we can see with our music,”
General enthused after the performance.
“Most of us learned to play the guitar, bass and drums since young from friends who love music as much as we do,” the 25-year-old added.
He revealed most of them lost their eyesight when they were young due to illnesses.
“In my case, I suffered from high fever when I was a baby. During that time, it was not easy to get to hospital.
“After the fever, I lost a large part of my vision but it’s not much of problem because I can still move around like other people.
“I’m used to seeing the world through my impaired vision — to me, it is perfectly clear,” he said.
For Cornelious, almost totally blind, the only challenge is memorising the keys of the songs they had to perform.
“Being blind, I need to keep a lot of information in my head. Sometimes, when I get nervous or if we have too many songs to perform, I tend to forget the keys but usually, I can make them okay,” the shy 21 year-old said.
His bandmates are ever ready to guide him around with his hand on their shoulders.
The members are now staying at the Sarawak Society For the Blind, Jalan Ong Tiang Swee, for technical training and work.
Most of the residents receive training in massage therapy and carpentry while others are employed at local restaurants.
According to their chaperone Nazri Jueng, the band practises for about two hours a day at the centre
“They had performed at many functions and music festivals before this and they really enjoyed it. Besides being able to express their creativity, performing also inculcates discipline and confidence in them.”
He said besides B-Boys, there were many other talented musicians at the Blind Centre.
“They are very close to me and I enjoy training them because I use to play music myself when I was younger. We stay together and spend a lot of time playing music. I’m also very proud of them because they never fail to surprise people with their talents.”
Nazri, a driver and caretaker at the centre, hoped their musical talents would be recognised by the public.
“I hope one day, people will come to help promote their talents because they really have the passion for music.
“Sometimes, I envy them. They have so much potential that can be further developed,” Nazri said, adding that he enjoyed his job and found it fulfilling to work with the blind.
“They are willing learners and workers. That’s why I love working with them,” he said.
‘Vote for Voice’ was organised by Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Sarawak Student Council at UiTM Jubilee Hall.
UiTM Sarawak rector Prof Dato Dr Jamil Hamali later presented a donation of RM2,509.70 to Anna Liew who received it on behalf of the Sarawak Society For The Blind in her capacity as executive treasurer.