Sing! Percussion, St Joseph’s School Band capture hearts in captivating performance
KUCHING: A captivating performance by the Sing! Percussion group and St Joseph’s School Band captured the hearts of the audience during the ‘Around the World in 80 Minutes’ programme on Sunday.
Held at the Trinity Methodist Church, Jalan Ellis here, performers delivered compositions originating from several countries around the world or which are synonymous with certain countries during the event.
Sing! Percussion is a group of musicians consisting of members from China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Taiwan.
The octet harnesses a diverse roster of players to perform anything from delicate to emotional to powerful.
They also specialise in a wideranging repertoire as culturally diverse as the ensemble they played on Sunday, and are also recognised for their stunning ability to communicate with each other and the audience.
St Joseph’s School Band, on the other hand, has a proud history of artistic and competitive success and is recognised for pushing the artistic envelope while challenging members and audiences alike with demanding, innovative and provocative offerings on the field and in the concert hall.
Among their achievements are Grand Champions at the prestigious US Band Yamaha Cup held in New Jersey, United States in 2015 and also regional success including being named Malaysian national champions in 2006 and others.
The band’s director is June Ling while their programme coordinator is Jonathan Fox and music director, Anthony Wong.
The event was part of St Joseph’s School’s 135th anniversary celebration which saw activities organised by the school throughout the year.
Present to witness the show were Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas and Local Government and Housing minister Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian.
Dr Sim, who is president of the Old Josephians’ Association, said he was glad the show was a success and at the same time thankful that St Joseph’s School Band managed to carry the St Joseph School’s name around the world.
“From the jungles of Borneo, they ( St Joseph’s School Band) have done a tremendous job by being able to travel the world to play their music. We hope the audience will enjoy the performances that have been planned for them tonight ( Sunday night) and witness why St Joseph’s School Band is also an international act like Sing! Percussion,” he said.
Local Bidayuh traditional music specialist, instrument maker and instrument comptemporiser Arthur Borman Kanying made a special appearance during the show as guest artist, performing ‘Soul of the Land’ with his special percussion known as the ‘Pratuokng’.