Note: I did a very very nice write up earlier but blogdrive decided to be kurang ajar and deleted everything I typed. So this will have to do.

For too long, students who aspire to become professional musicians have always faced criticism, dismissing their ambitions as being impractical and whimsical. Therefore, many of us who once had that dream to make music, either gave it up for a mainstream profession, pursuing degrees in "safer" professions which would yield hopefully, "profitable" returns, or resort to being a weekend "in house" musicians in the comfort of our homes.

The remaining few who stayed true to their passion, armed with the determination to excel as a professional in music, performed with their heart and soul last Saturday in the Flavours of Pop "n" Jazz Concert organised by IMH Academy, Kuching. I witnessed for myself, a group of close knit music students pursuing a common goal that night---to bring the best of their music talents on stage, to mesmerise the audience with what they do best.

Ben, a fellow blogger and also a music student at IMH, was one of the performers for the evening. This post is dedicated to him. May you succeed in your studies and make Sarawak proud of our very own home grown Ben-nessa-Mae. :)

Tickets were sold out for the concert (I received this info from Ben after the concert), which is the most enthralling part for a performer. Standing up there on the stage facing a sea of enthusiastic, receptive audience who love you is the ultimate dream of any performer on stage.

I enjoyed the concert very much albeit being more of a classical music fan. The MCs cum drummers, Sam and David did a good job communicating with the audience and the show moved on very smoothly, without hiccups or prolonged pauses in between programmes.

Ben of course, had his girl fans (and boys too) screaming for more when he emerged looking suave in a black shirt and slacks, complete with a striking reddish orange tie. (What happened to your red shirt Ben?) He performed "Red Hot" by Vanessa Mae, accompanied by his coursemates on the keyboard, drums, bass guitars etc.

The concert was divided into two parts-first part being pop and rock, with Adrian and Christine on vocals (born performers I daresay), Ben and Tze Chow on violins, Sam and David alternating on drums (lil bro said Sam was very composed, I'd take his word for it since he used to be a drummer back in his heydays), Chung Yi (much better looking version of Jay Chou) and Swee Joo (Korean movie star lookalike) on bass guitars,(they later performed "Power" by Marcus Miller and I loved it), Benzie (pardon the spelling) and Kenny on electric guitars, Bern (electric guitar--who got the audience all excited with his rendition of "sape" in the middle of his performance for one of his songs) and Raenai and another student on cello. And of course, we must not forget Charlie's Angels-Kathy, Michelle and Crystal on keyboards and clavinova. Marvin, the mastermind behind the concert was the main keyboardist for the evening.

One thing I noticed about the whole performance was that every student was given an opportunity to showcase their talents--truly a team effort. Some students not only played intruments but also sang, demonstrating their versatility.

The concert ended on a high note with Adrian leading the crowd with "Can't get my eyes off you". Everybody had a wonderful time.

Sin Chiew has a full page coverage on this concert--check out today's paper.

Here are some pics from the concert:

An overview of the stage before the concert started.

Ben and Swee Joo.

Christine and Adrian doing a duet.

Ben performing "RED HOT"-sans the red shirt his counterpart decided to adorn of course.

Marvin on keyboard.

Chung Yi and Swee Joo performing Marcus Miller's "Power".

Adrian on trumpet.

Grand finale with all the performers on stage.

Apologies if not everyone is in the pics... my camera wasn't too co-operative and half of the pics came out blurry.