A short text late March 2017 culminated in a Rudimental Drumming Workshop for the members of the RPWS Percussion Section and the Beats Encore on 31 May 2017. The workshop was led by the Percussion Group Leader of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Band, ME2 Hazizi Jaafar, fresh from the band’s trip to the Virginia Military Tattoo, where the SAF Central Band has once again captivated its audience and flew our Singapore flag high.
We originally planned for a longer session but due to the briefing that all CREATE members had to attend, we could only start the workshop after our muslim students had broken their fast.
After doing the introductions, I left the Master to work his magic.
Looking at this picture made me really proud of what the SAF Band has achieved from the year 2000. The SAF Music Board met for a retreat to craft the Vision and Mission statements for the SAF Band:
Vision of the SAF Band
-To join the ranks of world’s finest Armed Forces bands
Mission Statement of the SAF Band
-To provide quality music support at major State and Singapore Armed Forces functions, parades and ceremonies.
-To project the professionalism of the Singapore Armed Forces through musical excellence.
-To foster closer relations with the local and international populace as music ambassadors of the Singapore Armed Forces
To achieve this, the Board agreed that we needed a comprehensive training program that will help our military musicians grow and be the best that they could be. We needed to acknowledge that we could not hold on to the better ones forever but we must ensure that those who stayed with us must be provided with the best training and resources so that they will be inspired to be the best that they can be. Hazizi rose from the very bottom of the Percussion Section and now he is at the very top. Watching him teach and play, I know the meetings we had back in 2000 has been successful and fruitful. I feel really proud of Hazizi’s achievements and his willingness to give back to the community for what he has been given.
At the end of the workshop, I asked the members of the RPWS Percussion Section to share with me their thoughts and what they learnt from the session with Hazizi. Here are their reflections:
Alfie – Despite having a short session with Mr Hazizi, I have learnt a lot from him; from single stroke to 5-stroke roll. This motivates me to practise even more. The rudimental drumming skills will definitely be useful when I play the drums. I hope to have a longer session with him in the future.
Anisah – Today’s workshop was a good chance for me to practise my strokes again. I got to re-cap on my Flam rudiments and my 5-stroke roll. Mr Hazizi was engaging and fluent in his demonstrations, thus making it easy for me to understand him.
Farhan – Today’s workshop was fun eventhough i don’t have any experience on the drums, I did benefit from learning the basic rudiments. It was difficult at the beginning but it was really useful techniques for playing other music pieces too. The instructor was very knowledgeable and engaging.
Justica – no doubt the workshop was a short one, but we definitely learnt new things. The instructor was engaging and ensured that his explanations were clear and easy to follow. The workshop gave me the drive to want to practise and improve on my rudiments and strokes. Would love to have one more session with Hazizi.
Fabian, the Section Leader had this to say – To summarise today’s workshop, it is a short but fruitful one. Having an experienced drummer to teach and share his experiences and skills was truly heart-warming. His engagement and explanations were thorough and honestly, I hope to have a longer session with Mr Hazizi, and of course to play the drums together with him and my section mates! If there was one thing that we could improve upon, was the duration of the workshop. Other than that, I have no complaints and I was glad that I was able to participate in this workshop.
Thank you Hazizi for conducting the Rudimental Drumming Workshop at the Republic Polytechnic and for teaching the young drummers the importance of basic rudimental drumming skills. We are grateful to be on the receiving end of your sharing and I believe all of the students felt inspired by you and will pass on the knowledge that they have gained to their friends in their musical groups.
Muhamad Yusri 
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