It began with early morning coffee at Starbucks at 9:00am on Wednesday, 30 Aug 2017, and it culminated with a concert on the Symphony Stage at the Singapore Botanic Gardens on Saturday, 14 Oct 2017.
The meeting was to lay the foundations of what would be progamme and order for the concert and a showcase of the musical talents in the SAF Ceremonial Band.
ME4 Jax Ang did a tremendous job with arranging rehearsals and programming for the concert. Each conductor had about 3 rehearsals with the SAF Ceremonial Band but we did not need that many as it was done in 2 rehearsals. The band, made up of full-time National Servicemen, showed us their abilities and professionalism through our time with them. I, personally was amazed at the level of musicianship of some of them. The Clarinet principal player can easily pass an audition into a prestigious music school if he wanted to. The Tenor Sax player just loves his Jazz and you can hear such sweet sounds coming from his horn. The Alto Sax soloist was simply amazing as well. The horns, the trombones, the Timpani/ Drum Set player! Oh my goodness. If I had this band, I would form a Stage Band as well!
I was given the privilege to play alongside the Trumpeters in the band. The intention was to “beef” up the section for “Rebirth”. Actually, they did not need beefing up. They had the stamina to last 1 hour 30 mins concert (just the 4 of them). My presence, maybe, just gave them that added confidence they needed. But honestly, the guys were amazing and I felt honoured to play with them for the last 2 pieces. Missed a photo opportunity with them.
You can view a brief video of the whole concert here: https://goo.gl/jtZ4Z5
I was thrilled to meet Commander MP Command and am glad to hear of his continuous support of the SAF Band. Thank you Sir!
Thank you ME4 Jax Ang and the SAF Ceremonial Band. It was an amazing experience that brought back many fond memories for me and I am sure for MAJ (Ret) Tonni Wei as well. I am sure we will meet again!
Muhamad Yusri 
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