Arts to the Rescue

Auditorium-SJK-c-YUK-CHAI, swiped from ewinee on Flickr.

Once again, brought my mum to VerSeS: A Journey Through Time And Ages (AJTTA), a charity concert featuring sacred music. Already part IV this year. Held at SRJK(C) Yuk Chai, Taman Megah. The venue was easy to find as the school was huge. Quite impressed with the facilities. Looked posh with its contemplation garden complete with fountain, timber benches and canteen with stainless steel chairs and tables. It also has an auditorium-- that's where the concert was held. The concert coincided with BERSIH 2.0's rally, so I was a bit concerned about getting there. Wanted to check out ITIS, but the website was down for maintenance. Good timing hor? Conancat was kind enough to inform me that the LDP was free from roadblocks, so I chose that route. Upon arriving, I was shocked to see the enthusiam of its basketball teams. The coach carried his baby in one hand and shouted orders through his headset to keep the practice drill going. The players snaked around the court at high speed taking a shot at the basket. The scene kinda reminded me of some North Korean parade. Arrived quite early so we got to choose some good seats. BeautifulMale said he sang there before so he knew the sweet spots. Met quite a number of the BFF there as they helped with the logistics-- usherers, multimedia, ticketing, tah chap, etc. And a few also lent their voices. The audience was also full of gay lou. Just throw a program booklet, and I'm sure I would have hit at least one.

That night, Lex had his virgin night as MC. He was obviously a bit uncomfortable at first, but he found his mojo some time near intermission. Of his performance, my mum remarked:

"What happened to AJTTA III's MC? I like him."

Actually mum was referring to Adrienz who had a more radical approach. This time round, the concert featured music from the height of Catholicism in Europe. Had works from Byrd, Allegri, Vivaldi, Handel, Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Rossini, Verdi and more contemporary figures (read "not dead") like Eric Whitacre. Among one of the most interesting performance was the "Miserere mei, Deus" where the choir was split into three parts, one on stage, one on the floor and the other upstairs to create a uniqe experience. And Khairunnisa Diyana and Fairuz Zamani's performance also drew the loudest applause from the audience. Her voice was strong and it showed seeing how hard she heaved her bosom! Fairuz's fingerwork on the piano was also impressive. From the concert, I finally realize the importance of he conductor, seeing how the pianist and the ensemble are instructed to ensure harmony. Little wonder timing problems are the norm during mass at my church. After the show, mum and I rushed off the Restoran Risyadh to have a late dinner of dosai and chapati. Saw loads of police on the road, going home after the day's operation. Glad to hear that the beneficiary of the concert, Taman Megah Handicapped and Disabled Children's Home received in excess of MYR5000 for their building fund. Until AJTTA V! Kudos to EarlGrey and team.