Saturday, September 25, 2004

Talking big

Now I know what Melvyn meant when he said someone only knows how to talk big.

I was reading this particular person's blog just now and it just struck me that most of the things he said doesn't make sense, especially when he was talking about things that I was pretty sure of.

Let me quote some examples to make my point, I'm feeling bitchy now. Heehee!

He spoke of the present Tanglin band room being "dry" and "absorbs well" because of the "low ceiling" and "new parquet". Excuse me, parquet doesn't absorb - it reflects! And for a fact, the Tanglin band room is extremely loud; there is just not enough padding to absorb the sound. In fact, I don't believe there is any padding at all! I got a headache from playing in that room. Perhaps there was too much ear wax in his ears? And it absorbed all the sound from the band? It's a pretty good idea though, personal ear plugs! Although it is a bit unhygienic. =P

May I also mention here that a low ceiling just reflects the sound back to you even faster than a high ceiling? The end product is just a louder sound which makes you want to play even louder because you can't hear yourself. Imagine the whole band doing that? It's deafening I tell you. It's good that some people have thick ear wax and are not bothered by the noise. I am so jealous.

Anyone looking for a dry room should have seen the old Central Band studio at Tanglin Camp (no relation to Tanglin Secondary) or the present studio at Nee Soon. That's what I call dry. Well, it's just too bad that mere mortals like him won't get a chance to play there at all.

I can't really say much about the NIE-Westwinds concert, simply because I didn't go. It would be unfair for me to make a statement regarding their standard of performance but generally I heard from people that it wasn't very good. It wasn't just one or two but quite a few. So I trust that a few ears can't all be coincidentally filled to the brim with ear wax and all of them making similar biased statements.

I didn't think the SP concert was very good either. The hall didn't help in making the sound nicer. I won't say much about the standard of solos, because as I cocked up my entire solo in my 3rd year's IBM in my first concert playing the oboe. As such, I don't feel I should say too much about the freshmen solos. But I must say that generally the solos were all fine.

The hall was just horrible. There's nothing much I can say about it. Yes, there's one thing that I agree with him. The auditorium is much better. Imagine that I was sitting in the middle of the hall and I had problem hearing some of the softer instruments like flute and oboe.

Ya, I know the oboe solo was bad. But hey! At least I know that the girl is willing to learn. I don't think it's a crime to be a lousy player. We were all once lousy players. As long as you are willing to learn and accept comments, you'll go far. Unlike someone I know who is totally resistant to comments and egoist who thinks highly of herself even though she's just an average player (some might think below average). Ego is good, but too much is destructive! One must learn to balance the dosage of ego and being humble. Having confidence while playing is good, but at the same time please do remember that you're not the best player around.

One can be never be perfect; we can on try to be among the best.

It is no wonder that the band scene in Singapore is going nowhere with conductors like him around. We need people who know what they are talking about. We need people who know how to play. We need people who know how to teach!

One who is a good player may not be necessarily be a good teacher.

Having said all these, the uninformed Reader might just think that: "Wah, This guy also talk big, what!" My rebuff to this ? I know what I'm talking about and readily back them up with facts. If I ever am not sure of myself, I will say "I think..." If anyone finds anything wrong with my argument and has a good and valid reason. Fine! I'll accept it.

So if anyone is feeling argumentative, presumably the person in discussion, please do some research before rebuffing me. Don't embarrass yourself unnecessarily. I believe that it's already quite embarrassing to state so many wrong facts in the presence of the online community which include students! For the greater good of education, please do some reading before teaching.

Put your brain into gear before putting your mouth into motion.

How true.
fjozn at 2:18 PM