jim's backlogs

The day started off pretty surreal, waking up early in the morning to do a sound-check at the Centre for Elderly Activity where the competition was being held. Instead of going through notes of our competition pieces, we were admiring old folks playing pool at the lower floor.

When we returned for competition proper, there was a surprising calm permeating among the whole choir. No one was huddling around, boosting each other's confidence like what most of us did previously. We were just sitting around the waiting room, singing like we always do, but of carolling pieces, songs we previously sang. There was just these unexplained calmness and confidence, each of us knowing full well what we have practiced and drilled for the past six months was just for the next twenty minutes.

We were whisked onto the stage without much fanfare. Taking our positions, we were suddenly showered with the hot and glaring stage lights. But that didn't fazed us. With each note we sang, the control, the clarity of the tune, the water-tight bland that we all strived, flowed into the auditorium. Though hot and sweaty at the end of it, there was this buzz. We knew there was something magical happened in there. Everyone of us at each point of the twenty minutes on stage, had their own special moment.

On 26 July, the results were being announced at the beautiful Seaside Convention Centre. We shed tears when we saw Anderson JC Choir swept to the podium with screams and tears of joy as they were annouced as the winner of the Mixed Choir category. I managed to sneak my way to the front of the stage and was there to snap those moments of history for those young kids. As the flag rose up, and the tune of Majulah Singapura rang around the whole hall, I couldn't start choking on tears as I continue to snap, knowing that at least when the day was over, they have those photos to cherish.

When it was the time for our category result, the whole choir was on our feet, huddled together as one. We had the support of Anderson JC, Hwa Chong JC and NTU Choir around us as we waited patiently. The results were given in reverse order, with the lower scores being announced. As names started rolling out, the strains of the emotions that we kept, became unbearable. To make it worse, we thought there were only 11 choirs in the competition. But as there were 16, we couldn't keep track of the numbers of choirs left.

In my mind were these three words: "Play the music". The anthem was played to signal the announcement of the winner. So, those were my chants for the final few minutes. And when that anthem started playing, the whole group of us started screaming our heads off as we ran towards the stage. Everyone hug everyone in sight, lifting and pulling each other as we finally got what we started out to achieve in January.

Then the grand opening of Majulah Singapura rang again, and this time, I was up there on stage. Together with my choir, Victoria Chorale, and our conductor Nelson Kwei. as we watch our Singapore flag rose up, the happiness of knowing we did our best and we got the best reward we can ever hope for.

This is the best moment I ever had in VC in the past 13 years. Nothing beats the fact that we are the best in the world when it came to Musica Sacra a cappella. I am happy to leave my post as the President of the choir knowing that I have done my best to help the choir achieve this result. Hopefully, the next person who comes in will bring us to a greater height than we have achieved.

And for once, will the local media make some decent effort to recognise the efforts made by the local choral community? Singapore choirs have always achieve good results in international competitions. VJC Choir, previously also a category champion in the World Choir Games, are rank in the top ten, while VC has also risen to 18^th position among international choirs. Just in this competition, we have achieved 4 Golds and at least 1 Silver. In a country which hypes rankings and winners, is this sufficient to make them take notice?