Last Friday, we had a rocking good time at the launch of Singapore Polytechnic‘s [SP] first ever record label, SPEAR, at The Coliseum, Resorts World Sentosa and truly, we were very impressed by the performances that were put up by the Students from SP’s Diploma in Music and Audio Technology [DMAT].
With the launch of SPEAR, this makes Singapore Polytechnic the first education institution to have such an initiative and in case you’re wondering why the record label is named, “SPEAR”, SPEAR is the acronym for Singapore Polytechnic Emerging Artiste and Repertoire. The SPEAR initiative also reflects a refreshed DMAT course that is more industry-centric and better able to marry the aspiration of students with the opportunities in the music industry.
When we were there, we were given the VIP treatment and and we managed to get upclose and personal with some of the Student Artistes whom were going to be performing. As a matter of fact, we managed to interview V’Bel [a.k.a Wong Ay Shyuan], a 20 year old up-and-coming Violinist, and Mr. Michael Spicer, who is DMAT’s Course Chairman.
Interview with V’Bel
A Short Video of the Interview that We Had with V’Bel
Posing for a Photo with Mr. Michael Spicer
A Short Video of the Interview that We Had with Mr. Michael Spencer
After the interview session, we headed straight for the concert to take some photographs and the following are some of the shots that Jacqueline took with the Olympus EPL-3. As we took more than 400+ photographs, it is nearly impossible to embed all of them on this blog entry and hence, we’re just going to feature some prominent ones. The full profile of these Student Artistes is available online at www.spear.com.sg and if you’re interested, do check it out!
The first performance was put up by Celestia [a.k.a Deborah Tan] & her band.
Celestia belongs to one of the first batch of Students to graduate from SP’s DMAT Course and she graduated with a Diploma with Merit. She has participated in many music competitions and won several awards as well. Her music genre mainly lies in eclectic pop and western folk music.
The Violinist in Celestia’s Band
One of The Guitarist in Celestia’s Band
The Keyboardist in Celestia’s Band
The second performance was put up by Formalisms, the only and biggest group that is made up of an eclectic mix of nine third year students of SP. It is also interesting to note that every members of the group are academically inclined with an average GPA of over 3.0
Beth Yap, Vocalist and Bassist of Formalisms
Tang Hui Jun, Bassist of Formalisms
John Tim, Drummer of Formalisms
Boaz Koh, Guitarist and Vocalist of Formalisms
Mr. Michael Spicer, SP’s DMAT Course Chairman, Playing the Flute with the Band.
The third performance was put up by V’Bel and her band.
V’ Bel is a very talented Violinist who recently graduated with a Diploma with Merit and a book prize. Her natural flair in music was discovered when she was 7 years old and since then, she has been performing in many arts events and concerts to hone her skills. Her music genre mainly lies in classical cross-over.
The Keyboardist in V’Bel’s Band.
The Bassist in V’Bel’s Band.
Now that you know and have seen a little bit about the various Student Artistes, wouldn’t it be good to listen to some of the songs from them?
Well, we have embedded the Student Artistes’ latest EP/Song Tracks in this blog entry and you can listen it for yourself below. We personally like the songs by Victoria Street and the addictive tune of V’Bel and her band.
The highlight for the night was perhaps the splendid performance put up by The Sam Willows, a local indie outlet.
Formed by siblings Ben and Narelle Kheng, and friends Sandra Riley Tang and Jon Chua; The Sam Willows burst onto the Singapore music scene in May 2012 with their luscious harmonies and special brand of country-folk that created a solid buzz across the island-state.
Drawing inspiration from acts like Mumford & Sons, Bon Iver, Joss Stone, Keith Urban and the sound of a leaky tap, The Sam Willows craft an interesting country-folk sound interlaced with heavy vocals.
Benjamin, Primary Songwriter and Vocalist of The Sam Willows
Jonathan, Guitarist of The Sam Willows
Narelle from The Sam Willows Playing the Bass Guitar
Sandra from The Sam Willows Playing the Tambourine and the Shaker
Personally, we really like The Sam Willows and we daresay we’re converts now! To hear some of the groovy song tracks by The Sam Willows, we have embedded them in this blog entry as well.
Well, having said so much about the SPEAR Concert; if you’re an “O” Level Student and you have a keen passion and interest in music, you probably might want to consider enrolling yourself in Singapore Polytechnic’s Diploma in Music and Audio Technology Course. There, you will learn about acoustical science, music theory, recording and mixing techniques, musicianship, song-writing, song production, song arrangement, and many more!
What’s more, you can look forward to an array of exciting career opportunities upon graduation. Some of the career prospects include Recording Engineer, Live Sound Engineer, Music Producer, Songwriter, Music Arranger, and etc.!
For more information about Singapore Polytechnic’s Diploma in Music and Audio Technology Course, you can check out Singapore Polytechnic’s Website!
Once again, we would like to thank Singapore Polytechnic for inviting us to the SPEAR Concert and the various Student Artistes for putting up such an electrifying performance. 😀
