In The Media
New Straits Times, Life & Times, 27 July 2004
Youth choirs to sing for charity
By
Melanie Proctor
THE Operafest Children's Choir will perform with the Kokopelli Choir of Canada in a joint concert `Life Is Great - Across Borders' next month. MELANIE PROCTOR writes on how the idea for the concert, which will feature a wide repertoire, came about.
THERE is excitement in her voice whenever she calls and it always has to do with "her children". She is music director-conductor Kam Sun-Yoke and "her children" are the 30-odd members of the Operafest Children's Choir. This time she is bubbling to tell us one thing... which eventually leads to three more.
The Kokopelli Choir, a 40-member Canadian youth choir led by its founder and artistic director Scott Leithead, will be sharing the stage with Kam's choir in "Life Is Great - Across Borders" on July 20 in Petaling Jaya.
"We were part of the 20 choirs at last year's prestigious International Choral Festival held in Missoula, in the US. Scott e-mailed me two months ago expressing a wish to perform here en route to Namibia and South Africa ," said Kam on how the joint concert came about.
"While the Kokopelli Choir will probably be doing contemporary songs, the Operafest will perform American pop classics, barber shop numbers and semi classics from The Merry Widow," added Kam.
The guests will take the first 45 minutes of the concert, leaving the second half to the Operafest.
The Kokopelli Choir, formed in 1996, performs a vast and varied musical repertoire from different cultures.
It has been the showcase choir at the Rocky Mountains National Music Festival for the past seven years, recorded seven CDs and previously toured North America.
According to Kam, the concert here will be sponsored by Great Eastern Life Assurance with proceeds going to Kang Gaik Kee, a widow in her sixties, who for the last 20 years (until two years ago) had been caring for some 100 stray dogs in her house in Kamunting.
"I read about her plight in the newspapers - her depleted resources and suddenly having no place to stay, and immediately packed my bags for Penang to look for her in order to offer her help," she said.
"Now we are trying to find land around Taiping or Ipoh for Kang so that she can continue doing her good deed," she added.
Meanwhile, Kam, who is also the founder of the Operafest, is excited too about its two-week trip in December to Bangalore, Poona and Mumbai in India . The choir is looking for children between the ages of seven and 18, and is also hoping to recruit a pianist who holds a diploma in music.
She is also optimistic about organising two other concerts. One is a repeat of the American pop classics some time next month or in August, and the other is a Christmas concert at the end of the year. One of them could see the reunion of some of her former students to perform with the present group. All this would be possible only if there are sponsors though.
"We don't have money. For the `Life Is Great - Across Borders' concert, for instance, we will be housing the choir members in our houses.
"I am The Lone Ranger," she said going on to hum the theme song of the 1966 Western TV series.
"I have been involved with the Operafest all this while but not for profit," she added. It is her passion for music and imparting it to the children that is her driving force.
The Operafest was formed in 1986 with the aim of promoting the arts and providing children with a sound education through music.
Besides the US, it has performed in choir festivals in Spain, Greece, Macedonia , Australia and Singapore.
The "Life Is Great - Across Borders" concert is at 8pm at Heritage Centre at 3, Jalan 13/6, Petaling Jaya (opposite the Robert Bosch factory). Admission is by invitation. Call Kam (03-6081-5781) or Mah (03- 8068 -1733).
* The writer can be contacted at mel@nstp.com.my |
