Singapore Arts Fest : Arts on the Move @ Jurong Point

Date of Performance : 14th June 2008 (Saturday)

The Singapore Arts Festival is a bi-annual event in Singapore that features many fine arts groups, both local and international. The “Arts on the Move" is a regular part of the festival that aims to bring the performing arts groups in the heartlands of Singapore. Sounds Easy was invited to be the “Arts on the Move” segment, and our performance took place on the 14th June (Sat) 2008 afternoon at the Jurong Point Shopping Mall.

As we were not restricted to a particular theme for our 30-minute performance, Sounds Easy decided that our repertoire should contain familiar favourites that will appeal to general crowd. Since the performance would take place in the lovely month of June, we decided that the theme of love was the most befitting. Two months prior to the performance, arrangements of familiar love songs were arranged and rehearsed to ensure that we give a great show on the 14th.

The love songs that we performed described various aspects of love – the celebration of it, the passion involved, the sorrows when it is lost and the joys when one truly found it. We started our show with a medley of two upbeat numbers - "Heaven is a Place on Earth" and "I think we are alone now". After this rousing introduction, we next presented three soothing Chinese numbers- a medley of "爱情路“ (Aì Qíng Lù) and ”不想睡“ (Bù Xiăng Shuì), two very familiar Chinese ballads and an arrangement “喜欢你”(Xí Huān Nĭ), which was a given with a bossa nova touch. The tone of our show changed to a rather sad one when we performed a Hokkien piece "车站“ (Qiā Zhăm), to depict lost love. We then proceeded to explore songs that describe the joys of love. "Where Do I Begin" and "Thank you" (by Dido) are two songs that tell the story of how great a love can be, of the wonderful feeling knowing that that "special someone" is always around to support us. We ended our performance with the evergreen “Stand by Me".

We were very fortunate to have a very supportive crowd that day. Shoppers and passer-bys gathered around the stage to hear us sing. There were families who sat near the front of the stage to enjoy our arrangements. Most of the pieces were very well-received, and we noticed that some people even sang along with us. The Hokkien song "车站“, which describes the sorrows of sending one’s love away at the train station, was probably the most enjoyed by the crowd, possibly because dialect songs were not frequently featured in a cappella performances.

Given that Sounds Easy is a relatively young and unknown arts group, it was indeed an honour and privilege to be featured as one of the performing arts group in the 2008 Singapore Arts Festival . This performance opportunity not only exposed us to a bigger crowd, it also allowed us to share our unique brand of a cappella music. We would like to thank the organizers of the Singapore Arts Fest for giving us this wonderful opportunity and the lovely audience at the Jurong Point Shopping Mall for taking time out to listen to our music and enjoying our songs.

Singapore Arts Festival 2008: Arts on the Move

WooOooOooHoooOooOOo!!!

Sounds Easy has the honour to perform at the Jurong Point Shopping Mall on the 14 June 2008 for the Singapore Arts Festival '08!!! This is a rare opportunity and Sounds Easy really appreciates it!!! We're definitely going to show everybody that..

"We Sound Easy, but We Ain't!"

Eh..we know this sounds a little cliche..but that's our motto right!? And we will guarantee a performance that Sounds nice and Easy.... Haha..enough of rubbish.

Our tentative repertoire for the event includes (but not restricted to) Kokomo, Stand by Me,
喜欢你, Where Do I Begin?, 车站 (a Hokkien song) and Thank You ... We will be performing at 4 pm and our performance lasts about 30 minutes. So if you're going to be in that area at around that time, do come and enjoy our Easy Sounds at the event.

Happy Birthday Yanxing!!!

Haha! But it's a pity only Claire, Haoren, Huiling and Phil can make it for the dinner "celebration". We're going Holland Village Sushi Tei!!! Woohoo!!! *jumping in joy like small kids*

And no, we're not going to have a performance, but we might sing, very softly of course, a birthday song for him. =P

Happy Birthday YANXING!!!
Sounds Easy LOVES You!!!

Sounds Easy: Carolling 2007

Sounds Easy will not be carolling this year, as we will be re-vamping our caroling repertoire. Do keep us in mind if you decide to engage us for carolling in 2008! You will definitely be treated with a brand new suite of delightful Christmas treats! :)

Jeslyn's and Haoren's wedding

Date of Performance: 21st October 2007 (Sunday)

Today marks a special day for two of our members -it's Jeslyn's and Haoren's wedding celebration. Sounds Easy decided to come up with an all Chinese show, since the couple enjoy contemporary Chinese pop music. Despite just "recovering" from the show on the 15th October, all of Sounds Easy's members were gearing and raring to sing for their wedding.

The event was held at Hilltop Garden restaurant, which is located in Civil Service Club at Bukit Batok. Since there weren't enough members to perform a cappella pieces, we decided to perform songs using minus ones (i.e., "wedding singer(s)" style :)). The four pieces that were presented (in order) were : (1) 专属天使(originally by Tank) which was performed by Yanxing Allan, and Phil; (2) Tiffany(originally by Fish Leong/梁静茹) sung in duet by Claire and June; (3) "That's when I love you (orignally by Aslyn and featured in the movie "How to deal") performed by Celina and Chua (Claire's friend) on the guitar and (4) 今天你要嫁给我 (orignally performed Jolin & David Tao) sung by Yanxing, Allan, Phil, June, Claire and Celina (i.e., the whole wedding singers team). Dressed in our evening finery, we delivered the songs with gusto.

The wedding was graced by the couple's family, colleagues and friends, some of whom were past Sounds Easy's members. T his is probably one of the more heartwarming performances that we had done, and we thank Jeslyn and Haoren for giving us this opportunity. We wish them happiness, and a blissful and wonderful marriage.

Performance for the ICA Global Youth Conference

Date of Performance: 15th October 2007 (Monday)

Sounds Easy was delighted to be part of the The International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) Youth Conference that was held between the 14-15 October 2007. We were invited to sing for their farewell dinner, which as held at DXO, a club house at the Esplanade.

We were contacted by Wen Wen from ICA several months before the event, and she requested that we sing songs in English, as the audience came from different parts of the world. Concentrating on the theme of love and friendship, Sounds Easy presented the following in a cappella style: (1)Medley of "Heaven is a place on Earth" and "I think we're alone now", (2)"I’ll Be There For You” (originally by the The Rembrandts), (3) "Thank you" (originally by Dido) and (4) "Stand by Me"(originally by Ben E King). The audience were very lively, and gave us warm applauses, especially during "Stand by Me", possibly because it was familiar to most of them. After the show,we were invited to join in the party as well.

There were also many firsts for Sounds Easy during this event. This was our maiden a cappella performance at a club, which is typically reserved for dance music. Sounds Easy also donned a new set of costumes - ladies in light green dresses and guys with matching dark green shirts and light khaki pants combination. These "maiden" experiences made this show a truly memorable one.

Performance for ASEAN Youth Caucus @ NACLI

Date of Performance(s): 22nd April 2007.

Sounds Easy was invited to sing for the welcome dinner for the Youth Caucus, a meeting of youths and leaders from the Association of South East Asian Members (ASEAN) on the last Sunday of April 2007. This fairly high profile event was hosted and organised by the People Association's Youth Movement (PAYM), and the dinner took place at the lush and tranquil National Community Learning Institute(NACLI).

Despite being given only a week to prepare, Sounds Easy managed to present an all acappella performance of three evergreens that dazzled the audience, many of whom came from different parts of ASEAN. The performance took place in NACLI's Learning Lounge, a cosy air-conditioned hall with a small stage. We started the show with a medley of two pop songs-Berlinda Carlisle's "Heaven is a Place on Earth" and Tifanny's "I think we are alone". This was followed by "Stand By Me", and that seemed to strike a chord with the audience, as some of them were seen tapping with our music. We closed the show with "Kokomo", a song that was familiar to most. After the show, Sounds Easy was treated to a delightful buffet that was made up of yummy Asian cuisines. We would like to thank PAYM for inviting us to be part of this international event, and we look forward to more of such opportunities. We would also like to thank the audience, who were very supportive and appreciative during our performance.

Caroling @ Changi Airport

Date of Performance(s): 17th, 20th, 22nd and 26th December 2006

Sounds Easy was invited by Eugene from Euphoria Productions to carol at Changi Airport and its Terminals in December 2006. The caroling schedule for each day was tight - we had to shuttle from venue to venue, and each performance had to be about 20 minutes. Despite this, Sounds Easy took on the challenge, given that it was very rare to be IN the airport, let alone performing in it.

Sharing the joy of Christmas with the people who were at the Arrival and Departure halls and terminals in the brightly-lit and wonderfully decorated Changi Airport, we were very touched by passengers who took time out to listen to us. We sang familiar carols such as "Deck the Halls", "Jingle Bells", "Joy to the World", "Silver Bells" and "O Come All Ye Faithful", and we enjoyed some of the caroling sessions, which saw children dancing to our music and the adults singing along with us.

It was indeed Sounds Easy's honour to sing in one of Singapore's national icons and bring the festive mood to a place where people send or meet their loved ones. For this, Sounds Easy would like to thank Euphoria Productions for giving us the opportunity to bring our easy sounds to everyone during this festive season.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Caroling @ Grand Park Hotel

Date of Performance(s): 23rd and 24th December 2005

Sounds Easy was engaged by Grand Park Hotel (Orchard) to bring yuletide cheer to the hotel's Christmassy atmosphere. We were invited to performed for two evenings.

Donned in black during the first day, Sounds Easy performed at the central hall of the hotel, near the lift lobby. Acoustical conditions were trying, but we were able to hear ourselves and deliver our 45 minute repertoire. Some guests who were dining in the restaurant above, occasionally stepped out and listen to us. On the second day, we were moved to the hotel's mini stage, and for 45 minutes, we sang and entertained guests who were enjoying their Christmas eve dinner downstage. This time dressed in formal gear (ladies in white, while men in coat suits), Sounds Easy presented yet another well-received performance.

We would like to express our gratitude to the management of Grand Park Hotel for inviting us, and we look forward to future collaborations.

Caroling @ Raffles City

Date of Performance(s): 22nd December 2005

By the kind engagement of Bread Alone Consultancy, Sounds Easy was invited to sing in Raffles City, one of Singapore's busiest shopping places. The performance took place on the stage in the central atrium of the city, and we presented a 30-minute performance of carolling pieces. The central part of Raffles City is very spacious, so acoustically, it was challenging for a small ensemble of 20 singers. Nonetheless, Sounds Easy took the challenge in our strides, and tried our best to project our voices to the wide hall. Feedback of our performance was positive, and we thank the enthusiastic audience for taking time out from their precious shopping time to watch us.

The Sounds Easy ensemble after the show at Raffles City

Caroling @ One Fullerton

Date of Performance(s): 16th and 17th December 2005

Thanks to our dear friend, JF, Sounds Easy got an opportunity to perform at One Fullerton, one of Singapore's top dining and clubbing spots. At the request of the management of One Fullerton, Sounds Easy presented a 30 minute repertoire for each performance. We sang at the central foyer, and our a cappella music was accompanied by the windy breeze from the Marina Bay. Our easy sounds attracted many passer-bys, some of whom stopped by for a while to listen to us. Some children even danced along with the familiar carols such as "Jingle Bells" and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". The warm applause from the appreciative crowd made these evenings very memorable for Sounds Easy.

Caroling @ Pioneer Zone 12 RC

Date of Performance(s): 16th December 2005

We were invited by the management of the Pioneer Zone 12 Residence Council to present a 30 minute performance for residents staying in this area. Performance took place in a multi-purpose area for residents, and we were "warmed up" very quickly, as it was very hot. The crowd was surprisingly receptive, gave generous applause, participated in singing ALOUD with us, and even danced along with our tunes :). People were considerate enough to lower their conversation volumes, knowing that it is strenuous for the performers to reach out to so many people. It's been a while since Sounds Easy sang for a heartland crowd, and we appreciate this performance opportunity.

Fred & Lay Fang Wedding Dinner

Date of Performance(s): 29th January 2005

Tonight, Sounds Easy celebrated the union of Fred & Lay Fang, brother and sister-in-law of Silin,one of our singers, in the ballroom of Four Seasons Hotel. The couple had requested us to perform their favourite love songs, and that they would like a mix of a cappella and accompanied performances. Rehearsals and programme planning took place seven months before the wedding.

The wedding performance was divided into two sections. For the cocktail, Sounds Easy sang mainly a cappella arrangements of doo-wop pieces and familiar favourites, and this included"In the Still of the Night", "It's Alright", "Stand By Me", "Kokomo", "我愿意"(orignally sung by Faye Wong). For the banquet, Sounds Easy was accompanied by a live jam band, and we sang "Fly Me to the Moon", "Blue Moon"and "Hooked on a Feeling". There were some choreography involved in the banquet performance, to add colour and vibrance to the joyous atmosphere.

Sounds Easy is very honoured to have the pleasure to present songs from Fred's and Lay Fang's hearts, and we thoroughly enjoyed the performance. We would like to wish Fred and Lay Fang a blissful and everlasting marriage.