Regina's e-home | home
back to ...Stuff...
My kinda music...
Alexander 403S... When can I own this horn?
Music & I
My journey down and up the musical road begun when I took up the organ at 5 part of my kindergarten education. But I gave it up when I was 10, due to ill discipline.
Since I was in a brass band when I entered primary school at 7,
under the baton of Mr. Lee (sorry but memory has failed me... I can't recall his full name...)
Thus, I thought it would do me no harm to quit electon lessons.
From the age of 7 to 10 I was learning the cornet.
Then I was switched from instruments from time to time,
this was due to the lack of members.
All the switch-a-roo gave me no chance to master any one instrument at all.
I think it was due to my music background back then,
as I was the only one that was made a versatile player, maybe not.
I will never know.
However, I would say that it was a blessing in disguise.
Cos' thru' it all I've learned a lot.
Upon graduating primary school, I moved on to Fairfield Methodist Secondary School,
where I continued to join the band.
Under the baton of Miss Yip Yuen Cum, I got a chance to settle down on my present love,
The French Horn.
Returning to recruit state, I begun to learn from scratch.
Thank God my seniors are amazing players, especially one of our senior seniors, Miss Petra Chong.
She is amazing.
She came by one day and corrected us of our mistakes.
Till this day I somehow cannot forget her invaluable advice on how to play the horn properly
when she came down that day.
After Fairfield, I moved onto Pioneer Junior College...
There, I got to learn under the baton of Ms Chan Peck Suan...
Was the only French horn player in my batch...
So when Ms Chan brought a trumpet player, Qiu Xian, to play the French Horn...
I had to become teacher to teach her the ropes...
Although I'm totally unqualified to teach...
But it was a learning experience and it made me force myself to perfect whatever skills I had...
But I don't think I succeeded...
Well, it has been almost six years since I was first introduced to it.
Learnt quite a lot recently as my interest grew.
Thanks to my friends' and teachers' support, the love for music burns continuously within me...
I am presently in NIE Symphonic Band and was member of Fairfield Alumni Winds.
Hopefully one day, I'll muster up enough courage to go for one of the Singapore's community bands' auditions.
Till then, I think I need more years of intensive training first.
After all, practice makes perfect.
So I shall try to perfect my playing first...
Then maybe I would not make a fool out of myself and spoil the image of the beautiful Horn.
The French Horn & I
Having played the French horn for only six years, I cannot give proper horn playing technique advice.
However, in this six years of playing,
I have come to realize that the French horn's abilities are more than what we can do justice to.
The range of octaves it can cover, the amazing warm tone that is in between the soothing mellow tones and the outstanding bright tones.
Amazing what the horn can do.
With each placement of the hand in the bell, the note alone can become flatter or sharper.
With each positioning of the bell the sound produced can differ.
Maybe it is the player, but I think it is in the French horn itself.
There are many great horn sites out there and there are some that I would like to share with you, if you are interested. I am just a beginner with respect to the art of horn playing, so please forgive me and tell me if I have made a mistake in what I feel makes the horn so unique.
I am open to all criticism and so please do criticize me and point out my mistakes.
Thank you.
Here are some links to some useful horn links:
Fairfield Symphonic Band In Action...
Fairfield's French Horn Section Sec. Fours...
1997
- Wong Li Yun (Section Leader)
- Melissa Wong
- Low Jia Hui
|
|
1998
- Diana Chua (Section Leader)
- Gloria Chan (Treasurer)
|
|
1999
- Arfah Lubis (Section Leader)
- Li Suk Leng
- Eh Sze Sze
- Amias Lum (Assistant Band Major)
Top to bottom (Left to Right) :
Sze Sze. Suk Leng, Arfah & Amias
|
 |
2000
- Chan Ka Yan (Section Leader)
- Vincent Li (Assistant Band Major)
- Regina Chua (Librarian)
Left to right: Me, Vincent & Ka Yan
|
 |
2001
- Casey (Section Leader)
- Janice (Treasurer)
- Rebecca
|
|