Music / Drama
FOBISSEA MUSIC FESTIVAL hosted by the British School Beijing, 11 – 14 November 2011
Today I’d like to talk about music having been totally entranc ed by the perf or
mance of all the musicians
and singers from around the whole Asia region who came to join us at BSB for the Federation of British International Sch ools, South East Asia Music gala.
It was five days of incredibly hard work leading up to a Gala concert that was one of the most remarkable student events I have ever attended.The performance of “Jerusalem” was incredibly powerful; the Glee type arrangements of Queens “Somebody to love” and Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” had everybody’s foot tapping.
I think I can summarise as so…at the end of the show, as the final note faded, the whole audience rose to give a standing ovation. To say that the students excelled themselves is an understatement in this case. They worked incredibly hard and showed real talent. Of course the other side of the equation is the tremendous amount of work put into the organisation of such a huge event.
Our teachers and our administration team did a deeply impressive job. I was hugely proud to have so many teachers from other schools in the region come to me and tell me how impressed they had been with the seamless running and management of the event. As a Principal this has been one of the moments that I will treasure for a very long time.
Wel
l done to all!
Mike Embley,
Executive Principal,
The British School of Beijing
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“Voices Raised in Harmony” - FOBISSEA CHORAL FESTIVAL 2011
The 2011 FOBISSEA Choral Festival, held at Bangkok Patana School, brought together dedicated choristers from around Thailand and China. The challenge was to shape these diverse voices into a single, harmonious body in only three short days.
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For three days, from the 10th through to the 12th of March, 160 students from Shrewsbury International School, Garden International School Rayong, The Regents’ School Pattaya, St Andrew’s International School Bangkok, Harrow International School Beijing, St Stephen’s International School, St Andrew’s International School Green Valley Rayong, The Regent’s School Bangkok and Bangkok Patana School gathered to celebrate one of the great things we all have in common: our voice. We learned, practised and performed over fifteen songs in the new Arts Centre.
Being in the choir is a fantastic experience for everyone for a multitude of reasons; for example it encourages people to sing in a variety of new genres that they would not normally look at. These new styles of songs are catchy and fun to sing and they can often be more fun to sing than if you had just picked a song from the Top 50 charts. There is also the amazing group of people with whom you get to work. Throughout the festival we all gained new friends and connected with old ones from the other participating schools, sharing with each other the same thing – a love of creating music through our voices.
Walking into the theatre on Thursday we all felt a bit insecure, but through the guidance and 
helpfulness of the various staff we all managed to come together and produce an excellent concert by the end of the three days. This was in no small part due to the degree of commitment each of the choirs brought with them and the willingness of every single student there to try something different, something a little out of our comfort zones. That commitment was easy to find when singing with a group of people whose company you enjoy and who spur you on to new heights and to take new risks.
Hearing 160 voices singing their hearts out on stage can be an amazing experience. But being part of that 160 is even more amazing and has benefited each and every one of us in the choir in different ways. It couldn’t have happened without the guidance and support and countless hours put in by all the staff involved and all of the choirs are immensely grateful for it. I hope that the next FOBISSEA concert is just as fun. Next year can’t come soon enough.
Eli White, Bangkok Patana School student