21 Guns - Guitar Cover...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVgI-efgN50&feature=related






best cover... easy to understand...
like it...

21 Guns lyrics

Do you know what's worth fighting for?
When it's not worth dying for?
Does it take your breath away
And you feel yourself suffocating?

Does the pain weigh out the pride?
And you look for a place to hide?
Did someone break your heart inside?
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

When you're at the end of the road
And you lost all sense of control
And your thoughts have taken their toll
When your mind breaks the spirit of your soul

Your faith walks on broken glass
And the hangover doesn't pass
Nothing's ever built to last
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

Did you try to live on your own
When you burned down the house and home?
Did you stand too close to the fire
Like a liar looking for forgiveness from a stone?

When it's time to live and let die
And you can't get another try
Something inside this heart has died
You're in ruins

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky

One, 21 guns
Lay down your arms, give up the fight
One, 21 guns
Throw up your arms into the sky, you and I

SAHC BAND memories of 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gnkkq57gNpc

This video i made myself... i want all you know that we are family in this band... we need support... not kutukan... please.. hear our voice... feel our spirit... this video is for all sahc band member...

Linkin Park New Divide Guitar Cover / Lesson

This is the video link to learn new divide - Linkin Park...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hbDrBBIn8c

What Happen ???!!!

Apa nasib pancaragam yang lain?...

berlatih siang dan malam...
sering barada di bawah cahaya matahari yang terik...
'skip' banyak kelas...
tinggalkan semua kelas tusyen...
tidak luangkan masa dengan keluarga...
kurang 'study'...

hanya untuk menyiapkan persembahan selama 15 minit...
tapi... sering terlepas daripada gelaran 'johan'...

mengapa??...
banyak faktor yang menyebabkan pancaragam ini terlepas daripada 'title' itu...

bukan kehendak mereka yang berlatih penat lelah ini untuk menimbulkan faktor-faktor ini...



Antara faktornya:

-kekurangan ahli...
-kekurangan wang...
-tidak mempunyai alatan profesional atau 'intermidiate'...
-tidak mempunyai 'instructor'...
-tidak mendapat sokongan yang padu...

jadi... tolong bagi cadangan kepada perubahan pasukan ini...

apa guna bawa nama sekolah jika kurang mendapat perhatian...

sekolah lain di kedah sudah berada pada satu tahap yang agak sukar untuk dikejar...

pihak juri juga sering memilih pancaragam yang namanya telah berada di persada dunia kononnya...

sehinggakan mereka tidak pandang pancaragam yang berada di bawah...

walhal pasukan yang berada di bawah sering menunjukkan kelainan dalam persembahan mereka...

tetapi... gelaran johan seperti sudah terikat kepada pancaragam yang pernah menjadi johan...

apa nasib pancaragam lain??...

apa makna berlatih jika sudah tahu siapa bakal muncul juara??...

apa makna pancaragam sekolah sendiri menjadi bahan ejekan dan kutukan di sekolah??...

The 15th Malaysian Secondary School Marching Band Competition 2009 - Results

Sunday, 09 August 2009 (9 a.m.)


Gold
1st: SMK Sultanah Asma, Kedah
2nd: SMK Sam Tet, Perak
3rd: SMK Chung Hwa Wei Sin, Terengganu
4rd: SMK Tun Fatimah, Johor

Silver
SMK St. Joseph, Sarawak
SMK St. John, Kuala Lumpur
SMK Chung Hwa, Kelantan
MGSS, Pahang

Bronze
SMK Derma, Perlis
SMJK Jit Sin, P.Pinang
SMJK Kwang Hua, Selangor

Best Preparation:
1st: Tun Fatimah
2nd: Sultanah Asma
3rd: Sam Tet

Best CG:
1st: SMK St.John - KL
2nd: SMK St.Joseph - Sarawak
3rd: Tun Fatimah - Johor

Best Drum Major
1st: SMK Sam Tet
2nd: Kelantan3rd: CHWS






P/S: Congratulation to all band...

- ANTI H1N1 !!! -

Keeping H1N1 out of SCHOOL !!!

To prevent...

WEAR A MASK !!!

ONLY 1 RINGGIT MALAYSIA !!!

BUT MUST CHANGE THE MASK AFTER 8 HOURS AND WEAR A NEW MASK !!!

What is INFLUENZA A a.k.a H1N1 ???...

Watchout For Influenza A a.k.a H1N1 virus...

This virus now is so dangerous....
Only 2 weeks it come to Malaysia...
Many people dead event a 6 years old children...
People must take this seriously...

I dont want to hear or see many of our muslim family died because of this DAMN virus...


Prevent is more better...
Pray for ALLAH (for muslim)...

"ISLAM LOVE AND NEED EACH OTHER, WE ARE FAMILY"

Gutiar Lesson - How to play Smooth Criminal by Alien Ant Farm

This is a video for 'SMOOTH CRIMINAL GUITAR'


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHCRQSDkRTI

Enjoy...

Kedah State Marching Band Competitiion 2009 Result...

1st: SMK Sultanah Asma

Theme: Seven Colours:

-)Prism

-)Tudung Periuk

-)Fantasia Bulan Madu (Static)

-)Greensleeves

2nd: Kolej Sultan Abdul Hamid

Theme: Love Need Sacrifice:

-)Godfather Love Theme

-)Ayat-Ayat Cinta
-)My Heart

-)Gunung Kinabalu (Static)

-)Urban


Best DM : Kolej Sultan Abdul Hamid
Best Preparation : SMK Sultanah Asma



video: Asma - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ydo1XC6i1qo
Kolej - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_r-J1UWjXg

I Want To Spend My Lifetime Loving You.

Moon so bright, night so fine.
Keep your heart here with mine.
Life's a dream we are dreaming.

Race the moon, catch the wind.
Ride the night to the end.
Seize the day, stand up for the light.

I want to spend my lifetime loving you.
If that is all in life I ever do.

Heroes rise, heroes fall.
Rise again, win it all.
In your heart, can't you feel the glory?

Through our joy, through our pain,
We can move worlds again.
Take my hand, dance with me.
Dance with me.

I want to spend my lifetime loving you.
If that is all in life I ever do.
I will want nothing else to see me through.
If I can spend my lifetime loving you.

Though we know we will never come again,
Where there is love, life begins
Over and over again.

Save the night, save the day.
Save the love, come what may.
Love is worth everything we pay.

I want to spend my lifetime loving you.
If that is all in life I ever do.
I want to spend my lifetime loving you.
If that is all in life I ever do.

I will want nothing else to see me through,
If I can spend my lifetime loving you.

Kedah State Marching Show Band Competition 2009

Assalamualaikum to all my friend and especially PAK G... For your information,
the state comp. for band is end of this month... maybe.. i'm not really sure..
i just want my classmate (ALL 4 Alfa student) can come to the stadium and cheer us...
For your information, we practice during the school holiday... we in camp about 6 days and 5 night to make our music and formation ready to bring our school name...
hope you all can give support to us... We want you all to see our band theme this year...
the theme is..... can't tell you...
The song i can't tell you too.. hahaha... Hope you all can give anything that can bring us to victory...

"CHEER ALL OUT OR DONT CHEER AT ALL!!!"

Thank You,

-Firdaus
-Sultan Abdul Hamid College Marching Show Band

Ayat-Ayat Cinta - Rossa

Desir pasir di padang tandus
Segersang pemikiran hati
Terkisah ku di antara
Cinta yang rumit

Bila keyakinanku datang
Kasih bukan sekadar cinta
Pengorbanan cinta yang agung
Ku Pertaruhkan

Maafkan bila ku tak sempurna
Cinta ini tak mungkin ku cegah
Ayat-ayat cinta bercerita
Cintaku padamu
Bila bahagia mui menyentuh
Seakan ku bisa hidup lebih lama
Namun harus ku tinggalkan cinta
Ketika ku bersujud

Bila keyakinanku datang
Kasih bukan sekadar cinta
Pengorbanan cinta yang agung
Ku pertaruhkan

Maafkan bila ku tak sempurna
Cinta ini tak mungkin ku cegah
Ayat-ayat cinta bercerita
Cintaku padamu
Bila bahagia mui menyentuh
Seakan ku bisa hidup lebih lama
Namun harus ku tinggalkan cinta
Ketika ku bersujud

Ketika ku bersujud...

we want our cikgu fauzi back!!!!

cikgu fauzi..kmi nak cikgu datang dan ajaq kmi balik...our spirit down witout you...please attend the class...4 alfa need you to survive....

-The Legendary Of Tan Sri P.Ramlee-

P.Ramlee's birth name was Teuku Zakaria bin Teuku Nyak Puteh. He was born aat his grandmother's house (now open as P.Ramlee House) in Counter Hall (now renamed as Jalan P.Ramlee) Penang, Malaaysia.

As a child he pursued his early education at Kampung Jawa Malay School, then he furthered his studies at Francis Light English School (1939-1941), Japanese Navy School 'Kaigun Gakko'
(during World War ii) and finally Penang Free School.

He was married three times, the last to singer Salmah Ismail (also known as Saloma) in 1961.
P.Ramlee was undoubtedly the 'iron man' whose competence as an actor,singer,comedian,
songwriter,screenwriter, and film director was apparent in his numerous awards won
throughout his career.

More than three decades have passed since the death of the legendary Tan Sri P.Ramlee,
an entertainment icon recognized for his velvet voice aand comedic roles. With more than 300
ssongs under his belt, P.Ramlee's songs such as 'Getaran Jiwa','Bunyi Gitar' and 'Di Mana Kan Ku Cari Ganti' are considered evergreen till today.

At the height of his career, many hearts were set aflutter with his onscreen prresence in
Malay films that ruled Malysian cinemas during the 1950s and 1960s.

Born on 22 March 1929, his untimely death at the age of 44 from a heart attack was a loss
to all Malysians who knew and loved him.

To Date, many books have been written about P.Ramlee and the latest edition is
'Bapaku P.Ramlee', the first personal account written by Nasir, P.Ramlee's biological son.
The book was recently launched on 22 May, the anniversary date of P.Ramlee passing.

The meaning of 'FIRDAUS'...

Firdaus or فردوس (Arabic) is an Arabic name derived from the word firdaws, the word for the highest paradise that can be attained in afterlife. The word firdaws is borrowed from Middle Persian and is related to the word paradise, which is derived from the Avestan form pairidaēza.
The name is used throughout the Muslim World. It is usually used as a male name, but it can also be used as a female name.
The name of the Persian poet and historian Firdausi and the name of the Iranian city of Ferdows or Ferdos come from the same word

''Who is Detective Conan... "FATHER (writer)" ???''...

Ok... i know all of you know who is Conan Edogawa or as known as young Detective Conan rite??.. ala.. kisah remaja jadi kecik tuh... Shinichi Kuodo... Hehehe... I know you all kno and i'm love it! But... have you ever know or think, who is the writer for the comics???... Hahaha.. i don't know t0o.. but...
after searching and make reference at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aoyama_Gosho,

i know who is the father of Conan... The name of the writer is Aoyama Gosho...

Educational background

Aoyama was talented in drawing even at an early age. When was in Grade 1 in elementary school, his painting of "Yukiai War" won a competition and was displayed at the Tottori Daimaru Department Store.

He graduated from high school at Ikuei High School. He then went on to study in Nihon University College of Art in Tokyo. In winter of 1986, Aoyama joined a comic contest for freshmen students. He won the contest, and it became a stepping-stone for his career as a manga artist and author, as well as a turning point for his life.

Manga career

Aoyama made his debut as a manga artist with the work Chotto Mattete, which was published in the weekly magazine Shonen Sunday on winter of 1987. Shortly after that, another work by Aoyama, Magic Kaito, was published on the same magazine.

In the early 1990s, another story done by Aoyama named Yaiba came out; the manga series was released in 24 volumes. Later, he would release other manga series in volumes (tankōbon), such as Third Baseman No.4, Gosho Aoyama's Collection of Short Stories, and Detective Conan.

Awards and

Recognition

Aoyama has won two awards for his work as a manga artist. In 1992, he won the Shogakukan Manga Award for shōnen for the

Yaiba manga series. He would then go on to win the sa

me award for a second time in 2001, this time for Detective Conan.

Additionally, his hometown Hokuei has done several machi okoshi (town revitalization) projects in honor of his contribution as a manga artist and resident of the town. The first projects were the Conan Bridge across the Yura River and the Conan statues in the town; both of these structures pay tribute to Conan Edogawa, Aoyama's most popular character from Detective Conan. On March 18, 2007, the Gosho Aoyama Manga Factory, a museum that celebrates Aoyama's career as a manga artist, was opened in the same town.

Personal life

On May 5, 2005, he was married to Minami Takayama, a singer and voice actress who gave the voice of Conan in the original Japanese anime adaptation of Aoyama's Detective Conan.In December 10, 2007, the two were divorced.

Manga works

Wait a Minute (Chotto Mattete) (1987)

This is Aoyama's first manga story. It was published in Shonen Sunday. It tells the story of a boy genius named Yutaka Takai, whose time machine jetpack sends his love interest through time for two years.

Yaiba (1988-1993)

It is a 24-volume manga series about the adventures of a young samurai named Yaiba Kurogane. It was later adapted into a 51-episode anime series.

3rd Base 4th (Yonban Sādo) (1993)

It is a one-volume manga that tells the story of a boy named Shigeo Nagashima, a mediocre baseball player on his high school team. One day, he buys a magical bat from a sporting goods store that allows him to hit every pitch. However, he has to pay the mysterious store for each pitch he hits.

Magic Kaito (Majikku Kaito) (1988-2007)

It is a four-volume manga series that tells the comical adventures of Kaitou Kid, a gentleman thief who often uses his skills in magic and disguise in every robbery he commits. The first three volumes of the manga series was originally released in 1988-1994; the fourth volume was released in February 2007. Although the manga series is on hold, Kaitou Kid still appears regularly in Detective Conan, another manga series by Aoyama.

Gosho Aoyama's Collection of Short Stories

Various short works written over the years:

Play It Again , Play It Ag

Excalibur ,

Santa Claus in the summer ( Natsu no Santa Claus)

The detective George's job (Detective George's little little & great operations) (Tantei Jooji no minimini daisakusen)

Wait a Minute (Chotto Mattete)

Shonen Sunday 19(talk) show "The wandering red butterfly" (19show Shōnen Sunday 19(tō-ku) show samayoeru akai chō)

Detective Conan or Case Closed (Meitantei Konan) - (1994-present)

It is an ongoing manga series that tells the story of a genius high school detective who one day is turned into a young boy by mysterious men. While trying to track down these men, he often encounters complicated mysteries, most of which only he can solve. The series is Aoyama's most well-known creation.

Tell Me A Lie (Watashi ni Uso wo Tsuite) - (2007)

This is a one-shot manga about a girl named Terumi Arai (Arai Terumi), who can read people's minds when she looks them in the eyes.

Ha??... Have you know now???...me t0o.. hehehe....
s0o...
Have a great taste of Detective Conan !!!

Why 'reading' is the easy thing in the world???...

One of my teacher at school said "benda pa paling mudah dalam dunia???... benda paling mudah ialah membaca..." (said Cikgu Fauzi - my I.C.T. teacher)... what he say is right... reading is the simple and very easy things in the world...

we dont have to run or (angkat batu) while reading...
we just have to look at the b0ok and read it... simple right??... we most love the b0ok and subject for text b0ok like we love our family and (girlfriend).. Hahaha..
i know it sound crazy but this is reality... i'm not out of my mind...

ok,.,., like i said before, reading is simple and very-very easy... but... why s00o many student did not like read and 'jadi bodoh' and 'sleep' (lena) after see a b0ok...???... the question is why?????? reading is easy right?? but why???...

This happened because the kids or i meant the 'student' bored with reading and b0ok because their parent did not teach them about love of reading a b0ok...
Parent is the most important 'aset' for their children to love the b0oks...
first and foremost, the parent must 'semaikan' the love of reading in their soul (jiwa) while they are t0o0o young (about 2 years old)...

after that... parent can give a b0ok for their bithday gift perhaps...
hehehe... i dont want a b0ok to0 for my birthday but this is only the way... hehehe...

s0o...
who read this,,,
please,,,
give your opinion about reading,,,
why reading?..
why parent?..
why teacher?..
why sch0ol?..
and why b0oks..?

think and comment...
me...
4 ALFA (2009)...

Parent Problem with Band???...

Ok, I know most of you here are from high-flyng bands who win State/National Comps and represent the country to all over the world and have no problem getting support from family, friends, school etc. But not all bands have that privilege.

Some of us here are from bands who work just as hard, just as many hours, but no matter how much we put in, that 1st place is simply out of our grasp. There's always that one or two or three band(s) that monopoly the champion's trophy.

We prepare early. We beg for funds. We schedule many practices, day and night, skpping classes and missing out on family time. All to be let down once again. Our parents support us initially. But a parent can only take so much class-skipping and homework missing.

I don't know about the rest of you, but in my school, academics is top priority. What's important is how many straight A's you get for PMR, SPM and STPM, nothing else. Most parents and teachers do not take kindly to band members skipping class for the sake of practicing for a 12 minute performance.

I've had members who are forced to drop out of formation halfway because of pressure from parents. I've had members who break down because their parents call them ungrateful and say that their wasting their time at band practice. I've had members walk to school for pratice because their parents refused to send them. I even had a member who was always late, but that wasn't because he was lazy, it was because he had to wait till his parents were away at work so he could sneak out to attend practices.

The common reasoning here is: you practice so hard, under the hot sun, so many hours, skip so many important classes and tuition classes, and you didn't even win. What's the point? Practice so hard for what?

Every year, the leaders go through the same thing, having to call up member and ask why they were absent for so many practices. Our teachers-in-charge make 'special' phone calls to convince parents to let their kids stay on(esp the exam class students- Form 3,5 and 6).

Juggling studies and KK activities is good, but apparently not good enough for some parents. I have a member who does well in her studies(top 10 in the best class), but his parents aren't willing to take chances. So he might not be joining us for the State Competition next year. Simple as that.

It's a chicken-and-egg situation. Parents don't support because they think the outcome is not worth it, yet the band can't perform their best because their parents are not there to cheer them on.

I know winning isn't everything, but a morale booster for parents would be nice. Just to show them that all the hours spent under the sun was not in vain. We just want our parents to understand. Is that too much to ask for?

Other bands, what do you think of this situation? Do you face similar problems? How do you address it?

*Disclaimer: The facts in this post are NOT exaggerated. They are cold, hard facts, which probably top any President's 'Top 10 reasons why I can't sleep at night' list*

Musically inclined?

WHEN I was growing up, my friends and I had a similar dilemma: we were forced to play the piano by parents who “always wanted to learn but never got the chance”.

Aswara student Elaine Lee (right) concentrates as she plays on the ‘bonang’ in a gamelan ensemble during class with her coursemates.

Many years down the road, I was still at Grade One and could not read musical notes (or taugeh) to save my life. But I can still play the piano by ear.

If you are anything like me, you’ll be relieved to know that music education has gone beyond the classical sit-and-play-the-piano routines, and many students have gone on to make music their career.

You may think that no one would be interested in playing, say, the gong for the rest of his life. But – surprise! – some do.

The gong is one of the seven components in the traditional gamelan ensemble, which includes drums, metallophones, xylophones and bamboo flutes.

“Even though it looks easy, the gong is the hardest to play in gamelan because there are so many rests!” quips National Arts, Culture and Heritage Academy (Aswara) gamelan lecturer Abdul Khalil Hassan.

International College of Music students rehearsing a song for a performance.

“Traditional instruments are harder to master because it’s not just how you play them, it’s the way you play.”

Abdul Khalil, who goes by the name Bob Khalil, is the first Malaysian to transcribe the traditional gamelan songs by musicians who played at the Terengganu palace into notes in 1978.

Thanks to people like him, songs that date back centuries have been preserved and can be learnt in a theoretical manner. Sadly, some songs have been lost through the years as, traditionally, older musicians memorised them, and passed them on juniors, who learnt by observation.

Lecturer Nik Mustapha Nik Mohd Salleh stresses that learning traditional ethnic music is important because it represents our uniqueness and identity.

Students of the Rock City School of Music in Kuala Lumpur having a jam session after class.

“The music structure and lyrics help us define our sense of roots, community and nation. They portray our nature,” he says, adding that the school teaches fusion music, which combines Arabic, Indonesian, Malay, Chinese and Western elements.

Head of the music department Raja Nor Sheela Raja Aziddin says Aswara’s three-year diploma programme requires students to learn different musical ensembles like the ghazal and cak lempong every year apart from theory, history, stage management, composition, instrument-making and Midi sequencing, among other things.

“Some students don’t understand why we make them learn traditional music. I tell them, ‘When you go overseas, they don’t want to see you play jazz because they have their own musicians. They want to see your traditional music’,” Raja Nor Sheela says. Remember the movie, School of Rock, featuring Jack Black? It showed a rather novel concept of teaching contemporary music in a class and band setting which Rock City School of Music in Kuala Lumpur aims to follow.

The school teaches mainly rock, some pop and basic jazz and blues. Its founders, Tan Kit Yan and Tony Chang Kok Fei, emphasise expressing oneself and enjoying the music.

Low (right) teaching his student how to mix and spin records at the Bionic DJ Academy.

“Our lessons are unique in that we accept students from different learning backgrounds and we break it down for them to make it really simple,” says Chang.

“We customise our lessons according to students' needs. So if some older students just want to learn their favourite songs on the guitar to sing along to, we just teach them tabs.”

Tan adds: “We pool our resources and students' ideas, and let the music be open to interpretation. We develop their ideas by asking how they can add to them.”

The school guarantees that students can play something at the end of two months, with four monthly sessions.

“We have performances every few months for students to put into practice what they have learnt,” says Tan. “They have to understand how a guitar works in relation to a drum, bass, and how it comes together in a song.”

One of their plans is to form a professional student band to perform in public and release an album by this year.

“This is a first step for students to be heard, get a recording out there and network with different people,” Chang reveals.

“Music is the kind of industry where what you can do speaks louder than your paper qualifications,” Tan adds.

Form Four student Ezra John, 16, who takes singing lessons from the school, finds that its flexible style suits his needs.

RAJA NOR SHEELA: When we perform overseas, people want traditional music.

“I lean towards hip hop and rap. I’ve got a friend releasing an album and I’m involved in that,” Ezra says. “But I came here so I won’t lose my ‘singing’ voice. I learn faster here because they adapt (lessons) to my style and teach me what I want to learn.”

Another sign that music education is truly changing is that people like Low Soon Thiam, or DJ Low as he is called, have their own school, namely the Bionic DJ Academy.

Low is into the ‘club’ type of deejaying, which involves all sorts of methods from spinning and mixing to scratching and beat juggling.

“Deejay mixing involves two songs or more. You mix the second song into the first and match it by controlling the bar mix, pitching and EQ,” says Low. “There is also the art of turntablism, which allows you to do scratching and beat juggling, and even produce new tracks from two different vinyls or samples.”

Confused? Well, there is more to deejaying than just technique; it also involves showmanship.

“These days, everything is digital and there are computer software to mix songs so anyone can be a deejay,” he muses. “But if you just click the mouse, the satisfaction is not there. It’s a performing art as well.”

Low points out that deejays don’t just play in clubs. Some play at rave parties and events and go on to be producers. Yet others create their own music, perform with a band and sell their own albums.

Occasionally rock bands, “like Linkin Park”, need deejays to scratch for them to enhance their songs.

Bionic DJ Academy’s courses don’t exceed 60 hours. And, there’s no theory, only practical.

Low notes that a deejay’s skills can be applied to any industry involving music.

“Some musicians want to pick up extra skills, some do it as a hobby, and many sound engineering students learn deejaying because it helps their careers. It’s an added skill for those in movie production.”

ONG: In music education, knowledge is compressed in a structured way.

Low’s gripe is that parents generally frown upon the industry and this career path – a fact echoed by some of the aspiring contemporary musicians.

“I had a Datin scold me for ‘influencing’ her son to learn deejaying when, in fact, he came here on his own accord,” he recalls. “I asked her, ‘Do you listen to the radio? Who do you think makes all that music?’”

Although learning the practical aspect of playing instruments may work for those who do it as a hobby, or to complement their work, a structured education is essential for a career in music, says Frank Ong, International College of Music’s (ICOM) head of performance.

“Music education cuts out years spent on research, and trial and error on the streets,” says Ong, formerly a bassist of home-grown band Alleycats that started performing in 1969. “Hundreds of years of knowledge are compressed in a structured way.

“Outside, you may not get the materials, books and answers to questions that you want.”

Ong should know. After all, he started out playing music by ear, with only simple books to guide him. Later, he gained exposure when he was in Hong Kong for over a decade.

This does not imply that ICOM, which teaches mostly modern rather than classical music, is mainly about theory – though it may be easy to assume that, judging from its entry criteria of a minimum Grade Four in the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music exam for its bachelor degree courses, as well as an audition.

“Every student has to go through the performance module, where I teach them in ‘ensembles’ or groups, according to styles,” Ong says. “We also encourage students to perform outside, to get exposure.”

Course leader Lee Mei Lyn, who teaches research methods at ICOM, says many people assume that a music degree is all about playing and performing.

“Performance is a small part of the degree. A first year student also learns arranging, research methods, English and Mathematics,” adds Lee, who believes music education should be academic and wholesome, to train the mind.

Similarly, Ong stresses that a career in music isn’t only about performing; in fact, the whole “support system” behind a performing artiste or any other industry involving music is a musician’s playground.

“You can be a sound engineer or musical instrument supplier. You may also work in broadcasting and public relations,” he says, adding some even create tunes for computer games and ring tones. “If you have the education, you have the advantage.”

Saiful Ridzuan Sharafuddin, better known as Duan, the guitarist for indie rock band Seven Collar T-Shirt, agrees that a formal education opens up opportunities that one would never have otherwise.

“Some people are scared that a music school will teach them things that limit them. They want freedom and expression. But it opens up possibilities. It’s a step-by-step approach and you learn things that you might miss if you try doing it yourself.”

Duan, who has a degree from Universiti Teknologi Mara, teaches the guitar. He admits that though he has been playing with the band since he was a teenager, his skills improved considerably after his degree.

He now has knowledge of music history, elements of harmony, rhythm and arranging, and can go beyond just playing his favourite songs.

“If you are a musician, you’re also a professional,” he says. “I wanted to be a musician so I decided to study music. Just like if you want to be a lawyer, you study law.”...