2016 | Volume II, No 1 | Not For Sale www.Euroasia.org.my EuroasiaAssociationMalaysia
Roundup
Arioso Sinfonia’s year-end activities
Passion in JB
Masterclasses and concerts in the south
Role Model
An interview with Mustafa Fuzer Nawi
PRELUDE Contents Association of Performing Arts
~~~~~~~~~ The word “Parlando” refers to an Italian music direction for a singer to sing in a conversational style – thus, this newsletter will be Euroasia’s way of talking with our audience, while remaining true to our roots in performing arts. ~~~~~~~~~ Volume II, No 1 (2016)/ Published Quarterly/Not For Sale ~~~~~~~~~ Editor/Communications Associate Ahmad Azrai ~~~~~~~~~ For comments and feedback, email to: euroasia@email.com ~~~~~~~~~ Cover Photo Mustafa Fuzer Nawi in action. Photo: Essence Photograph ~~~~~~~~~ Supported by
Arioso Sinfonia have an Encounter with the MPO! (Page 12. Photo: Euroasia)
OVERTURE Patron’s Foreword An address for the new year from Euroasia’s Patron.
MAESTRO Rising thrhough the ranks Euroasia talks to Music Associate Mustafa Fuzer Nawi.
VARIAZIONI Artistic Discussions What do you think are issues that need highlighting? We would like to hear from our readers.
ON TOUR Classes and Concerts in JB Spanish music and jazz take centrestage once more in the south. ON TOUR Race to the Finish It’s a busy final quarter for Arioso Sinfonia. Photo Credits All photos by Euroasia, except where indicated.
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Tunku Zain and Arioso Sinfonia perform the P. Ramlee Medley during the European Treasures Gala Concert. Photo: Essence Photography
Patron’s Foreword Tunku Zain (right) receiving an impromptu masterclass from faculty member Frederic Lagarde during the 2nd Euroasia Youth Music Festival (June 5, 2014). Photo: Essence Photography
I enjoyed performing in two Euroasia concerts in 2015: a P. Ramlee Medley at the European Gala Treasures Concert on 1st February at the Royale Bintang Seremban, and a transcription of Beriot’s Concerto in A Minor at the 3rd Euroasia Youth Music Festival on 29th August at the Auditorium D’Sury in Seremban. I was accompanied in both by the Arioso Sinfonia: working with them and seeing so many other young musicians focus their energies into beautiful music-making emphasised for me why music education for young people is so important. I am glad that Euroasia spread this message far and wide this year, with the festival reaching many more parts of the country, and receiving hugely complimentary words from distinguished musicians and music educators. Congratulations as usual are due to Angel and her team.
2015 was no doubt a tough year for the country and the economy, and at such a time some might think that musical endeavours are not a priority. I beg to differ: it is in such times that we need our young citizens to be as optimistic and committed to this country as possible. I urge you to be a part of this project: to provide hope and prove the naysayers wrong by supporting our programmes. I assure you, it will propel your pride in Seremban, or Negeri Sembilan, or Malaysia; but more importantly, it will enable many more smiles on the faces of the children and their audiences. P
Yang Amat Mulia Tunku Zain Al-’Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz Patron, Euroasia 3
MAESTRO A Maestro called Mus Sometimes, it is something small that can bring about a major change – an examination failed, which causes one child to drop out of school; playing an E Flat (as was apparently intended) for the last chord in the third bar of Chopin’s Prelude in c minor, Op. 28, No. 20, when the edition you learned from had an E Natural; substituting a key existing ingredient just so that a special dish can be made more suitable for the diner – the possibilities are limitess. For Mustafa Fuzer Nawi, the event that literally changed everything for him was when his entire family moved to Kuala Lumpur.
“I remember that day very well,” said the conductor-cum violinist, who was originally from Ipoh. “We piled up all our belongings into the car, and took the old road straight to the capital city. This was in 1973, and it rained all the way throughout the journey. When we arrived at the site of our new home, it was flooded – and I can still see my father carrying the matress above his head trying to avoid it from getting wet! It was definitely an adventure – and the start of a whole new chapter in my life.” This was because the move to Kuala Lumpur coincided with the establishment and organic development of Taman Budaya (“Cultural Park”), where all manner of writers, artists and performers mingled and learned from one another. “It was an exciting time,” he said, “as everyone was fearlessly experimenting, whether with philosophy, technique or execution. My eldest sibling, sister Fauziah, got her start there: she learned how to dance, she picked up music, and she mingeld with a lot of writers – and it eventually led her career as a radio deejay and actress.”
For himself, Mustafa Fuzer also benefited greatly from exposure to Taman Budaya, which is where he eventually met his teacher. “It was around that time that Abdul Fatah Karim had returned from overseas with a formal music education – one of the first locals to do so. He came to Taman Budaya to
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teach music: not only how to play, but the theoretical aspects as well. At the time, I was just a naughty little boy who liked to play any instrument that I could get my hands on – guitar, harmonica, wayang kulit gongs and what not – and Abdul Fatah noticed this. He spoke to my father, and literally said that he would take me on as a violin student. Me being the obedient and carefree son that I was, I said, ‘Sure! Why not!’ – and I do not regret it for a moment. If Abdul Fatah had not made that gestured, I am pretty sure that I would not have gotten as far as I have today; I would probably be a simple school teacher, instead of being music director of an important national music ensemble. Now, I get to play a role in shaping the musical and cultural heritage of the nation – and I am proud to be able to do so.” Love affair with Germany That was beginning of quite the musical journey for Mustafa Fuzer; he displayed enough skill and talent that earned him a Malaysian Government Scholarship to study violin at the Hochschulefuer Muzik und Theater in Germany from 1986 to 1991, under the wing of Oscar C. Yatco. He returned to Malaysia, and was eventually appointed as the Concertmaster for the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO), a post he held from 1993-1997.
“Even when I was a young student under Abdul Fatah, he always made sure that I always had opportunities to take the lead. Being appointed as a concertmaster was my master’s way of saying that I was capable of doing more, and that he saw the potential in me to go far in music. It wasn’t easy, and he came down hard on all of us when we made mistakes – but that is how we learned. Thus, when I was appointed to the post of concertmaster at the NSO, I already had a
strong grounding on the responsibilities the post entailed,” he said.
This did not stop Mustafa Fuzer from being invited to join the Colonge Chamber Orchestra in 1996, where he made recordings and toured several cities in Germany and France under the baton of Helmut Mueller Bruehl. As a result of his time in Europe, Mustafa Fuzer became extremely fluent in the German language, which he still speaks to this day. Not surprisingly, he has undertaken many close collaborations with the German Embassy and the Goethe Institute to bring several memorable concerts with German soloists and artists to our shores. “I must admit that learning German actually made me appreciate Bahasa Malaysia (BM) even more,” he confessed. “Structurally, both languages share many common traits – and German is a phonetically literal language, quite similar to Malaysia’s baku (bahasa buku, literally ‘language of the books’, which focuses on the literal pronunciation of words). It is such a precise language; the level of precision needed is not unlike the concentration need-
ed when performing music. As such, learning German taught me how to listen properly, on top of learning patience and focus. It has also reinforced the pride I hold for BM – and although the language is sadly being adulterated today, I make sure that I use all the languages properly.”
Mustafa Fuzer’s exposure to Europe was not only to Germany and France, as he was awarded a Cultural Grant in 1997 from the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism to pursue conducting for two years at the Conservatorium Hogelschool Enschede in Holland. There, he studied orchestra and
ensemble conducting under Kerry Woodwards, and choral conducting under Kees Stolwijk. Upon his return, he was appointed as the Chief Conductor and Music Director of the NSO in 1999, a post he holds to this day.
On top of his work with the NSO at the Istana Budaya, Mustafa Fuzer busies himself with other orchestra and chamber music programmes, becoming a regular guest conductor for both local and foreign ensembles, getting involved in various teaching and music education initiatives, and even getting acclaim for his forays into conducting opera locally. It comes as no surprise, then, that Mustafa Fuzer was awarded the Ahli Mangku Negara (AMN) medal for his distinguished service towards the development of music in Malaysia.
Musical Mentor When it comes to music education, Mustafa Fuzer has very clear ideas on what is needed. “You cannot just be a teacher; you have to be a mentor as well. It’s is not just enough to teach them how to play music; you also have to teach them why we play music, and how we can achieve that. It’s not to say that lessons and formal teaching are unimportant – far from it – but I feel that as an educator, you must ensure that your students, your disciples not only gain knowledge but also
learn to explore, to develop further.
“They need to learn to take risks and expose themselves to as many genres and ideas as they can – that is what I try to do when I teach. Sometimes, it also means that the student finds out that music or performance is not for them – which is not the end of the world. It means that I have to put in a lot of effort – but it is worth it.”
It is this attitude that has allowed Mustafa Fuzer gain credibility as a teacher of both violin and conducting, both by himself and as a guest lecturer at local universities including Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Akademi Seni Kebangsaan (ASWARA, now known as Universiti P. Ramlee) and UiSC. He recognises that it is a tough challenge because the system of education in Malaysia does not offer much as far as “non-core” academic subjects are concerned.
“There is always a lot of talk and arguments about education, and it is generally only about the sciences, the business subjects, with little – if anything – for the arts. Things are so very different in Europe, where the arts are a fundamentally important part of a student’s development – even if they do not end up being artists or performers. The Education Ministry really has to look beyond the book subjects, and they have to realise that placing equal emphasis on the arts as the sciences is clearly beneficial to the students directly, and to the society too.”
Photo: Essence Photograph
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Photo: Essence Photograph
“You cannot just be a teacher; you have to be a mentor as well. It’s is not just enough to teach them how to play music; you also have to teach them why we play music, and how we can achieve that.” 6
FAN CLUB: Mustafa Fuzer signing autographs during the JB Classical Music Festival in May 2015. (Photo: Rentak Sejuta)
Euroasia’s sterling supporter Mustafa Fuzer has a very strong relationship with Euroasia, in quite a few ways: not only is he a Music Associate and Advisor for the Association, he regularly conducts its string ensemble Arioso Sinfonia, in addition to being a core member of the Sutera Ensemble (alongside Euroasia President Angel Lee, fellow Music Associates Loo Bang Hean and Dr. Andrew Filmer, and Euroasia Committee Member Jonathan Oh). “Yes, I have been working with the children of Arioso Sinfonia since even before they formed as a proper ensemble,” he explained. “It was around five years ago that I was invited to perform with them – and I can honestly say that it fills me with joy to see them do so well. They keep getting better and better as time goes by – and they are really shaping up into musicians of a most professional calibre.” The conductor feels that this is due to the fact the members of Arioso have a really strong bond that shows in their performance. “The kids do everything together: they eat together, practise together, laugh together and even quarrel together. That sense of belonging, of camaraderie, is what makes them understand each other so well – and when they play, they play together.
It’s magical – because they know how to react to each other’s playing, which is an essential skill for any ensemble or orchestra. That sense of togetherness – they’ve got it right, and it always makes me happy to be a part of their group.” As for the Sutera Ensemble, Mustafa Fuzer simply has this to say: “I love playing with the group! I regularly play with many people and many different ensembles – and that out of all these, I can honestly say that working with Sutera gives me great pleasure. Everyone is a dear friend, and everyone has a wicked sense of humour! And more importantly, even though everyone has their own ideas about how a piece would go, there is a fantastic sense of give-and-take about our rehearsals that ends up with an interpretation
that is not meaningful for us, but for our audience as well. We’ve performed all over the country – and I cannot wait to see where else our group goes.” The conductor firmly believes that Euroasia’s efforts are worthy of support. “I do believe in what the Association stands for – and the fact that the Euroasia Violin Competition 2015 was able to be held in six different states speaks volumes. It was timely, and managed to highlight the fact that there is a lot of talent outside of the Klang Valley. In fact, as I said in Johor Bahru last July, I think the time is right for them to start their own orchestra – and they agree with me. This is why I do what I do – and I cannot wait to see what else can develop for the local performance arts scene.” P
TRANQUIL PERFORMANCE: The Sutera Ensemble play with guest musicians Valerie Aimard (cello second right) and Shuenda Wong (piano left) during the gala concert of the 3rd Euroasia Youth Music Festival. (Photo: Essence Photograph)
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VARIAZIONI
Discussion Points FROM the start, VARIAZIONI has tried to look at issues that affect practitioners of performing arts, to provide a platform for discussion and tips. In the first issue, PARLANDO talked about concentration, and how to deal with disruptions from the audience. Euroasia had put out the question online on what its fans and followers thought about the issue, and discussed the results – with a fairly diverse range of conclusions being arrived at.
The issue of travelling with musical instruments was discussed in the second issue. From personal anecdotes to creative retaliations (the example of guitarist Dave Carroll was given), the samples gave way to a suggestion by Euroasia Music Associate and musicologist Dr. Andrew Filmer that it was more of a communication problem – particularly of the ground staff at the airport – rather than anything else. 8
Next up was the importance of listening and its benefits, both for indidvidual players as well as for ensemble playing. Professional violinist and teacher Dr. Goh Chia Chien talked about how musicians often miss the majority of the sounds emanating from the instrument due to concentration, while violinist and music reviewer Lee Cheng Hooi postulated that listening especially leads to enhanced appreciation of music appreciation – which ultimately means that developing listening skills cannot be taken for granted by performers. Lastly, the bumper issue for 2015 talked about music competitions and their importance. Composer Ahmad Muriz Che Rose, who is the Management Team Head of the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (MPYO), felt that competitions give “a sense of purpose”, while the pros and cons of competitions were dissected
in an article by composer Bill Zuckerman. There was also a look at the experience that pianist Peter Donohoe had to go through during the infamous International Tchaikovsky Competition, and a final statement by Ahmad Muriz that the benefits were pretty clear. In conclusion, Euroasia finds that friendly competition is healthy and beneficial after all.
For PARLANDO’s upcoming issues, VARIAZIONI will be taking a slightly different approach. We will be seeking out topics of discussion that will be suggested by our readers, which will be put forward to two commentators – one from Euroasia, and one guest commentator – to see if they agree, disagree or agree to disagree. Questions and comments can be made on our Facebook fanpage (www. facebook.com/EuroasiaAssociationMalaysia). We look forward to seeing the next topic of discussion! P
ON TOUR Virtuosic Passion in Johor EARLY December saw Euroasia visiting the southern capital Johor Bahru once more, this time to bring several piano workshops and masterclasses, as well as concerts. Organised in collaboration with Musicalkidz Music School and Cristofori Music School, the event was held over two days, and concentrated on two complementary genres of music: classical and jazz.
On Thursday, 10th December, pianist Misa Yamamoto conducted a teacher’s
workshop entitled Creativity in the Classroom, followed by jazz and pop piano masterclasses by jazz piano virtuoso Tay Cher Siang. Later, Misa enchanted the attendees with a piano recital entitled Colours and Reflections.
On Friday, 11th December, Cher Siang conducted an Introduction to Jazz Piano session at Musicalkidz. This was followed that evening by the Virtuosic Passion concert, hosted by Cristofori. With performances by Misa and Cher
Siang, along with Euroasia President Angel Lee and saxophonist Julian Chan, the concert featured an eclectic selection of works from and inspired by Spain, as well as from the world of jazz. There were classical piano works by Georges Bizet, Gabriel Fauré, Ferenc Liszt and Enrique Granados; the Malaysian premiere of works for violin by Carlos Perón Cano; and original jazz compositions by Cher Siang. It was a fascinating mix that was very well received by the people of JB. P
TEACHING TEACHERS: Misa (right) conducting her session.
CHORD PROGRESSIONS: Cher Siang demonstrates how jazz chords can add a new dimension to any performance.
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Cher Siang giving pointers to a student who is new to jazz.
Misa and Angel play a duet.
Cher Siang accompanies Angel on the pieces by Carlos.
Cher Siang wows the audience with his own compositions.
Cher Siang accompanies Julian in some pieces that proved popular with the audience.
CURTAIN CALL: The performers pose with the organisers.
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ON TOUR
Passing With Flying Colours
AFTER the excitement of the 3rd Euroasia Youth Music Festival and the Euroasia Violin Competition 2015, it was life as usual for the members of Arioso Sinfonia – meaning school, exams, and studies, along with a few gigs at the side!
HISTORIC EVENT (from left): Zhi Hsuan, Denise, Annie and Jing Yi pose with the backdrop after their performance.
harmonic Orchestra’s (MPO) Encounter outreach programme! What it was was two days of workshops and chamber music coaching, where all the intensive sessions were hosted at Angel’s Class, our school. Both Arioso Sinfonia and our younger “siblings” Arioso Junior got to benefit from this programme, and we were tutored by MPO Principal Violin Ming Goh, Second Violinist Phoebe Zhao Yanbo, Violist Eliza Julia Fluder and Cellist Laurentiu Gherman. Although some of the kids were a little bit shy, the professionals musicians managed to get them relaxed enough to have fun. Not only did they offer technical tips and pointers, they shared anecdotes and advice that they had gained as a result of experience – which was quite an eyeopener for many of us!
School exams came and went – and were we glad that they were over and done with! We’re pleased to announce that both Denise and Jing Yi both scored 7As for the UPSR exams! Hooray! For us, though, the major exam was the Trinity College London Ensemble Advanced Certificate examination on June 15 – for which (as featured in the immediate previous issue of PARLANDO) we scored 98 out of 100! As such, Arioso Sinfonia were invited to the Trinity College London Awards Ceremony on December 6 – and we managed a good haul during the ceremony! We performed We’re pretty serious about our studies one of the three pieces that we offered too, whether for academics or for music. to the examination – the Elegie from Thus, on November 21 and 22, we were Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Serenade For extremely fortunate to have been selectStrings, Op. 48 – which examiner Angela ed to participate in the Malaysian PhilLane had rated as a “mature, outstanding performance with excellent tonal ELEGANT ELEGIE: Arioso Sinfonia performing during the Trinity College London Awards Ceremony. shaping”. It seems that our performance was still on par during the ceremony, as it was very well received by absolutely everyone present. Not bad for an ensemble of teenagers, eh?!?
On October 17, the Seremban Quartet – made up of Denise Mubin (Violin 1), Lim Zhi Hsuan (Violin 2), Loe Jing Yi (Viola) and Annie Leong Yu Xuan (Cello) – were honoured to be invited once more to perform for the United Nations Malaysian Contingent, this time for the occasion of the 70th Anniversary of the world body. The quartet had performed before – as part of Arioso Sinfonia – for the 67th Anniversary of the UN in 2012, and it’s always a thrill and pleasure to play for this august organisation.
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There were also performances by several individual achievers too. Denise – who was the Award Winner
for the ATCL 2013, with 95 marks – was invited to perform the Scherzo Tarantelle, Op. 16 by Polish composer Henryk Wieniawski. And even though we have seen her perform this piece more than a few times, we were still dazzled by Denise’s playing – and the audience was too. She made light work of the lightningquick passages, and we cheered as always when she brought the piece to a close.
Annie – who was the Award Winner for the ATCL 2014, with 91 marks – was also invited to perform for the ceremony. By contrast, she tackled the first movement of the famous and popular Cello Sonata in C, Op. 119 by Sergei Prokofiev – an intense and immense work that was desrcibed no less as a “miraculous piece of music” by composer Nikolai Miaskovsky, whose own cello sonata was what inspired Prokofiev to compose his masterpiece. The work is one of the Russian composer’s more subtle mature works, and Annie’s performance was encouragingly engaging and showed great promise – we can’t wait to see how she will interpret this work in future. Both young ladies – who are core members of Arioso Sinfonia – were pretty representative of the group, as practically all our members have won awards at some point. It’s humbling to know this, and we know that we need to keep practising hard and never to take our skills and playing for granted.
December also saw an amazing lifetime event: the release of a new Star Wars movie! Yes, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens hit the cinemas on Thursday, December 17 – and some people actually went on a massive movie
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS (clockwise from top left): Phoebe poses with Arioso Junior after the tutorial session; Ming Goh’s session in progress; Eliza Julia points out the technical aspects of a passage to Jing Yi; Laurentiu gets into the finer points of cello playing.
marathon session, covering all six of the Star Wars movies before the premiere: a grand total of 13+ hours! Yikes!
We decided to celebrate Star Wars in our own way: with a concert! Quite a few members of Arioso Sinfonia are also members of the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (MPYO), the MPYO joined forces with the MPO and and the MPO Brass Quintet to offer the Star Wars And Beyond concert. The concert featured works that have been used in popular depictions of outer space. There was the opening section of the tone
poem Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss, the famous Blue Danube (or An der Schonen Blauen Donau, Op. 314) by Johann Strauss II, and the lovely Adagio from the ballet Gayaneh by Aram Illyich Khachaturian (all used to great effect in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick); and there was also Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity from The Planets, Op. 32 orchestral suite by Gustav Holst – another great space classic. Of course, no space-themed would be complete without the Star Wars Suite by the legendary composer John Williams! Literally everybody and their grandparents knows the tunes – and they sounded even more amazing when heard at the magnificent Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS (DFP). After the show, we managed to catch up with our patron, Y.A.M. Tunku Zain Al-’Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz, for a postconcert discussion – and even a very-brief mock fight with miniature lightsabers! The Force was certainly with us – and we cannot wait to see what the new year will bring! P THE FORCE IS STRONG IN THESE ONES (from left): Arioso Principal Viola Danish Mubin, Zhi Hsuan, Jing Yi, Annie and Tunku ’Abidin pose outside the concert hall of the DFP after the show. Photo: Tunku ’Abidin
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