escapades of the elusive kat

I don't really listen to Cantopop music as... I never quite liked them. My impression of Cantopop was more it was "merely subbing Jpop". I distinctively remember an artist saying how he created a piece of music from scratch, and when he sang it, it was simply just a Cantonese version of a Japanese anime side character "character image" song (a song sang by the "character", the voice actor, of the anime). So just because it was a character image song, one would only have heard it if they bought the specific anime CD (no itunes back in the day). And it so happened I had that particular anime CD lol (for those curious it was.... I forget the actual name, but it's that Pig Girl Superhero Burin anime).

That is to say, I don't listen to Cantopop music. There is only one artist I did buy a CD of (well known creative) of which there are only 2 songs I actually like. So. I don't know Cantopop muisc.

But just so happened to get in my hands (free for me) tickets for a Canto artist. After doing what I had to do (disperse most of it), I had 2 tickets leftover and asked if any of my friends wanted to go. There was a taker, so we went.

Artist: 陳蕾 Panther Chan
I thought she has a good voice. At first I thought she was just lip-syncing to the music, but it was just a slight delay of the projection so it seemed as if the sung song and the shape of her lips didn't match.

Interesting stage show too. They re-used certain props in different ways, the stage itself was interesting too.

The first half of her show also had a very death-y theme to it. There's this coffin, a gunshot to her, demons, a song had some... Hindu-esque chanting (must be some sort of funeral ritual chanting I guess?)

However, the show started to drag on and after around 2 hours, we thought it should be coming to a close. But no. Then the mic system went dead during one song. In the end, she re-sang that song, and then in a chatting session said "When I first started I had to sing covers, but this time I found out I have so many songs, I don't know what to choose... so I'm not choosing, I'm singing all my songs!"

That's where I decided to leave LOL. That was around 10.15pm. The next working day I asked a colleague who also took the ticket, how much longer she sang, and she said oh, until 11.30pm-ish. So, it was a good call to leave early.

Anyway, for this concert, I did do homework and listened to her 2 most recent albums. So here are 2 music videos from each of those albums that I thought were nice. Both were performed in the concert too.

Last night I went to one of the Macau International Music Festival's show.

The Novus String Quartet are here for 2 shows, but I only went to yesterday's.

Programme (7-October):

B. Britten (1913-1976)
Three Divertimenti for String Quartet
I. March
II. Waltz
III. Burlesque

A. Webern (1883-1945)
Langsamer Satz for String Quartet

M. Ravel (1875-1037)
String Quartet in F Major, M.35
I. Allegro moderato, Tres doux.
II. Assez vif. Tres rythme
III. Tres lent
IV. Vif et agite

A. Dovrak (1841-1904)
String Quartet No. 12 in F Major, B.179, op.96 ("American")
I. Allegro ma non troppo
II. Lento
III. Molto vivace
IV. Finale: Vivace ma non troppo

Encore:
Korean Traditional Folk Music "Arirang"

Beethoven's Pathetique 2nd Movement


Pachelbel's Canon


Chopin's Fantaisie Impromptu


Bach's Prelude & Fugue No.2 in C minor


Of course, I could play none.

The only piece I could play with any possibility of being recognized is Beethoven's Fur Elise, and even that isn't completely right (I'm sure I miss certain parts that is to be repeated.)

Coz, well, I can't read score. I don't play by the ear. I more or less... play by memory. Try to decipher the notes section by section. Trial play (without any rhythm and beat whatsoever). See someone play enough times, copy their rhythm, try to play like them. And eventually, I can play the piece.

I noticed that when I took that piano course 2 months ago. They quit having the adult piano courses, so I have been trying to play the rest of the book myself. And I noticed my learning pattern. So, now youtube is my friend. I search for people learning from the same books, see them play, then I try to copy their play.

Not really the best way to learn, but, heh, I don't aspire to be a pianist. I'm just playing to kill some time. I think I'm ready to move on to the next level of books, so... I should pass by the piano school sometime next week to buy the grade 2 books.

It's raining today, so I have quite some time today to be fooling around with the piano, heeheehee! Mom seems to be quite appeased that I'm mucking around on the thing. Maybe I'll make a video of my shoddy Fur Elise, mwahaha. Or maybe not.

I usually don't like Hong Kong singers, but this girl Ivana is a very interesting individual.

I may or may not have already posted some of her music videos here. If I did, you can see them again, haha.

It's been ages since I last did some blog-hopping (I got some free time to myself today, how rare!) and I found something interesting.

The world is really a funny place sometimes. Just yesterday (or day before yesterday), I did that book meme and that reminded me of the Three Investigators Mysteries. Guess what, my blog-hopping led me to finding out about a German band, called Jupiter Jones.


The blog didn't say much, so I don't know if the band name has got anything to do with the mystery series, but I found the whole coincidence funny, haha.

Lately I've been really obsessed with this song by Ivana Wong 王菀之 titled 畫意 (Painting)



Usually I'm not a fan of Hong Kong artists but Ivana has been growing on me lately. It all started with this music video titled 水百合 (Water Lily)



I've always known that Ivana had a special touch to her music and after seeing this Water Lily video I was drawn to her, and got her album (I think it's the newest one). And in it is where I heard of the Painting song. It's about Van Gogh, pretty sad really.

I finish this post with a (maybe illegal) video of a concert performance of Painting

The recent weather has been driving a lot of people mad.

First, it was hot like summer, which is pretty much normal for May. Then, it rains constantly over the weekend. Again, normal for May. But the rain was the pouring, raining-cats-and-dogs type of rain, which is not normal for May (that's more like a july thing). Yesterday and today, it was so cold and chilly, one would think it's November!


Fighting a sleepy spell right now, that's what I'm doing! I had plans to pass by the sportswear shop to get some of those racket grip-strip thingies, since my badminton racket's handgrip part is melting in some parts, and crumbling away in other parts. I've already menancingly tore the current strip thingy out already, but noticed the inside was made of really dirty wood. Maybe it's all recycled materials? I am reluctant to spend the cash to actually buy a new racket, because I want to make sure that this will become a regular habit! So this is all I'm willing to spend on for now.

Everyone's thinking of holiday plans, except for me. I'm still feeling a little sour about the issue, but I'm trying to forget about it. I've already gotten tickets to the Lisa Ono 小野リサ concert, and am patiently waiting for the announcement of the Suede Live Concert in Hong Kong, so that I could go get tickets. Perhaps the only holiday I'll be taking is a day or two in August. Despite the very very very attractive MOP$999 round trip air fare from Macau to Tokyo/Osaka, I shall abstain and not go to Japan just yet...... I think.....

I will be having my Chinese class again tonight. I guess the teacher is going to get a kick out of grading my dictation last week. It's a really annoying situation that I know all those words to be dictated, I could read them all out, I would not mix them up, but I can't write them out if my life depended on it. Funny thing is, I could actually type them out using the Changjie radical input method! I'm going to ask him if next time, when I don't remember how to write the actual word, if I could just write out the typing radicals instead. He's definitly going to say no, but it's going to make the class laugh so much.

... Shows that I'm feeling so bored of the classes now...

ah, why can't the boss just leave yet? I really would like to go to the sportsgear shop right now! (because it's really quite boring over here)

星に花、灰色の雨
ルルティア


ああ　氷の海　溺れた鳥のように
静けさの　波に沈んで　君を想う

星を見つけたと思った
それは何よりもきれいで
僕はまるで　罠に落ちたみたいに
何度でも　口づけしたんだ

灰色の雨　濡れても濡れても
温もりは　僕から消え去ることなく
君の甘い面影に　花を敷き詰めて
朽ちてゆける日まで　目を閉じる

ああ　夜の森に　漂う雲の影に
身を捧げ　このままそっと　溶けてしまえたら

溢れる光　眩しくて
奇跡さえも　信じられた
僕は全てを　欲しがる子供みたいに
何度でも　君を抱いたんだ

飲み込んだ砂　少しずつ少しずつ
枯れていく胸で　祈りは尽きて
君の甘い面影に　花を敷き詰めて
朽ちてゆける日まで　目を閉じる

灰色の雨　濡れても濡れても
温もりは　僕から消え去ることなく
君の甘い面影に　花を敷き詰めて
朽ちてゆける日まで　目を閉じる


Loving this song and the lyrics recently. Can't stop listening to it.
My Sis says it's boring, but heh... I just like it, can't help it :D