The British International School, HCMC had the prestigious honour of hosting the annual FOBISSEA Music Festival from November 8th -13th 2012. Fifteen participating schools from SE Asia were involved with 290 students and staff in total.
On November 8th all 15 schools arrived safely in HCMC and enjoyed meeting each other, and for some people it was an opportunity to reunite with old friends. A delicious welcome dinner banquet was provided by the hotel and Year 12 and 13 students from BIS HCMC entertained us with beautiful traditional Vietnamese dance.
The next four days were long and busy, packed with rehearsals, workshops and activities but both students and staff were excited about the upcoming events. During the festival students are assigned to one major ensemble, either the Festival Choir or the Festival Orchestra and then filter into smaller minor ensembles such as: Flute Choir; Clarinet Choir; Junior Girls’ Choir; Senior Girls’ Choir; Male Vocal Group; Senior or Junior Strings; Jazz Band; and Percussion Ensemble.
Students also participate in a variety of different workshops organised by the visiting music teachers. Students were involved in workshops as diverse as African Drumming, iPad Orchestra, Folk Music, Country Dancing and New Orleans Band. Everyone had fun and enjoyed all the workshops offered.
Every evening students either participated or observed an informal concert. On the first evening the school groups gathered together in the BIS Auditorium ready for the participating schools concert. Each school performs a piece and the concert had a fantastic atmosphere, with students relaxed and supportive of everyone’s performances. Performances varied from human drum kits and solo classical pianists, to combined choir and band performances from some of the larger schools. On the Saturday evening we invited a Vietnamese traditional ensemble to come and perform to the students. They taught us about the traditional Vietnamese instruments and even invited some of the students on stage to perform alongside the Vietnamese musicians. On our final evening before the actual FOBISSEA Gala concert, the students and staff enjoyed a Rock Band night. All participating schools were given the opportunity to entertain their peers and rock out on our school stage. Students danced and laughed and sung along to some of their personal favourites.
The Gala Concert was held at BIS HCMC’s sister school, the British Vietnamese International School . The concert was a huge success, with 20 high quality pieces performed after four days of rehearsals. The repertoire was varied and exciting with performances of Mozart’s ‘Lacrimosa’, Eric Whitacre’s ‘Seal Lullaby’, Respighi’s ‘Pines of Rome’ and ‘Thriller/Heads Will Roll’ - the audience were certainly taken on a musical journey.
The Gala Concert was a testament to all of the students’ hard work during the four days; it was a truly wonderful musical experience, which all the students and staff were excited to be part of. The music team at BIS HCMC were incredibly proud of all the students involved, they were professional and mature, as both individuals and musicians!
Sarah James
Head of Music
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