Highlights

Community grows world-class orchestra

18 February 2010 0 comments

In performance The lights lowered and the crowd waited in anticipation. A rare group hailing from Singapore, they were regal in black suits and dresses. With steady hands they raised their instruments in the grand hall. They have travelled half the world to perform and compete, yet for the Mus’Art Wind Orchestra (MWO), their humble beginnings started from the Jurong Green Community Club.

The Mus’Art Wind Orchestra (MWO) is a wind musical instruments group that was formed in 1998 under the care of the Jurong Green Community Club (CC) (then named Hong Kah East Community Centre), pioneered by then CC Management Committee Vice-Chairman, Mr Henry Ho, BBM. MWO aims to nurture young local musicians, as well as promote wind music in the local community.

In August 2009, MWO was in Kerkrade, Holland, to compete in the World Music Competition (WMC) - reputed to be the most prestigious world competition for wind and brass instruments. The orchestra garnered a Gold award despite competing in the first division for the first time. Their piece, The Butterfly Lovers, was also chosen as the only Asian music to be featured in the WMC music compilation CD.

Chairman of MWO, Ms Lim Sheau Wian Raene, 28, has been with the orchestra for more than nine years. She describes MWO as a rare place in the community where “young musicians can further pursue their music after graduating from their respective educational institutions”.
Citing herself as an example, Raene was able to pursue music after school “because of the presence of this community band.” Like many other members in the orchestra, Raene was a junior college student when she first joined and has since grown with the group. In her own words, “The adults (in MWO), like myself, grew up in Mus’Art!”

Raene has fond memories of watching Mus’Art grow from a small team of about 20 to its current strength of 70 members. From playing at small events, the orchestra has graduated to playing at world-class concert halls in front of international audiences. Having trained under world-class conductors and competing in the prestigious WMC, MWO has come a long way. It is inspiring to know that this group was nurtured by a CC right at your doorstep.

If you have the interest and passion in playing wind instruments with the MWO, visit www.musartwind.org/index.shtml now, or you may wish to join Jurong Green CC in Facebook.