Konsert Suara Hati Afgan KL 2015

OMG!!! It's happening! Afgan's Suara Hati concert is coming to town! I knew there would be some sort of announcement after seeing him posted some concert plans photo on his Instagram. The concert will be held at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre on the 18th of September 2015. He is keeping his promise although it isn't exactly held in Kuching like we hope for. He did mention giving us a concert when he came to Kuching for a showcase and that was back in September 2014. However, this is a good start and we hope in the future he won't hesitate to come back for his crazy fans in Kuching. The international Indonesian artiste has won various awards and he is not stoping to earn more. His fan base spreads all over the world including Southeast Asia, Korea and European countries. One of his fans is a member of a K-Pop band, Super Junior. The concert tickets will cost around RM106 - RM386. For more information regarding the online booking, please refer to this website http://www.myticket.asia/konsert-suara-hati-afgan/ . 

Nading Rhapsody's First Single Launched - UMBAS

It felt like only yesterday when we watched Nading Rhapsody performed on Rainforest World Music Festival stage. One of the songs they sang last year was finally launched this year on the 13th of June, 2015. It was the song that got everyone dancing at RWMF 2014 - UMBAS. 

Umbas in Iban Language means enough. The song itself is the indie band's way of channeling their frustration towards both local and international issues. Apart from that, it also carries the message of motivation and inspiration despite the negativities that plagued the world these days. Umbas is only their first 'baby' and we should expect lots more songs to be recorded in the studio by Nading Rhapsody in the near future. When asked if there was any difference between recording in a studio to performing on a live stage, they said it involved more complex processes in order for all the instruments to be heard on one track. The recording experience did not come as easy as all of the band members have day jobs. Finding a convenient time for everyone to come together to lay down a track was already a challenge but it did not deter them from wanting to produce their first single. 

Nading Rhapsody does us proud too when this year the band is invited to perform at an international stage, the Tong-Tong Fair or also known as Tong-Tong Festival. However, the band decided to postpone their show at the festival until next year due to financial constraint. Their dream to perform at the world's largest Eurasian fair is about to come true, thanks to the Malaysian Performing Arts Agency (MyPAA) who is willing to fund their trip after being chosen as one of the 16 receivers of the Royal Arts Gala Fund. They will not only represent Sarawak on an international stage at The Hague (Netherlands), but also Malaysia in general. 

The launching ceremony also featured some local talents such as Letticia Kila Thomas who just won the Miss Talent World Harvest Festival 2015, Diana Ant Blikau, Lydia Desmond and Arry Sullivan. For those who are interested to purchase their first single CD, it can be done through their official Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/NadingRhapsody ). For further enquiries, kindly contact Opah at 019-8399188. 

Press Conference

Album cover

Smiles In The Park 2015: Sheila Majid

I must say the Queen of Jazz did a superb job performing for her fans at Smiles In The Park 2015. Although Datuk Sheila Majid has been in Malaysia music industry for three decades, she didn't seem to age a bit the night she sang for us at Sarawak Culture Village. It was really effortless for her to get the crowd sang along to all her popular hits. Being an 80's baby, I was familiar with songs such as Lagenda, Sinaran and Ratu. 

During her performance she reminded us not to forget the victims of earthquake in Sabah. She dedicated the song Jauh by Zainal Abidin to the people of Sabah, it was impromptu. The song goes like this...

Selagi bahuku

Memikul bebannnya

Selagi hayatku

Merasa siksamu

Selama senyuman

Menjadi senyumku

Ku bawa wajahmu

Walau diriku jauh...

Jauh... 

Sheila Majid's fans came from every corner of this country, including one fan who was very ill but got the permission from his doctor to be at her show. If I'm not mistaken his name is Jason. Some of her fans also flew in all the way from KL. That's what we called dedication. Yeah, just like people of my music era (boyband era) would fly all the way to KL just to celebrate Backstreet Boys' 22nd anniversary at their concert not long ago. I admit I had a great time watching Datuk Sheila Majid sang for us and hopefully this will not be her last time here. We will always welcome you. 

Night Sky Time Lapse and Moon

Once again I took the opportunity during a clear night sky to learn more about astrophotography. This time it was like killing two birds with one stone despite having to worry about the lights pollution effects on the photo. While I was attempting to do the night sky time lapse, I was also teaching myself to capture photos of a full moon. I did both simultaneously using two different cameras. The 16 seconds time lapse video which was captured on my Canon Powershot G7X actually took me an hour to shoot. If I knew about this, I would have left the camera in front of the house longer till the battery ran out. While waiting for the time lapse to complete the shooting, I also learned to capture a full moon with my old buddy, the Canon EOS 550D. The settings were 1/320, f10, ISO 200. The photo above was shot on manual mode and I had no sophisticated telescope to help with the zooming. There was no magic trick, just sheer determination and interest to explore new things in photography. As long as you have a DSLR camera and a tripod, you are good to go. I think my next 'learning module' will be the star trail. I have always mesmerised by the sight of a starry night sky ever since my childhood. The enthusiasm is still there although I have grown into an adult. Perhaps the astrophotography skill I acquired now is the manifestation of that childhood's fascination. Last but not least, I hope you guys don't mind to have a look at my night sky time lapse video down below, thanks!