SJS band success makes state, country proud

October 3, 2015

Abdul Karim (seated left) fielding questions from reporters. Looking on are Dr Sim (second left) and Ling.

KUCHING: St Joseph School did the state and country proud when its marching band took first place in the recent US Bands Yamaha Cup in New York.

Assistant Minister of Youth Development (Urban Areas) Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah hopes that each and every member of the winning band will emulate this feat to achieve success in other fields and aspects of their lives.

He added that for the state with a population of only 2.4 million people to be able to achieve this kind of international success is no easy feat, especially considering that the competitors were of world standard.

He said what the school had achieved was not only their success but something that the whole nation could cherish, because it put Sarawak and Malaysia on the world map.

“The state government is proud of this success considering that schools in the United States are known to have the best marching bands in the world. This achievement is a proud moment for both state and country. Hopefully they can achieve success in other fields as well,” Karim told a press conference at Kuching International Airport (KIA) here on Thursday evening, during a welcoming ceremony for the band.

Also present were SJS Band advisor and Old Josephians Association chairman Senator Datuk Dr Sim Hui Kian and SJS Band director June Ling.

The band emerged champion in the Division III A category after scoring 90.1 following a stellar performance at MetLife Stadium at East Rutherford in New Jersey on Sept 26. They also swept all caption categories including the highest scores for visual, music, overall effect, percussion and colour guard to upstage 53 other top high school bands.

Dr Sim meanwhile attributed the band’s success to hard work, discipline and commitment. He hoped the band would continue to build on this success and further improve to achieve world standard.

“This achievement proves that with hard work, you can be the best in the world,” he said.

He cited SJS Band’s achievement in the 2013 German Open Championship at Deutsche Musikfest (German Music Festival) in Chemnitz as another example that hard work and perseverance yield success. At the festival, held once every six years, the band scored 89.93 points — with their Beethoven-inspired drill show entitled ‘Ode to Joy’ — to win first place.

About 200 bands from all over the world took part in that competition.

Reminding everybody that SJS Band belonged to the community, he hoped that band members would not forget their roots and come back to mentor other students once they have become professional musicians.

Dr Sim also described winning the prestigious competition as not an easy feat considering the high standard set. He said it was not easy to qualify for the US Band Yamaha Cup. Each band needed to go through a pre-qualification round and meet a certain standard.

At the state-level Youth Day in June, SJS Kuching was presented with a ‘Special Recognition for Youth Arts Association’ by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem.