Can You Hear Me?

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything." - Plato

It was 6:45PM when I arrived at Conductor Hung's studio, wearing a huge silver treble clef earring, feeling the joy about the evening. It was the third choral class with toastmasters, but the first with Conductor Hung at her newly renovated studio. I was excited to show off what we had accomplished in the past two weeks, so were the other chorus members, I believe, as we all arrived before the class started!

Fourteen members showed up for the class, including two new comers Erick Suen and Green Chen. Now we have five sopranos, five altos. We are still short of male singers! Japanese Toastmasters Rio Imamura and Masaki Oshiumi are tenors. We need three more bass singers!

Soprano: Jorie Wu, Kate Hsu, Michelle Liu, Linda Tseng, Green Chen
Alto: Marian Hsiao, Gina Fu, Lydia Lin, Maggie Chiu, Sherry Li
Tenor: Ron Chen, Kuo-hwa Yeh, Erick Suen
Bass: George Yen

Even it was only the third choral class, we didn't waste any second, went ahead to attempt the third choral song in a row. Every member was a little uptight about the speedy progress, but was thrilled at the same time to learn the new beautiful song by Bob Chilcott, describing the wonder of the world seen through the eyes of a deaf person. Conductor Hung interpreted the song with sign language. We learned hand gestures to convey our emotions in addition to our voices.

Immediately I thought of the invited keynote speaker Dana LaMon at D67 Fall Conference 2009. Dana is a blind African-American judge and the World Champion of Public Speaking 1992. What can be a better way for D67 to welcome Dana to come afar to share with us his experience of meaningful living by singing "Can You Hear Me"?

Conductor Hung is very precise and strict about vocal and choral skills. She asks us to imagine a nose on our tummy when we breathe, feel confident when we utter the first sound, and end each sentence with soft conclusion. She reiterates that singing is not about loud voices, but delicate emotions. We must feel the meaning of the lyrics and interprete the songs with sorrow or joy in harmony.

Conductor Hung also teaches us to analyze the structure of the song, find out the repetitive fragments, and string them into a master piece. Then we practice again and again until we are familiar with the melody and memorize the entire music notes by heart.

Without an intermission, we had a two hours straight choral lesson this evening. The third choral class was dismissed at nine o'clock sharp. Every member was loaded with notes, lyrics and melodies in mind. We have so much to "sing" on ourselves before we meet again next Wednesday evening, October 14th.

Can You Hear Me? Bob Chilcott
I look around me as I grow, I'd like to tell you all I know
I see life with all its energy, the city streets, the rush of time
This is my world, it's where I like to be, so much to see, so much to find
I sometimes sit and wait a while, I see the sun, it makes me smile
Can you see it? Can you see it, too?

I feel life with all its energy, the joy of waking every day,
This is my world, it's where I like to be, so much to do, so much to say
I sometimes sit and feel the sun, its warmth is there for everyone
Can you feel it? Can you feel it, too?

My world is a silent one, but it's enough for me,
I hear you through your hands, the movement sets me free
But it could be a special thing, to hear your voice, to hear your sing
Can you hear me? Can you hear me, too?