Book launch at MediaCorp Photos Nov 2024

 

Live without TV

Life without TV

by Lesley Ong
>
> On 1 Nov 2022 around 7.30pm, I turned on my TV. Two words jumped out from the screen. “NO SIGNAL”.
> I panicked. The Hong Kong series “Dynasty”, which I was following, would be starting soon at 9. It was very exciting and I don’t want to miss it. I straightaway called the telco company.
> After asking me to check the connection, click here, click there, re-booth etc, the signal came back. What a relief!
> This got me thinking, “How did I survive the days when there was no television?”
> You see, TV was only introduced in Singapore on 15 February 1963.
>
> At that time, I was staying at 134-B Dorset Road, a SIT estate located next to Farrer. A small drain separate the estate and the park. The 8 blocks of three storey flats was build by the Lim Yew Hock’s government. Each block had 18 units with 2 units facing each other.
>
> My first childhood friend was my neighbour, a Indian girl called Jamma. I was around 4 years and she was year my senior. As both of us were not of school going age then, we played everyday from morning to night with dolls and masak masak (crockery, forks & spoon made of plastic). Our doors were never closed. We walked in and out of each other house, ate in eat other’s house and that is why up to this day I love curry!
>
> My father was a movie bluff. Almost every weekend, he would pack the whole family in 2 taxis and off to the theatre we go. Cathay, Capitol, Odean, Alhambra, Sun, Sky, Globe, Galaxy, King to name a few. After the movie, If we watched the movie at Cathy, Capitol, Odeon and Alhambra, father would bring us all to the satay club at Beach Road for dinner. We sat on low benches around the stall, earring satay, washed down with freshly grind sugar cane juice admist the smoke and dust as the Tay Koh Yat buses roared by. Tay Koh Yat bus depot was just across the road!!
>
> During that time there was no film classification. So father brought us to see whatever film he loved to see. I still remembered watching all the Dracula (played by Christopher Lee) films. Christopher Lee with his bloodshot eyes and fangs. After that, I was always afraid when night fall!
> Then there were the cowboys and Red Indians films. Being young and innocent, I cheered the cowboys on (usually played by actors such as John Wayne, Richard Widmark, Robert Mitchum) as they killed the Red Indians (Sioux, Cheyenne and Apaches) and burned down the whole settlement!
> However the movies I enjoyed most were musicals, movies with Christmas themes and Cineramas. Cineramas were 3D films and were only shown at the Sky Theatre.
>
> If my father was a movie bluff, my mother was a wayang bluff!
> There was a temple at Truro Rd, near my place. Several times a year, they would celebrate the birthday of the deities with 2 days of wayang. Then there was the 7th moon festival and there would be wayang almost the whole month.
> Mother would make us eat an early dinner as the show starts at 7pm. Then each of us would carry a stool and rush to the wayang site so that we could be nearer the stage. Teochew/Hokkien wayang, it did not matter. Because of the popularity of the cinema show “Tan Sar Gnor New” (the story about a poor scholar who fall in love with a rich maiden), every wayang troupe would put up this performance!
> Frankly I love wayangs not because of the shows but because of the many stalls selling a variety of food and drink and the tikam - tikam stalls.
> The most popular drink stall was the one selling the bird nest drink. The hawker would position his tricycle right in the midst of the crowd watching the show! The so called bird nest was actually strips of agar agar! But it did not matter as the drink was cold and sweet with the fragrant of pandan leaves.
> The Tikam Tikam stalls were game stalls. They had board games similar to roulette. I loved to play the game where I was required to pull a pair of metal rods from a bamboo container. The tip of the rods were paintedd either black or red. If you pulled a pair of the same colour, you won a prize. If you pulled a pair of different colour, you “died”! However the stalls which drew the most crowd were the one selling cockles and siput (a kind of snails where the hawker clipped off the tip of the shell and you dipped the snail in the chilli sauce and suck it out!). These hawkers hawked their food on 2 baskets tied to the end of a pole. Their favourite spot was under the wayang stage. There they put down the 2 baskets and patrons sat around the stalls on small stools enjoying the delicacy, with the footsteps of the performers thumping above them!
>
> Opposite my house was a Teochew family. They were quite poor as the father was a cloth merchant with more than ten mouths to feed. Every morning he would piled bales of cloth on his tricycle and cycle to the market to sell. In the evening he would come home and carried the cloth upstairs. Why do I mentioned this particular neighbour? Because going to wayang was a big occasion for them, like attending a grand dinner! They would not only be heavily make up but dressed up to the Ts with matching costumes jewellery., shoes and handbags!
>
> In the evening, the air in the estate would be filled with children’s laughter, screaming and shouting as we come down to play. We played games like “bola humtan” (a game similar to baseball), chapteh (a rubber disc topped with brightly coloured feathers which one kicks with the heel of one leg), spin tops, hit each other’s marbles out of a circle drawn on the pavement (the person who hit the most marbles out of the circle wins and get to keep the marbles!), paper balloons, five stones, hopscotch, kutik kutik. We learned to ride bicycle on adult bicycles. We flew kites, the poorer boys making their own kites out of newspaper and sapu lidi. These kites had difficulty taking off as they were heavier than the normal kite. After sometime, some of the children would go the drain between our estate and Farrer Park to catch guppies or to the bushes to catch spiders. We carried the spiders around in match boxes, ready to fight anytime! The spiders fed on hibiscus leaves.
>
> Every Sunday, we would follow father to Farrer Park to watch football. There are many football pitches and all the pitches would be occupied. My eldest brother and his friends love football. Father bought them a ball. Soon they were playing against other teams at the pitch! It was then that they decided to form a proper team with their own jersey. They called themselves D’ Starlight. Father was their main sponsor. After the game, father would bring us to the nearby Race Course Road to eat Indian Rojak. There were many hawker stalls selling mainly Muslim food such as mee goreng, nasi goreng, soto ayam, roti prata and soup kambing. Not to be forgotten are the kachang puteh stalls. It was a must to munch on kachang puteh while watching football!
>
> Father was trying to produce shampoo. His shampoo was so thick that when you dip a wire with a loop at its end into the shampoo, you could blow out bubbles. So his shampoo ended up with us, the children in the estate. We would go to Farrer Park each with a bottle of the shampoo and a looped wire before the football games start to blow bubbles! The whole park would be full of rainbow coloured bubbles, floating into the sky. It was a beautiful sight!
>
> Next to Dorset estate was Cumberland Estate. The houses there were cute little cottages, separated by hibiscus hedges. They were occupied mostly by Europeans and some high ranking civil servants. Most of them were Christian and during Christmas, all the houses were beautifully decorated with colourful twinkling lights, wreaths, poinsettias, Santa Claus, reindeers and snowman!
> As children, we loved to go there during this season. We walked along the cobblestone lane, see the family preparing dinner in the cottages and the beautifully decorated Christmas tree inside the house. Most house would have a Christmas tree!
>
> The happiest times for us was Chinese New Year and the Mooncake Festival.
> During Chinese New Year, we drank Red Lion fizzy drinks and played with fire crackers and fireworks, day and night, for fifteen days! The whole estate was very noisy and smoky and the ground covered with red paper!
> Then during the Mooncake Festival, all of us would carry lantern. The lanterns came in many shape and sizes, fish shape, aeroplane, butterfly, starfruit, rabbit, flower basket. The most common ones were the paper lanterns, which opened up like an accordion . The children from poorer families made their own lantern out of newspaper and sapu lidi.But this did not deter their fun! They children would form two lines and one of the older boy would beat a drum as we chanted “Ya!Ya! Tom Tom Chen” over and over again. We would marched to Farrer Park as it was very dark and our lanterns shone very bright,y and beautifully.
> Mother would lay the table with chicken, meat, fruits and flowers to pray to the Moon Goddess or “Gay New Mah”. This practice was stopped only when America landed on the moon!
>
> Looking back, it was an enjoyable childhood “Without TV".

New Photo book by Mun Chor Seng

 

The new photo book A Pictorial of Radio and TV in Singapore by Mun Chor Seng contains about a 1000 pictures of radio and TV personalities and events over many years at the broadcasting station on Caldecott Hill. This book is a limited edition and not available in bookstores. If you wish to buy one please email to author at munchorseng@gmail.com

The price is $35 self collect or $40 by post.

Senior stories Lim Yao Ching

 Caldecott Hill Broadcasting Center 

 Facility Management-Little-known Anecdotes        

by Lim Yao Ching

Introduction

 I joined Mediacorp in 1997. The following are some little-known anecdotes that I personally experienced on the Hill and some tidbits of the entire project relocation, to share with you.

 The Caldecott Hill Broadcasting Center(CBC) covers an area of about 7 hectares. The following buildings were constructed in different periods:

  a. Old Broadcasting House: Built in the 1950s (1st to 2nd floors)

  b. TV Building (TV Building): Built in 1964 (four floors) in 1972 and expanded in 1986.

  c. Radio Building: Built in 1983 (sixth floor)

  d, East Wing (East Wing): Built in 1982 (single floor with three underground floors)

  e. West Wing: Built in 1983 (5 stories underground)

  f. Annex Building: Built in 1995 (5 stories underground)

  g. Media Academy: Built in 1984 (three floors)

  h. Multi-storey car park building (MSCP Building): Built in 1990 (5 floors, 4 underground floors)

 The original CBC started from the old broadcast building and consisted of separate buildings, as follows:

 Blk A (Building A)

 2-story wooden structure used as outdoor production office (drama/variety show)

 Blk D (Building D)

 This single-storey building on the edge of the TV building is dedicated to storing wardrobe supplies. It contains clothing, headwear and footwear from different eras and races.

 Blk E (Building E)

 Although the appearance of this single-story wooden structure is old, it is neat and tidy. It is one of the unforgettable places for artists who often come here for makeup and haircuts.

 Blk F (Building F)

 The single-story wardrobe collection and distribution center is also frequently visited by entertainers and extras. Provide various clothing-related services, including clothing modification, laundry, matching and retrieval of clothing used for shooting.

 Blk G (Building G)

 This single-story building is an audio station responsible for dubbing services, audio/music mixing, etc.

 25.12.02 The old radio room fire incident

  On December 25, 2002, a prop storage room behind Building F caught fire due to an electrical short circuit.

  When I arrived at the Radio Gate (one of the gates of Broadcasting Center), I was shocked to see thick smoke rising from the building behind the makeup building of Building F in the old broadcast building. At that time, I was so shocked that my hands and feet were cold, and I couldn't make a smooth call even when I tried to call my boss.

 At that time, the security guard on duty had tried to control the access to the fire scene. When I entered the fire scene, I saw many people rushing into the audio room of Building F to rescue the equipment and tapes in the recording room. Suddenly I was worried about their safety. I tried to prevent them from entering, they ignored my appeal.

  Although firefighters were spraying water on the roof at the time, dense fog appeared on the roofs of several single-story wooden buildings due to the high temperature. The scene was frightening. Fortunately, the closet storage room was only a single floor, and the firefighters quickly controlled the fire.

 Due to the timely control of the fire, the fire did not spread to neighboring buildings. After the fire was brought under control, James Tan, then director of the Civil Defence Agency of Singapore, personally visited the fire scene.

 3. Build a new item warehouse

  After the fire in the old broadcasting building destroyed the storage building, as part of the insurance claim conditions, we built a new warehouse for prop storage. The figure below shows the building during the construction phase.

 

 Studio production facilities

 The Caldecott Hill Broadcasting Center contains 6 studios, Studio A (located in the Broadcasting Building), the overall design is an auditorium, movie studio (located in the old Broadcasting Building for TV/film production) and a TV theater (located in the multi-storey parking lot) Inside the building)

 Studio 1 is used for English drama/sitcom production

 Studio 2 for Chinese news/current affairs

 Studio 3 was produced by Caldecott Mountain of Gary Valley (made for external clients)

 Studios 4 and 6 are produced by Chinese theater

 Photo studio 5 is used for temporary production and production company reservations.

 In the center of all studios there is a temporary set hall for storing props for the studio.

 Street scene

 At the beginning of drama production, part of the old broadcasting building was used to construct street scenes for drama production.

 However, when the amount of drama production increased, the new street scene called "TV World" was built as a production place for local dramas of the old period. It is located next to the checkpoint of the second passage in Malaysia and Tuas.

  "TV World" occupies a land area equivalent to four football fields and was completed in 1992. It has two wings, the local street scene in the 1950s and 1960s and the old Chinese street scene. The buildings built are old cinemas, railway stations, fire stations, churches, buildings and traditional shops.

  There is also an artificial river for shooting in the television world.

  New Media uses nostalgic props and backgrounds from the TV world to produce many memorable Chinese TV series for Channel 8. Some of the TV series that have been filmed here are: "Adventure 3" (released in 1995), Tofu Street, Tofu Street (1996), "The Price of Peace" (1997), "The Pot of Life" Fuman Renjian (1999) and Hainan Kopi Tales Qiongyuan Coffee Fragrance (2000).

  In 2001, due to high maintenance costs and low utilization, New Media decided to abandon the Tuas TV World. If required by the plot, the crew will shoot in Malaysia, China or Calgary Valley Broadcasting Center.

 TV building catches fire

 Another minor fire (smoke) incident in the TV building (unknown year and month-probably around 2003/2004?) caused the users of the TV building to evacuate. The fire was contained in the AHU room, and was contained before any damage could be caused.

 After subsequent investigations, it was found that the cigarette butts were inhaled into the air inlet and contacted with the AHU pre-filter material, causing the flame to slowly burn and emit a large amount of smoke.

    

 Buildings in disrepair (water seepage in the TV building)-Digital Media Center (DMC)_April 24, 2004, due to water seepage, interrupted the transmission of Channel 5

   A staff member noticed that water seeped in from the ceiling of the Digital Media Center (DMC) near the power switch cabinet around 2.45 pm that day. The manager of the live broadcast room took emergency rescue measures and protected the equipment with plastic sheets around the area where water seepage was found.

 When the staff cleaned up the chaos at the scene, the channel 5 signal was interrupted. Later, it was discovered that other parts of the ceiling of the Digital Media Center (DMC) and Satellite Operations Center (SOC) (the satellite operations center next to the Digital Media Center) also had water seepage problems, affecting the racks that house the fifth channel equipment. Due to the failure of the audio equipment, the fifth channel has intermittent audio interruption when playing.

 Channel 5 was interrupted for about 19 minutes and resumed before 3.10 pm. No other channels are affected.

  

 Wall reinforcement of TV building

 The TV building is constructed using a traditional beam-slab system. The TV Building was built in 1964 and expanded in 1972 and 1986.

 Some parts of the TV building are covered with a steel roof, while the substation is covered with a reinforced concrete structure RC flat roof. The steel roof is supported by steel bars, which in turn are supported by steel trusses. These anchored on reinforced concrete structural columns were visually inspected by professional engineers for 5 years.

 The structural inspection was carried out by a professional contractor from September 20, 2010 to November 30, 2010.

 The report recommends more comprehensive core testing and regular maintenance work, because low concrete strength is generally found in TV buildings, so repair and reinforcement should be carried out according to the recommendations of the first report.

 Three carbonization test samples were carried out. All samples were from the first floor and were tested immediately after core extraction. The test results show that the possibility of steel corrosion is very high.

  -Monitoring of 100 pillars per week 5 times a week, these pillars cannot be reinforced with fiber wrapping.

  -Fiber wrapped to strengthen 20 columns accessible. 20 pillars that can be sprayed with anti-carbon coating

 According to the first structural research report, the decrease in the strength of concrete tested in the first batch of core tests indicates that the strength of concrete in key structural members is consistently low.

 It can be clearly seen from the test results that this 47-year-old TV building has been adversely affected by the environment and suffered carbonization damage for at least 15 years. As a result, the strength of the concrete was reduced by nearly 50%, and signs of concrete deterioration, such as cracks, flaking, and rust, appeared.

 The weak and porous condition of concrete will accelerate the penetration of concrete by atmospheric carbon dioxide and water-based chloride ions from the environment, and make the concrete deteriorate at a faster rate. In the next 5 to 10 years, the concrete strength may decrease from the current level to the range of 8 N/mm2 to 10 N/mm2. It is expected that there will be more concrete signs of deterioration during this period.

 Therefore, it is essential to repair those severely deteriorated concrete components as soon as possible to prevent further deterioration. Considering the availability of repair work, repair as many unsatisfactory columns as possible. The column after maintenance work will be safe under the existing loading conditions.

 Taking into account that the building will not be occupied for more than 5 years, we will also limit the maintenance work to the 20 pillars mainly located in the square, carry out reinforcement works on the pillars, and continue to monitor the rest of the columns every other month.

 In the end, we used unidirectional glass fiber epoxy resin to repair the undesirable column to enhance the structure of the column

 9. Develop a master plan for the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center

 a. Redevelopment of the old broadcasting room and renovation of other buildings

 After several fire incidents and major water seepage incidents, the complex obviously needs a major comprehensive renovation or renovation project that will be carried out long ago.

 According to the records I found, in the early days of the Singapore media company MCS, the company has conducted extensive research on the possibility of developing a new campus to replace the existing Cale Valley Broadcasting Center. In fact, a site at No. 6 Bukit Batok West Street was purchased in 1994 as an alternative site for the Calgary Hill Broadcasting Center. I don't know the reason why the redevelopment plan of Bukit Batok has not been carried out, but it may be related to cost feasibility.

 According to our 2005 research, in fact, it is more cost-effective to redevelop part of the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center and remodel existing buildings.

 I was the main facilitator in the development of a master plan that aims to upgrade the building of the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center and redevelop the old broadcast room with new buildings. I personally drafted the tender documents to appoint consultants to develop the master plan for the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center.

 A consortium consisting of the following companies was appointed as the conceptual master plan for the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center in September 2005.

 DP Architects Pte Ltd was appointed as architect

 Beca Carter Hollings&Ferner (S.E.Asia) Sdn Bhd was appointed as civil, structural and electromechanical engineer

 KPK Quantity Surveyor Pte Ltd was appointed as Quantity Surveyor

 The master plan proposal was completed and subsequently submitted to the MediaCorp management in March 2006, but the final decision was to build a new complex on Bukit Batok land. There are obvious advantages to building a house on green space. It is very difficult and inconvenient to upgrade an existing building because it will affect operations, and the studio is very sensitive to noise to cope with the construction process. The supporting theater and entertainment production facilities of the old broadcasting room must also be relocated. It is also much easier to construct a completely new broadcast infrastructure framework in a new building.

 After MediaCorp management made a decision, an internal project management team then appointed a project management consultant to oversee the construction of the new complex at Bukit Batok site. In order to understand the requirements of all stakeholders, a comprehensive seminar and discussion were carried out, and a comprehensive technical requirements, specifications and space rationalization plan were developed for the new complex.

 However, the project was aborted due to the Great Recession in 2007 before the invitation of the multidisciplinary consulting team.

 In 2011, MediaCorp finally decided to purchase a piece of land in One North and build a new site to replace the Gali Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center. The new site is located in Mediapolis, a business park created for the rapidly growing information and communications, media, physical sciences and engineering sectors. One One's 19-hectare hub is supported by a strong IT infrastructure.

 The new building has many advanced facilities, including two large studios, post-production facilities, news gathering and broadcasting facilities, a 1,500-seat performing arts theater and office space. There is a comprehensive news editing room that can accommodate 700 reporters from its digital, television, radio and printing units.

 I want to share the initial master plan of the Gary Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center developed by the consultant team, which also includes some preliminary design ideas shown below, because some people may be curious to understand it. These points of view are only preliminary descriptions of the design, no further development.

    

 b. The area of the proposed building on the Bukit Batok site is shown below. These are just working drafts at the preliminary stage.

               

 10. I will end this narrative with photos of the cornerstones of two TV stations that I took.

 11. The future of the Gali Valley mountain block

 On October 14, 2020, Channel News Asia reported that the Galle Valley Mountain Broadcasting Center website had been sold by the owner, Mediacorp. The 75,2015 square foot site is marketed by real estate consultants-CB Richard Ellis Real Estate Consulting and Showsuite Consultancy. The property was sold through an open tender, and the deadline for the tender is December 9, 2020.

 The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has approved Mediacorp to redevelop the site into a two-story villa with a land area of at least 800 square meters (8,611 square feet) per house.

 In contrast, this is a relatively small land scale. Usually, the minimum land requirement for first-class villas is 1,400 square meters. However, compared with ordinary villas, the area requirements for first-class villas of this specification are double theirs.

 The subdivision plan designed by MediaCorp Architects that can accommodate 67 villa plots must be approved by the relevant authorities.

 The land is currently zoned for use by citizens and community institutions and will have to be re-planned as residential land; this will require payment of a premium to the state.

 The amount of the premium depends on the developers proposal, the time of application, and the evaluation by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and the Office of the Chief Appraiser.

 In addition, this 99-year leasehold land on the island has a remaining lease term of 73 years. This means that the developer also needs to pay the Singapore Land Authority (Singapore Land Authority) a lease difference to renew it for 99 years.

 By: Lim Yao Ching Lin Yaoqing

 Yao Qing joined Singapore Television in 1997 and is responsible for its property services department, which includes the maintenance of necessary electrical and mechanical infrastructure. Subsequently, he participated in project management and formulated the overall redevelopment plan. He left MediaCorp in 2012 and is currently working as a project management consultant in a consulting firm for infrastructure development.

 Disclaimer:

 My narration is based on my documentary record, knowledge and information obtained at the working level and on a personal basis. It does not represent the official version of events.

Senior stories Allan Ng

 Wonders

By Dr. Allan Ng, Y.H. 

The plane dived down from clear, blue skies, like a Falcon plummeting down onto its prey in a vertical drop at speeds of 150 mph. I felt the load as the G forces built up and my surroundings appeared dim. I sensed I was blacking out. Objects appeared upside down, in topsy, turvey, curvy way, and I wasn’t sure of my bearings anymore. I saw ball bearings everywhere.Then things brightened as the plane levelled out and swooped down, landing on the tarmac, like a falcon landing on it’s prey. The passengers cheered as metal staircases rolled towards the plane. The passengers disembarked rapidly down a steep, steel staircase. 

The first thing to hit me was the heat, as a wave of hot air wafted towards me. The first sniff of a Singapore. I had left ten years ago, for destinations, strange, and exhilarating in my ambitious climb upwards, But then I was heading for unknown skies. Doctor if I succeeded, and porter, if I failed, Now, a piece of paper, a certificate, and a small suitcase accompanied me. Nothing else, except that pack of ambitions of course. And that whiff of decaying vegetation, so reminiscent of decomposition and death, for which I was ill prepared.  

I followed the group along a narrow track snaking its way along several huts and a ware house which we entered. Several customs and immigration officials, in grey and blue uniforms inspected us and moved us into a large hall. I could see my fellow passengers, greeted by relatives and friends. They were smiling and laughing  but there was no one to greet me. A feeling of isolation and desolation swarmed over me. I could not shake it off. I trudged on with my meagre belongings and outside the hall, a sea of beaming faces greeted me. My spirits soared, only to be dashed by the realisation that they were over friendly taxi drivers hoping to make a killing. Reluctantly I let one of them grab my bag and hustle me into his taxi, an ancient rainbow coloured Austin, with numerous scratches and dabs of faded paint, covering dented metal. We bumped along a long seafront of attap huts and coconut trees. Beyond lay a tempestuous sea, given to storms of rage. But it was tranquil now, in tune with my weary spirits. We honked into maze of narrow streets, lined by crowded, terraced shops selling hardware, pots and pans, and hawkers’ food from small stalls squeezed into nooks and corners. 

I paid the fare and tipped taxi driver who dropped me at the gates of a muddy green building, some six stories high, shaped like a banana, held aloft by two thick stems, fronted by a U shaped tarmac driveway, with a scatter of pebbles, near the main entrance.

Wearily, I climbed up the four steps into the vestibule, where several patients were groaning on stretches, and a handful of nurses were attending to them, cooing and encouraging them to stay calm, while giving injections and setting up drips. They took no notice of me. 

“What are you doing here?” The voice was raspy, like when you rub sandpaper on wood and came from an elderly lady in a white starched uniform. She had just dropped from the adjacent corridor and was glaring at me. 

“I am the new Medical Officer. Where do I put my suitcase?” 

“Over there, in the corner. Come and follow me.”

“But I don’t start until next week!”

“This week, next week, what’s the difference? Come.” I followed meekly, up another staircase, skirting an antiquated lift with collapsible chain doors, into a room, where a surgeon, garbed in green, was peering down the perineum of a Malay woman with a bloated abdomen. She was rolling in agony and shouting “Sakit, sakit! (Malay for pain.)” 

The blonde doctor shouted in disgust, “Suck it yourself!” He peeled his gloves off, and walked away. But the nurse, a buxom, young lady managed to pacify him, by telling him of the misinterpretation, and that there many other things people could suck, since we re all born suckers anyway. He put his gloves on  again, while staring at her in surprise and then at her breasts, held taught within that tight, green tunic. While this fracas was  going on, I delivered the baby by way of a breech extraction. The blonde doctor took the baby from me and smacked its bottom. The baby cried and he kissed the baby’s cheek, before handing it to a grinning mother. 

“Name’s Michael Higgins,” he growled at me. “Thanks buddy.” He swept the blonde curls away from his blue eyes. “By golly, what a sucker i am.”

A dapper little man, who had watched the proceedings from just outside the door, dashed in and pumped my hand. “Thank you, Doc. You saved my son. Would you like to join me for a celebratory dinner at Fatty’s Pot Belly, down by Rochor River?”

“But that’s a notorious gambling den!” My grip on my wallet tightened. I was down to my last ten dollars and dad had warned me that they would skin me alive, if I ever walked in there. “Stay away. I’ll be down from Penang Island in a few days, after we complete filling the last order for steel bars. Meanwhile, bunk up at your sister’s apartment in River Valley Road.” He rung off as fast as he had chimed in.

The dapper man put his arm round my shoulder. “I’m Malik. You never worry when you are in Malik’s company. There will be a bit of that girly stuff, but it’s quite harmless. And some gambling, such as Mah Jong, and Chap Ji Ki, in those exotic opium dens. Of course, how could i not mention this! Some cock fighting shows too, where you could bet your grandmother’s bottom against a king’s ransom. Make sure you don’t lose.“ He winked. “Or there will be a real cock slaughter show.”

‘It’s too far to walk and there won’t be any taxis in the dead of night.” It was my last, desperate attempt to avoid trouble. But he soothed them away. “Use my limousine. Ahmad is a good driver of my blue Rolls. He will guard you well.”

I sighed and nodded. I was hungry and Fatty’s had good food. Little did I know that it would turn out to be the Night of the 21 knives.

Faty’s was Faty’s. There was no other way to describe that exhilaration concoction of Asian juices. You could take it lying down or sitting up. In one puff, one snort or two. You always came back for more. The yearning kills you. But you press on, hoping for release from the yoke which binds you to Hell. Drums boomed in rhythm with hoarse, battle-cries. Members of the two most powerful gangs, the 21 knives and the 8 rings, had gathered outside Fatty’s, on the wide asphalts of Rochor. 

It was a beautiful night. Stars twinkled and the moon shone. Music flowed from the rag bag orchestra of mouth organs, accordions, and the old, indomitable piano, squatting just within the wide, teak doors. The music was a mixture of rhythmic Rong Geng dance tunes and romantic, cowboy songs, belted out by old Faty himself, seated on a wide, wooden stool. On his right stood Chow Mia, the boss of notorious 8 rings, a conglomerate of vicious killers with powers of the the occult. He was tall man with a stoop, a disarming smile, and a vicious knife, He sang lustily, of love and life, fulfilled and lost, as he grabbed the bevy of women around him. He dance in little mincing steps, his face contorting like that of a clown, in a cadence of sudden, changing moods.

On Faty’s left, Malik, portly and dapper, laughed and tried to mimic Chow Mia, as he announced 

“Tonight is a memorable night, a night to remember long after we are gone. Tonight, I announce that the great truce between our 21 knives and the 8 Rings and the birth of a handsome son, with the features of Chow Mia of course.” Laughter erupted from some men in the audience, but Malik continued. “He has consented to be the god father of my son. It is indeed a great honour for me.” Malik bowed and the throng clapped. “There is food a plenty, wild boar, black pig, roasted piglets, 

Peking duck, wild geese, and century eggs, of course. And plenty of beautiful women. “Eat, drink, and be merry. Enjoy. To ensure the peace continues tonight, we have agreed to surrender all weapons for safe keeping at the welcoming stations, where we have stationed guards from both gangs.”  

Meanwhile a stream of dignitaries arrived in black limousines. Both gangsters greeted them graciously. Amidst the great din, a flash of streaked lightning ignited the sky, followed by a clap of thunder. An eerie silence descended on the crowd.  A woman screamed. Her voice pierced the night air. I could feel the fear in it as it warbled. The crowd stampeded towards the doors. But Faty’s piano had been pushed and was now blocking the exit. More screams erupted. Shots erupted, followed by fusillades of rifle fire.I looked around but Malik and his cronies were nowhere to be seen. A body lay on the the piano. I rolled it over. Chow Mia stared at me through glassy eyes. 

I grasped his limp wrist and tried to feel for a pulse. None! I shuffled out with the crowd, which was dwindling fast. A blue Rolls crept up beside me and I peered through the darkened window panes. Dark shadows greeted me and I couldn’t see who was within. The passenger window rolled down and Malik appeared. “Jump in, unless you want to take a bullet.” I climbed in and the window pane rolled up. Malik looked at my pale face, dripping in sweat. “Bullet proof glass,” he reassured me. ‘And in case you think badly of me, I did not engineer this. But Chow Mia’s gang will think I did, and they will start a vicious, no-holds-barred war against me. Many will die unnecessarily and the police will increase their presence and use trumped-up charges against us because of public pressure. The massacre this night will be plastered all over the newspapers.” He paused for awhile to let this sink in. But I was too shell-shocked to care. He lifted my chin gently. “Listen carefully. Your life may depend on this. 

Tonight’s massacre was started by Long Long, Chow Mia’s top lieutenant. With me and Chow Mia eliminated, he will be the top gun. You must contact Bo Tak, another henchman of Chow Mia. He.  has the numbers and ability to carry this through. Tell him that if he gets rid of Long Long, he and I could a very successful, long-term symbiotic relationship, I have watched him and he has always wanted peace, like me.”

I protested “But I don’t know him! He won’t listen to me. He might even kill me!”

“Today, You have a made good friend, Michael Higgins. He is the brother-in-law of Bo Tak. Send the message through him. But, remember, do not get the names mixed or we will all be fucked!”

I nodded. How could I forget Michael Higgins? I crept into my bed and promptly fell asleep. I had fitful dreams that night of dragons and monsters taking nips of my flesh. It was incredibly painful, 

But nothing compared with the hollowness inside. It was as if the monsters had eaten me inside out. 

I met Michael the next morning at coffee break, after we had delivered several patients. 

“Hi, had a good night?” 

He nodded. “Wonderful, if you have done several C-Sections.” 

I laughed and he continued. “The work never ends.”

“Yup. We are hyper-productive.”

“I need a favour from you.”

“Sure, buddy, shoot.”

“Can I swap duties with you tomorrow night?”

My heart rose and sank. I could be killed by Bo Tak or Malik or both. “You’ve got it. But I need a favour in return. For this, I need to talk to you privately.” 

We walked into the small, empty green. 

“I know it’s sounds ridiculous, but even now, i am not sure if it’s real. Can you pass this message to Bo Tak urgently? It’s from Malik. It’s verbal and I’ll speak as if I am Malik.

“Long Long planned to kill me last night and started the gang fight. He harbours extreme paranoid suspicions. You, his next in command, will be next. The police will be conducting incessant raids. This will kill us all. But we can have a happy, symbiotic life. Join forces with me and and eliminate Long Long, but we must act fast.”

Michael blinked several times. “Ok, I’ll do it. But, if you are not serious, you could wind up dead.”  

I trembled but thanked him profusely nevertheless.  

“Think nothing of it,” he said and threw himself into his work. So did I. But I could not shake the nightmares of impending doom. Michael  was very restless too. Then I received a beautiful box of chocolates and a message from Malik. He had adopted Bo Tak as his son and heir. The red Harley was a present from his gang. Bo Tak had gone for a ride up the Titiwangsa mountain, close to Kuala Lumpur, and had driven off a cliff. Malik said he was very depressed, despite being the supreme Commander of the gangs. Peace reigned for a while.  

But I could not break free of my bonds. I was like an acrobat stuck to his trapeze. Wherever I went, I had the awful feeling that a bullet would find me. It was not the dying which bothered me. It was the anticipation. It kills. After a few weeks, I could not take it anymore and I threw in my resignation.

Michael did not question me. He looked haggard, with dark rings around his eyes, and he, too, threw in the towel. We met for a farewell lunch and he was glowing. He was going home to friends  and relatives, and a ‘God, save the Queen, while I was home, a stranger in my own country. Things had changed drastically in the past ten years. Roads had widened and buildings had shot up where garbage fields had once held sway. Babies were born and people had died. There was nothing familiar which I could grasp and link up a chain of events to connect it to me. Of course, there was Dad, Ma, and Connie, my sister,  We had met, celebrated and reminisced over old times but they had changed considerably over the the past ten years. Connie had lost her incandescent laughter. Dad and Ma had become morose and spoke much less as they battled Senile Dementia and Parkinson’s Disease. They were dying. I was dying. We were all dying. But there were new lives, new hopes, new beginnings at the maternity hospitals. Despite that, I could not stay.

Like the ancient marina, I was doomed to sail the seven seas. I took the next plane out. To Rio De Janeiro. It rose rapidly into the sky and soon was seen no more.  

I heard later that the gang war had erupted again and that one of the gang chieftains had been decapitated and his head hung on top of a pole, at the traffic lights in Rochor.

Father or son?

                                      

Wonders.

A novel 

fiction, 2733 words 

By Dr. Allan Ng, Y.H.

 

Like the Ancient mariner,

Doomed to sail the 7 seas, 

he stood in the gloom, 

watching the flowers bloom,

 before his trip to regions gone.

As the petals fall, 

the whiff of dying stems and fading flowers 

Sends him into the frenzied trance of a fatal dance.

Jump, jump, hop, hop, 

Kiss, kiss, hiss, hiss, 

Aladdin, Genie, Peter beckon,

Beyond the mist, 

Bang, bang,

Chittie gone,

Dream song,

I travel on.

In search of a yearning, I know not what, 

Embedded in my soul,

I must search this planet of lost souls,  

Before I reach my goal, 

God, please bless my soul. 

My yearning, my goal 

Drives me on, 

To regions of madness and beyond, 

God, please save my soul. 

Must I die, 

Before I know why, 

God, please help my soul. 

Is there a reason, Is there a cause? 

Perhaps not, 

God, Please…   

May God bless you all.

                           

 

Senior stories Lee-Gan Ai Lien

 My Memories of 

"AdAsia Lahore 1989"

                   By

  Mrs Lee-Gan Ai Lien

         Wonderful times of our lives stay alive in our memories. When I bite into a juicy Pakistani orange, I always remember Lahore. What is so wonderful about Lahore? I was mesmerised by its unique culture, ancient beauty and the friendliness of its people when I was there 33 years ago. 

          When I worked in the commercial arm of Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC),  I had a few opportunities to attend AdAsia Congress over the years. One that evoked the most memories for me was "AdAsia Lahore 1989" which took place 33 years ago. People may wonder why I write about it after so many years? The answer is: I have learned  valuable lessons from attending the AdAsia Lahore 1989, which I have applied in my life, time and time again. 

         AdAsia  Congress is organised under the auspices of Asia Federation of Advertising Associations (AAFA).  Since 1958, it has been held bi-annually in various Asian cities like Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Bali… etc and has since grown into the most influential and grandest event in the Asian advertising industry. It offers an excellent forum for the practitioners of advertising, marketing, media and public relations sectors to share and learn of breakthroughs, innovations, effective marketing and communications. It also highlights the global advertising trends with emphasis on Asia. The bid to host AdAsia Congress has always been fiercely contested, with brilliant ideas and creative presentations to win the hearts and applause  of AAFA members. It was a great joy and pride for Pakistan to be honourably selected as the host country for the 16th AdAsia Congress in 1989. And they put their heart and soul into organising it.                             

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       AdAsia Lahore 1989 attracted a large number of delegates, including several of us from Singapore.  The four- day Congress was packed with many prominent speakers from around the world to speak on diverse topics. One of them was the world-renowned thinker and author, Dr. Edward de Bono, who invented lateral thinking. As advertising is all about creativity, his topic on how to improve one's thinking ability and creativity skills attracted great interest and attention from the attendees. The appeal of the Congress is that it caters not only to the attendees' interests in serious learning and discussion but also social gathering, entertainment and sightseeing. While we had many inspiring and enriching sessions in the day, there were also various well-planned exciting events to entertain us in the evening. Truly, AdAsia Lahore had showcased an excellent example of how "creativity at its best"  had helped them make it a resounding success and a landmark chapter in the advertising industry. And for us, it was a remarkable Congress to attend.

        Lahore is the capital of Punjab province and is Pakistan's artistic, literary and cultural heart. In the eighties, It did not have large and luxurious hotels to accommodate big-scale international events. So the organising committee, with its chairman, Senator Javed Jabbar, put on their thinking hats to plan for an "out-of-the box" solution. They had creatively overridden this drawback by using their unique culture, beautiful heritage sites and historic places as their highlights, venues and backdrops of the events. This in itself, demonstrated a very powerful way of creative advertising and putting the beauty of Lahore on the world map. Throughout the days of the Congress, the delegates had a marvellous time in all the different settings, gaining an insight into Pakistani culture and heritage as well as enjoying a true taste of Pakistan's best cuisines. If not for this out-of-the box arrangement, the events would just be held in the usual function rooms in the hotels. For example, the Congress held its grand opening reception at Lahore's world famous Shalimar Gardens, a most befitting venue to showcase the importance of the Congress on the national level. We were so impressed with the beauty of the Shalimar Gardens…. its wondrous landscapes, and exquisite architecture. The trees in the garden were well planted in perfect symmetry with hundreds of fountains and they all cast beautiful reflections on the flowing waters. A sense of harmony and joy came over me in the midst of this paradise garden.

         On another day, we were treated to a fabulous fashion show called "Costumes Through the Ages" in the hotel. The elegance, unique identity and evolution of Pakistani attires were spectacularly presented right in front of our eyes. This is another fine example of how the organiser brought in their creativity in enriching the events of the Congress. The show, reflecting the high standard of Pakistani fashion, was very well choreographed.  Coupled with melodic music and rhythmic pulsations of tablas, it was simply breathtaking. Shalwar and Kameez are Pakistani national attires. The Shalwar is a pair of loose trousers with wide tops and narrow to a cuffed bottom. The Kameez is a long shirt with open side seams below the waist-line. The Pakistani women always wear them with a flowing scarf that makes them look very graceful. 

                                   

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        The grand finale of the Congress was held at the splendid, historic Lahore Fort where all delegates participated in the gigantic firework display, a show which I felt, very well symbolised the theme of the Congress, "Together Towards Tomorrow". It was a strong call to share expertise and collaborate hand-in-hand to light up a bright future. Both Shalimar Gardens and Lahore Fort are UNESCO world heritage sites and they added so much charm to the events. 

         There were a few other things that I found particularly interesting at the Congress. At one of the talks after a sumptuous lunch, the audience was sleepy.  The speaker for that session decided to do something about it. Slowly, he took off his tie... his coat. Then all of a sudden, with all of his might, he threw them off the stage. The audience had a great shock. The next moment, we were wide awake. The result was achieved. Creative people dare do what they think will work.

       The next enjoyable thing was about our outing for food. One night, our Singapore delegates, having had enough curry meals for a few days, yearned for Chinese food, so we decided to dine out. Incidentally, we were all from different media corporations in Singapore. Though back home we might have been rivals, in Lahore, we were like old friends. There were eight of us. I, a lady, took the front seat, and all the seven men were packed like sardines in the back of the car. They were pushing, yelling and joking at each other. The car was so packed that only their heads could move. We finally found a Pakistani restaurant serving Chinese food. 

                                   

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Surprisingly, there were already some foreign AdAsia delegates ahead of us and eating out there. We greeted each other with understanding smiles. The Pakistani waiters who attended to us spoke very fluent Mandarin and recommended what to order. That night, we had tasted the  most authentic Szechuan cuisine in Lahore, the Kung Pao chicken and the "hot-and-sour" soup. The chicken was crispy tender with the perfect combination of salty, sweet and strong, numbing spicy flavours. The soup was loaded with mushrooms, silky eggs, bean curd…. utterly hot and delicious. We were very surprised that we could savour such a superb and mouth-watering Northern Chinese food in Lahore. All of us were happy and deeply satisfied. We, being competitors, probably would not have had such a jovious time together like this in Singapore.

       On another afternoon, we went round some of the places of interest to have a glimpse of Lahore City. The splendid mosques of beautiful architecture, the historic Walled City, the Food Street where the food fare was so inviting. Oh, I loved the chicken tikka  and naan bread. In the Narrow Paths, many artisans were making instruments, flutes, dhol and tablas. A random fruit seller offered me a Pakistani orange as I passed by a marketplace. What an unforgettable bite of Pakistani juicy sweetness! Wherever I was, I felt the warm welcome of the people greeting me with  "As-salamu alaykum", which means "Peace be upon you".  Children ran forward to touch my skirt, wanting to have a photo with me. Their lovely eyes and happy smiles appeared in the lens of my camera. What a joy to capture this essence of friendly humanity and the little touches of life. 

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       The last day of our stay, many delegates flew to tour Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan.  A Korean lady and a group of Japanese delegates went to Taxila, a celebrated historical place which is located in the Rawalpindi district of Punjab province. They all wanted to see the archaeological sites of Greek civilization and the ruins of Buddhist monasteries and stupas. Out of interest, I joined them. Taxila is an ancient city that has gone through many changes of rulers, culture and religion.  It was well-known for its rich archaeological sites and Gandharan Art -  a religious art form showing a strong fusion of influence from Greece, Rome and India.  Taxila was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1980.

       We had only half a day for sightseeing and could only visit three places. 

On arrival, the guide took us first to Bhir Mound (600 - 200 BC) where we could see the ruins of what was built  during the rule of Alexander the Great. The second site we visited was Jaulian Monastery, a famous ruins site of early Buddhist civilization and centre of higher learning. It was built atop a mountain  and we had to climb up many steps. It was a spectacular and panoramic view of the sky and mountains when we reached the top. The guide explained to us that there were two main parts of these ruins. One was the central stupa surrounded by many small ones. The stupas were all engraved with beautiful carvings of Buddha. The other part was the Monastery and the University of Jaulian which was believed to be one of the world's first universities and where thousands of students came from afar to study. There were classrooms, assembly hall, living quarters, kitchen, stone mills, and a large pool for washing and for reflecting the sun and the moon. The guide also showed us some footprints of Buddha. I removed my shoes and respectfully put my foot on the footprint to take a photo. And I felt so miserably small in the footprint of the Enlightened One. Looking at these historical treasures, I could not help but marvel at the advancement of these people in the second century BC.

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        Our last visit was to the acclaimed Taxila Museum which displayed various sections of rich archaeological finds of Taxila.  The Pakistan Government had well preserved these treasures evacuated from the ruins. The Museum also gave us an insight into Gandharan Art. There are many stupas, Buddha's statues in various positions , sculptures depicting Buddha's life story as well as many well-carved stucco heads, big and small . As Taxila is renowned for its stoneworks, most of the carvings are impressive and unique. I wanted to take a  beautiful picture of a well-carved meditating Buddha statue, but each time I pressed the shutter button, it became deadlocked. The Korean lady whom I went with advised me to say a "seek permission" prayer. There was no harm trying, with courtesy, I did. And to my surprise, I finally got the picture I wanted.

      In hindsight, my visit to Taxila was brief and what I saw was very little. Nevertheless, it is still a valuable experience to have  glimpsed  this brilliant chapter of human civilization and glory of the past. 

       On our return flight from Lahore to Singapore, we encountered something peculiar.  There was a weird-looking man amidst the passengers, and his behaviour caught our attention. He wore a long grey gown with unkempt hair and beard and held a bottle in his hand. He stood in the aisle at the back, most of the time and spoke endlessly  about some religious stories. I could hear him clearly even though I was seated in front. Our flight needed to stop in Kuala Lumpur first, before flying back to Singapore. 

                                  

                                 

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After the stop-over in Kuala Lumpur, all passengers returned back to the flight. But, one passenger was missing. The weird-looking man had disappeared and one extra luggage was unclaimed. For safety reasons, the airline conducted a thorough check on the plane. And in the process of checking, it was discovered that one of the aircraft's doors was faulty and the plane could not take off. A replacement flight flew us back to Singapore the next day. In the plane that day, we heard  that there was an aircraft disaster that involved another plane with a faulty door. Gosh! The news sent chills down my spine. We could possibly have met the same fate yesterday if not because of the disappearance of the "weird- looking" man. Who was " he"? None of us knew. But we knew he had a hand in ensuring our lives were safe and our journey ended on a happy note. 

        I am grateful that I had this trip to Lahore and the visit to Taxila was an unexpected bonus. I took home a set of beautiful Pakistani national dress, Shalwar Kameez, with a scarf, two lovely flutes, my love for the tabla, but the most valuable thing I took back from this visit

 is the lesson that I have learned about creativity. When we have a disadvantage,  we can always look at it from

a different angle and turn it into an advantage by explorin

g our creativity, using our creativity to go beyond our limits.

Senior stories Horace Wee

 MUSIC PEOPLE AND PLACES

by Horace Wee

A child born in the turbulence of a World War and the Japanese invasion of South East Asia, time may have dimmed many memories. Yet I still recall short vivid flashes of vision and sound from those early years. Rose syrup sunsets at Port Dickson when my father perched me on the veranda railings and my aunt rattling a bamboo pole to chase away a musang (wild cat). The rumbling sounds of British military vehicles on a road in Kuala Lumpur/Malaya after the Japanese surrender and the long hot trip by rail to Singapore.

Returning to the British Colonial administration of Singapore, streets were rather chaotic .Vendors with push carts, make shift stalls or just baskets were everywhere. The music trends were still reminiscent of the pre-war era. Crooners such as Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Dean Martin, Eddie Fisher, cowboy singers Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Rosemary Clooney, Patti Page, Doris Day, Patsy Kline, Loretta Lynn, the Andrew Sisters and many others were popular with songs like Cruising Down The River, Truly Truly Fair, Doggie in the Window. The professional musicians who had joined the Japanese Syonan orchestra returned to playing at live entertainment venues. For cheap entertainment, the public flocked to amusement parks like The Great, Happy and New World where one would find stalls selling everything from household goods, snacks, and simple games such as an air rifle shooting gallery. Occasional trade fairs offered more choices. At times, a female vocalist singing in Mandarin would permeate through the crowd noise. In shopping areas such as Rochore, South Bridge Roads and Chinatown, from dingy shops, one would also hear the sounds of the Rediffusion cable radio network blaring Western and Chinese music interspersed with simple advertising jingles.

On warm evenings, with the scent of the sea along the East Coast road, many would head for the seaside at the end of Bedok. Rows of carts lit by hurricane and carbide lamps would be serving local delicacies like “rojak”(local shrimp paste tossed salad ) and toasted cuttlefish served with spicy sauces.

The Expatriates

The islands ambience at the shipping crossroads was certainly a lure for many visitors to stay.

Slava Tairoff a White Russian, came via Peking China. He was the bandleader at then exclusive British Tanglin Club as well as the President of The Musicians Union in 50/60s. After many years he left for Australia.

Louis Moyser a Hungarian, played in the Radio Malaya/Singapore orchestra and gave violin lessons at his flat in Eu Court. So did Dirk Kalf a violinist and Dutchman who lived at then distant Serangoon Gardens.

Dan Hopkins was a drummer who also worked in the Radio Orchestra

Filipinos also came and many were prominent in music circles. 

The Anciano family formed The Far Eastern School of Music successfully teaching many students. There was also Fred Libio, Villanuevas, Buenaventuras, Bacsafras, Lachicas and music powerhouse the Solianos. Others such as trumpeter Olympio Galauras family were apparently from a visiting circus.

 

The guitarist Ike Isaacs worked here and subsequently left for London/Europe where he worked as a studio musician. He spent his latter years playing with jazz violinist Stephan Grappellis band.

Dick Abel a guitarist of Dutch descent hailing from Indonesia led the Radio Malaya (Singapore) Orchestra after the previous leader Cor Rife. He moved to London, after which Gus Steyn a pianist and Dutchman who also came via Indonesia succeeded Dick Abel as the orchestra leader. 

Gus Steyn moved to Kuala Lumpur and led the Radio Malaysia Orchestra for a number of years before passing away. Ahmad Jaafar took over the leaders baton until his retirement.

Caesar Alano a Filipino and Les Weddell from Britain both held successively the trombone chair in the radio orchestra. Caesar left for Thailand and Les returned to the UK. 

Johari Salleh a local trumpet player eventually became the music director for Radio Television Malaysia.

Trudy Connor and Eddie Gomez were a piano playing couple popular at hotel lounges.

Many local musicians and performers made their mark.

Violinists Susheela Devi, Clara Verghese, Alphonso Anthony, Julai Tan, pianists Theresa Filmer (nee Khoo), Charles Lazaroo and trumpeter Tony Castillo were among them.

Singers Saloma, Julie Sudiro, Kartina Dahari, Peggy Tan and Ahmad Daud were popular during those days.

MUSIC INDUSTRY

Professional musicians supplemented their income giving formal music lessons. Victor Dogget was a successful piano teacher as well as a music critic. Madeline Aitken had an almost larger than life reputation for successful results with piano examination candidates. For violin lessons its unforgettable to mention Goh Soon Tio who discovered the Chinatown violin prodigy Lee Pan Hon.

Music shops were limited, mostly dealing in pianos with additional items like violins. Keller Piano, Nang Heng, Petrof Piano and Season Music were some, with shops like Swee Lee at the Capitol Building and TMA at High Street expanding eventually to sell wind instruments, guitars, drums and other related items.

Music material was largely limited to books, the radio and records, with an occasional recital from a renowned classical performer like violinist Isaac Stern and popular performers such as Johnny Ray, The Platters, Cliff Richard with the Shadows and even the Rolling Stones in the early 60s.

Musicians would tune to the Voice of America with Willis Conover on shortwave radios to listen to the latest trends in jazz. Many small shops, piano stores and even the night street markets sold records. The dedicated record shops would have been Kwang Sia, Multichord with Supreme and The Attic coming later.

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT

Live performances were everywhere, catering for the diverse races. Chinese Opera (Wayangs) on flimsy stages for many Chinese dialects, Malay dancing (Ronggeng), cabarets, bars, hotels, night clubs from upscale to rougher ones offered many choices to listen, drink or dance to favourite music. Operations were until midnight with an extension to 1am on Saturdays or on the eve of a public holiday. 

With the building of international hotels in the 60s, hotel lounges became very popular. The more formal concerts were held at The Victoria Memorial Hall and Theatre. International performances like the Holiday On Ice, would have been staged at the Happy World Stadium and occasionally some at the Badminton Hall. When the National Stadium was built at the foot of Fort Canning, visiting performers like Shirley Bassey, The Yardbirds, Hollies and local variety shows with artists like Rita & Sakura performed there.

At the beginning of Orchard Road was the Golden Venus located at the basement of the Orchard Hotel. This was where everyone would be directed to if they wanted an evening of jazz music. Pianist Ernesto Daroya held court as the resident bandleader of a quartet together with vocalists Mariam and Ronnie Ong. Officially it was the hotel bar and dining room that became a night club after 10pm.Visiting musicians would sit in during those nights and at times if one was lucky, some famous jazz musician would be seen jamming with the band. Musicians from the British Royal Air Force band would also participate in these sessions. There was Johnny Hicks, Chris Ede on drums and Roger on tenor saxophone. Weekends could turn out chaotic as members of the British Forces would populate the club. Drunken brawls at times interrupted the evenings. Sunday afternoons were jazz jam sessions until the management found by the mid 60s, pop music bands were more lucrative.

Across the road was The Barberella at the Ming Court hotel. Imported bands like the Pitiful Souls, Black Fire Prophecy would share the spot light with local bands such as The Trailers and my own group Crossroads. Along the adjacent Orange Grove Road is the Shangri-La Hotel. A five star hotel that boasted a supper club The Tiara at the top floor, a bar and a club at the basement called the Lost Horizon. The Xperiment and Western Union, popular local bands, would perform there and at the Peacock bar, famous Singapore cowboy Matthew Tan would entertain country music fans. Francis Yip from Hong Kong, Pilita Corrales from the Philippines and a variety of international acts performed at the Tiara. The multi purpose ballrooms would also present musical shows such as The Three Degrees and Trini Lopez.

A short walk from the Barberella, was the Singapura Hotel where a top notch Filipino band led by Romy Posadas featuring his wife Rita on vocals would be performing. The dining room and club would on occasion host shows such as The Ginny Tiu Sisters fresh from their movie It Happened At The Worlds Fair with Elvis Presley. At the Pebbles piano bar, the couple of Trudy Connor and Eddie Gomez would entertain. Into the early seventies, local band Tania would become famous, appearing nightly in full painted faces. The adjacent Hilton hotel offered live music at the Spot Spot as well as lounge acts. Across the road was the non-descript Ban Chuan bar, where many of my long departed friends spent their evenings getting drunk.

The Malaysia Hotel, closer to the Botanic Gardens had its own club called The Pub. At its peak, Heather and the Thunderbirds was its resident band. At the junction of Orchard and Scotts Road stands the Lido cinema. Notable because there was a popular restaurant and night club on the upper floor called the Rose DOr. The local band Flamingos gained their popularity with performances at this club. A weekly night market (Pasar Malam) would line the foot path from the Singapura Hotel to this junction, offering assorted wares, snacks, records, cassettes, toys and everything else that could be sold.

Turning the corner to Scotts Road were still more offerings. The Tropicana building contained a restaurant and a supper club featuring nightly shows, a pop music club The Rasa Sayang that featured renowned bands like Eddie Katindig from the Philippines and even ones from Italy. Adjacent was the Bistro, with a horse shoe shaped bar counter that featured a solo performer in the middle. Permanent fixtures were Filipino singer/guitarist Tony Mihares and local musician Ernesto Valerio. At the International building behind, the Ginnivy coffee house featured country music from performers like Don Nonis.

The British Tanglin Club provided nightly music while the American Club had a quartet on weekends led by Michael Tseng at the piano. The Goodwood Park Hotel at the opposite side would occasionally present special shows. A notable evening was one by Millie Small when she had her hit song My Boy Lollipop as well as performances by world renowned jazz clarinettist Tony Scott and the appearance of legendary trumpeter Louis Armstrong. The long time resident band there was led by Lionel Buenaventura. Further in, the Carriage Bar at the York Hotel was where the later edition of the band The Thunderbirds entertained nightly to loyal local fans. 

 A short walk away, the Hyatt Hotel provided live entertainment and included Romy Katindigs band (Eddies brother) as well as intimate female vocalist and pianist duos at its lounge. Back to Orchard Road, the Princes Hotel Garni had the popular songstress Julie Sudiro with the band led by saxophonist John Lee. It was renamed the Pink Pussy Cat in the 70s and featured Albert Venturas funk band. At the Mandarin Hotel, perhaps most memorable must have been the number of years the talented pianist Jimmy Chan played solo at the hotel lounge entertaining countless guests. The Cockpit hotel, tucked away above Orchard and Clemenceau Avenue featured a quartet led by the pianist Sam Gan and close by was Bill Baileys Coconut Grove. Legend has it that this was the inspiration for the song Bill Bailey Wont You Please Come Home.

In the heart of town, on the rooftop at the Adelphi hotel was a combo band led by husband and wife Winston and Theresa Filmer with the Neptune Theatre and Night Club not too far away. Regally standing along Beach Road, The Raffles Hotel still exudes its presence today. This grand dame was the favourite place for the expatriates in Singapore and the band in attendance was led by the legendary musician Gerry Soliano.

There must have been demand for open air venues as there were a string of places with music and dancing all along the east coast. The rooftop at the Ambassador Hotel, Sea View Hotel where you actually saw the seaside, Ocean Park Hotel, Tanjong Inn, Penang Way. Along the west side of the island, the popular WestPoint complete with the strains of the Hawaiian steel guitar. It certainly captured an islanders mood.

Bars such as Tobys Paradise at Tanjong Pagar catered for a rougher clientele. Many young musicians paid their musical dues there.

An eclectic mix of establishments ranged from a Malay dance venue {Ronggeng) that was behind the Roxy cinema, to a bevy of female Mandarin vocalists at The Singapore Hotel in Geylang. Chinese restaurants such as the Peking and Cathay restaurants with bandleaders Fred Libio and Jose Daroya respectively, would accompany Mandarin singers to entertain lunch and dinner diners. Some, like The Air View and Southern Cabaret in the Chinatown area, offered lunch time music in addition to their nightly operations. The cabarets at the Great, Happy and New Worlds, were dance halls at night where tickets were sold for a dance with the lady hostesses. These had slightly larger bands and were led by Cecil Wilson and Tony Leong.

Late night owls extended their enjoyment heading out to the airport lounge at Paya Lebar, as it closed late at 1or 3am. The band included Erwin Dragon, Nick Singh, Winston Nerva, Freddy Dias and Jerry Teng. Others would head for a late supper at Bugis street, a ramshackle run down area with food and drink stalls. Entertainment was from the transvestites parading and the frantic scurrying of large gutter rats. It was a favourite place for members of the British Forces to end the night. 

For many part time musicians, there was always the opportunity for additional income. It was almost a prerequisite to engage bands for birthday parties, anniversaries and weddings. Function halls at Fraser & Neave and the Police Training School were regularly booked for company and event functions. During the year end festive season, the Victoria Memorial Hall, Singapore Cricket and Recreation Clubs at the Padang hosted special evenings. Similarly, private clubs like the Island Country Club, Singapore Swimming Club had season festivities. The British forces stationed here were another source that required bands during weekends and special occasions. From the Fairey Point for officers and the RAF NCO clubs at Changi to the MacGregor RAF club at Tengah, with Seletar, the British Military Hospital and The Pengaran Barracks in Johore/Malaya as well, there was always a choice for a weekend musician.

The Golden Star Night Club at Dublin Road (Later Shindig), Shamrock, Baron, El Amigo Night Club, The Kelong at the Cathay, Talk of the Town, Neptune Theatre and even The Singapore Lady a pseudo riverboat appeared to match the pace of the changing 70s. Upstart Ginos Au Go-Go pioneered the concept of the discotheque. In the mornings, the Early Bird Show at the Odeon Cinema with Larry Lai and Tan Swee Leong always attracted a large audience eager for weekend entertainment.

OTHER FORMS OF WORK IN THE MUSIC PROFESSION

The general public thinks, musicians earn their living from playing only at live music venues. Music recordings, arrangements, orchestral scores, music copyists, concerts, television, film, video production and teaching all require musical services.

In the 50 and 60s, Singapore was the centre of the Malay film and music industry with activities at Cathay Keris at East Coast Road and Shaw Brothers at Jalan Ampas/Balestier Road. These film productions made stars of P. Ramlee, Saloma and trumpet boy wonder Tony Castillo. 

AND THE MUSIC DIED

Many have wondered today if the musical excitement and activity of the early days could ever be rekindled. Besides the changing times from an era that had only limited choices of entertainment, a number of events caused the downward trend.

A crackdown with raids by the authorities in the 70s on night spots as being havens for youths and use of drugs, a 100% increase in entertainment tax for live entertainment venues, cancellation of many liquor licences, a club dress code of only national dress or coat and tie, a ban on long haired males rang the death knell and closure of many clubs. A policy that viewed the current Western youth values as decadent. As restrictions eased a few years later, the discothèque (disco) and the opening of karaoke in public places offered a lower cost alternative for musical entertainment, thus ending many a musicians livelihood. In the mid 80s with a financial recession, hotels requested that a ruling requiring the equivalent number of local musicians to be hired for every foreign band imported to be waived. This brought in a flood of cheap Filipino bands who were more entertainers than musicians. The one for one policy of importing foreign musicians was intended to allow only entry of high calibre bands in order to encourage the raising of standards as well as protect the local music industry. This ruling was never reinstated.

Malaysia in the 80s implemented a policy that all music including advertising jingles for use in the countrys broadcast and other related outlets had to be produced in Malaysia by Malaysians. This largely affected the advertising and film industry in Singapore with the subsequent loss of the Malay film and music industry to Malaysia.

Todays easily available multimedia choices for entertainment, does not encourage music as a profession. Yet many persevere. Like the cogs of a gear to keep turning, there has to be an industry that demands the services of musicians, bands and performers. Exposure and promotion from television, radio, live events, recordings, the internet and the generation of a regular audience following are all a part of this. Live music continues to thrive in the world, coexisting and embracing technology. In the face of declining sales of recordings, many musicians and performers have found touring and promoting their recordings at concerts a lucrative option. It seems with technological advances, its back to performing live once more. Just like in the old days.