SAF CENTRAL BAND WOWS AT SWEDEN INT'L TATTOO

Imagine that. The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Central Band being front-page news in the city of Malmo, Sweden. The band made the headlines over the weekend for both its strong performance and the inclusion of a Swedish song in their repertoire.

Playing to a full house of 6,500 at the Sweden International Tattoo, the band serenaded the audience with the popular Swedish folk song Vem Kan Segla (Forutan Vind). Loosely translated as "Who can sail (without wind)", the haunting song speaks of friendship and the pain of saying goodbye. The tattoo was held in Malmo Arena on 25 and 26 May.

"I couldn't tell that the band was not Swedish! Perfect! It was very nice of the band to make the effort to learn our hymn." said Mr Bo Criwall, a retired soldier who was among the audience.

The biennial Sweden International Tattoo was being held for the second time, with over 600 performers, 10 bands and two performing groups from countries such as France, Norway and the United Kingdom.

Not wanting to disappoint, the SAF Central Band had started preparing in January. "We wanted to show the multicultural side of Singapore and to connect with the foreign audience," said Military Expert (ME) 1 Ang Yi Xiang, who choreographed the show. He plays the saxophone in the band.

The band had even sought the help of a Swedish church in Singapore to perfect their performance of the Swedish number. Said ME1 Sanche Jagatheesan: "We found the church through the Swedish embassy in Singapore and they were kind enough to teach us how to sing the song properly." Though a string bassist, ME1 Sanche plays the bass drum when the band is on parade.

"Without them, we would have taken a much longer time to figure out how to pronounce some of the lyrics!"

Their efforts paid off. Each time the band played the song, the audience would turn quiet and exchange puzzled looks, before breaking into smiles and singing along.

Among those who sang along were husband and wife Mr Tobias Gullerskedt and Ms Ann-marie Jensson. "The Singapore band was really good and we enjoyed the performance."

Drum major ME1 Muhammad Hafis Bin Amron mesmerised the audience with his mace-spinning during the band's performances. Everyone held their breaths each time he spun the mace high into the air before catching it. The drum major commands the band when it is marching and directs the movement of the band with his mace.

The band also executed razor-sharp drills as they moved into different formations while playing familiar Singapore tunes such as "We are Singapore". Their repertoire also included Chinese, Malay and Indian tunes.

Six dancers from the SAF Music and Drama Company (MDC), who were part of the SAF Central Band's performance, drew much applause too with their energetic somersaults and dances.

Said the tattoo's Chief Executive and Producer, Jan-Ingmar Landgren: "Singapore has one of Asia's best military bands... We decided to invite the SAF Band after we saw them in Germany two years ago."

The SAF Central Band musicians and MDC artistes were also encouraged when Chief Guards Officer Colonel (COL) Desmond Tan dropped by backstage on 25 May. Speaking to the performers, he told them that the band was putting up a top-notch performance.

COL Tan was in Sweden to meet the organisers of the tattoo and to learn about what goes into organising such events as the SAF is looking into holding its own military tattoo.