Tortoise Territory: June 2009

Wooot!!! The hottest place in town could not get anymore hotter when urbanscapes is on. Its an all day arts carnival everything you love in one place. Everything includes theater, music, dance, rock bands, handmade bags, cheep Cd's, bargain book and the list goes on. You just cant afford to miss this event.

Yes, there was alot of drama getting here, since my partners in crime was honeymooning in Pangkor...*oops* haha, so getting tickets got put on hold till few days before show day. However, I knew that it would be a bummer if we were unable to get tickets so I begged my mum to drive up to KLPac to get tickets...*not to mention to buy tickets for Lets go mamak...you know who you are*.

Heehee, preparation for Urbanscapes started few days before. I made a schedule for myself for the event so that I know where to be at what time. The night before, all my supplies were tucked away in my Kipling bag. I slept at 2am to get everything done...i woke up in the morning at 7.30. So off to the commuter it is...we took the 11.16 train, which came like 3 minutes early, but then we still wasn't able to catch the 1st ride to KLPac which was at 11.45. We reached Sentul station slightly before 12pm, then again we still need to wait for the next shuttle which was in 25 minutes. SO, we waited in the sun, till the shuttle came.

Waitin' in the hot sun....

20 minutes later....

25 minutes later....still waiting...

Finally....Air Connnn....

Other guests studying the shuttle schedule...

The first thing when I got there, I quickly headed for some shade and the air con place...It was HOT, and I needed to get Mamak tickets. In the main building I saw a long lost friend in high school. I heard in the newspaper that she has her own line of stuff, wasn't sure what was it but the ones on sale was huge stuffed toys that were key chains. You will not loose the keys since they were huge. By the way, don't mess with her...she's the principals daughter...hahaha.

Nabila on the left and her friend...cool soft toy designers...soon to be English teachers...

Some interesting artwork...the the holes, there are live fishes...

Art in Action, Slik screen painting...customize your t-shirts....XP all in KLPac main building...

After quickly getting mamak tickets, I rushed to the street performers area. This is where the 1st performance on my list were playing. They were like the stomp that you could watch in U-tube, but in a smaller scale. Yep, they have much to grow on like all musicians.

KL stompers version of Brooms

Since we bypass the ticket counter on the way in, we didn't get the wrist band that allowed us to access to all areas, we had to go back to the front and get it so along the way we went shopping at the bazaar there. A lot of indie stuff, Syikin's favorite market place I assume. I kinda like it too, you can get a jacket for like RM5...How cool is that?? there are pins, bags, paintings, belts, t-shirts, OMG!!! if had time and money, this is like the coolest place to go shopping.

We rushed back to the street performance area, to see what the people from Theater for Young people (T4YP) has install for us today. Their performance was an interactive theater, whereby the title of their performance was "secrets". So, what we do is there was this dude, Mr. Dominatrix passing around paper and a jar to place all the audiences secrets and the performers will act out the secret. Totally hilarious. Two teams of performers, in 10 seconds they had to pick a secret, and act it out. Secrets are like "I didn't shower for the whole day of yesterday" then they would act it out. Well there was more secrets, that well might not be appropriate for this blog...but I'll totally share in other mediums...heehee....

Mr. Dominatrix

MC reading out the secrets....a lot of em...seriously...

The cast for T4YP

Secret: "I hated the annoying person nagging for 2 hours while I was driving"

Secret: "I sniff underwear before I go to bed"

After the show, I head for a quick pray break. The other girls went to watch freedom fest at indicine. The movie was about Lena Joy, apparently the girls sat for quite some time and felt it too heavy for them so they had left the screening before I get the chance to join them inside the screening. Then, we did what we did best, camwhoring...weee

Haha, photoshots done and our journey continues with live fusion music and 2 group collaboration at cinescapes, pentas 2 KLPac. Tugu drummers with rhythm in bronze. The one that Prof Tan did a composition. I was searching for their CD but I think they didn't brought one on that day...*sigh*. The music was great, but all of us felt it was too short. They should play more pieces...heehee, next time then....

Tugu drummers....

Rhythm in Bronze....

See the one Kenong there, The guy was banging it for the whole of an entire piece that I seriously thought the kenong was going to break....

After the show, we were caught by the ideas people, heehee, they were such interesting people.... Ask Wanie and Jojo for details...

I dunno how to explain this....haha

I dunno what they were caught into but it was funny...well then we headed for the Box downstairs where we listened to The Sofa Sessions. Before that there was this great guitarist, by the name Zalilah lee I think. Then we listened to the Sofa Sessions...a duo..and totally funny music. Their first track was "Lagu Sunat" which depicts the time when a boy get circumstance...OMG, the song was really funny.

Zalilah Lee

The Sofa Sessions....Tok Mudim dah datang...hehe

After that, on our schedule was Pop Shuvit at the X lawn, so I took another pray break and they went straight into the rock concert...it totally hurt my ears and I felt my heart jump out of my rib cage...but the music was awesome

Still at the lawn...was Yuna...Love her music, Sounds a bit like Fiona Apple...

After that it was almost six and I had to rush to KLCC. Another concert awaits me, and I had to retune my mind to a classical concert after the hard rock concert...anyhow, before I went back I managed to listened to the Zouk's dj playing...well because this is the closes you can get into zouk locally for me and not to get caught with JAIS you know...*badly needs live electronic music* then off to KLCC...

Zouk dj booth....

I sooo enjoyed the day, I wished I could stay till the morning but things come and I'm soo looking forward to the next one. It was a very long day and I dread to wake up the next morning of the fatigue of yesterday...Mamak is coming your way as well as the HSBC classics...so I hope to attend them soon...and tomorrow is my registration...I should be sleeping now, okok off to bed...

Proudly almost swiping clean the awards in the music section in the Boh Cameronian arts awards Inner Voices production is presenting Let's go Mamak....Again at KLPac on the 3-5 july 2009. The music concert portrays elements of music from various ethnical music in Malaysia which truly shows the colors of the society interacting and living together in harmony. On June 21th 3.00pm, I went to the making of Lets go Mamak...Again at The Soka Gakkai Malaysia. What started for only ethnic instruments playing chrismas tunes, turned into a big musical performance. For the full details on the history, check out the website.

Weee...after making a simple call to SGM, I've secured a ticket to the performance. This will give me a head start on the real performance in July. When I went to the Boh arts awards, was really keen to go the performance and when they announced to have the performance again i was excited...and yes, the making was really up to my expectation. The music was weaved with modern instruments playing modern chords with the sounds of the tabla, guzheng, and the gereteh (caklempong). Other instruments include rebana, the Indian flute and Chinese drum. The mamak idea came from our mamak culture as a melting pot to exchange ideas, hang out, and watch football...hahaha.

The violin rawks!!! man he can play...*yes I need to pick up my violin again and....PRACTICE*

The music introduces the sound of the instruments, like in the first piece, the opening starts like one instrument after another somewhat digesting different sounds and texture. The music grows to a bigger texture and sound and having the overall music sounds complex but yet beautiful. During the lecture part of the performance, Julian, the saxophone player explains, some part of the music also depict influences of people that have influences from outside such as a piece called Mamak with Tiffany tells the tale of a simple girl going overseas and talking about her experience culturally in both places. Its quite fascinating to hear the music and how the story corresponds to the music. Your imaginations does fly...heehee.

My favorite piece was Drum Talk, because the common ground was the drums, and how they communicate with each other. It looks like we as Malaysian are so different and yet so the same. You just gotta experience it to understand.