新“神话”

　　最近电视上看到两部新的神话电视连续剧，因为无法接受，所以想趁此机会发表个人看法。刚重播完的《宝莲灯》和正在播映的《红孩儿》虽然取材自中国神话故事，但故事情节与原来的故事已经有一段距离。虽然制作单位可能是想给传统故事改头换面以适应新时代、新口味及新观众，但我觉得把原著改变得太多不仅与原著格格不入，还可能误导观众，让他们以为“新版本”的故事才是正确的。
　　我虽然对《宝莲灯》不太熟悉，但我知道猪八戒是不会留长发然后把它们编成辨子的。一个海龙王的儿子也不可能会拜猪八戒为师，学他使九齿钉耙。故事更不会有什么树精、女侠在晨香身边和他一起斗二郎神。王母娘娘更不会与二郎神向勾结，想把晨香打垮。红孩儿仅出现在《西游记》里的其中一章。孙悟空师徒四人与红孩儿交手数次，因无法灭他的三昧真火而结果劳驾观世音菩萨来解救他们，并把红孩儿收为善才童子。牛魔王的确曾与狐狸精在一起，但绝对没有什么三头龙或牛妈妈，更没有什么人类会和红孩儿深交。
　　一旦这类新型的电视连续剧深入民心，未读过原著的人们可是要把电视剧当作是原版来理解，这不但不能传承神话传说，还可能破坏故事的原本意义及艺术美感。若这真的发生，我想再多的华文老师也都不够用了……
　　就不知接下来会改编哪一本神话故事……

Transformation Apprehension

No, I'm not talking about fears of change here, but about things that have similar labels but different packaging or content.
When Transformers movie came out some time back, I was apprehensive about the very different looks the robots had compared to what I knew about them when I was still a little kid. Granted, the movie was adapted and modified to suit the current audience and some designs needed to keep up with the times, but having a different appearance from the 1980s meant that people who knew Transformers cartoons back then would not exactly identify with them now. I liked the Transformers movie, the smoothness of the transformation, but the slight changes meant that my mind would process them as what they are now, not those that I used to know.

When the sequel to Transformers came out, I was apprehensive, not knowing if I should even watch. After some consideration, I decided to watch with my colleagues and treated it as though it were a new movie which is totally unrelated to the cartoons I held so dear in the past. The sequel is more action-packed, and boost a lot more robots, many of which defy the law of physics in their body proportion. The sequel also has a lot more and better sense of humour, but deep inside, I know very well that I will never see the cartoons in reel screen anymore, because the movie version will be etched into the minds of audiences who have not known the cartoons well. The movie version is here to stay, and the cartoons will forever remain what they were. For someone who can be sentimental to familiar things, this can be a little sad, because the cartoons which my generation was crazy about would never appear in anywhere else save youtube and DVDs, remaining forever a past memory.

There are many other things which have seen changes throughout the years, comics, table-top gaming figurines, role-playing games, to adapt to the times and draw in new crowds. True, they might have been successful in drawing in the new generation, but in the process lose some of the old guards. For lack of a better analogy, think of a movie showing new young teen Japanese actors dressed in 5 suits, a lot of CGI (computer generated images), 5 totally different animals which combined into a Devastator look-alike and call it Power Rangers. Think the teens now would also feel that it is not what they would be able to identify with too.

Call me old-fashioned or stubborn, but accepting a new look or new content is totally different from identifying the new packaging with the older version. They are simply not the same anymore.

SYF Instrumental Ensemble Presentation II

Having watched the SYF Instrumental Ensemble Presentation before, I know I wouldn't want to miss this year's Ethnic Instrumental Ensemble Presentation.

1) Hougang Sec - Gamelan
Maya Sewu
Ambangan

It is a lot milder/mellow than the gamelan ensemble I heard 2 years back. Not too extraordinary, and definitely they did not achieve the mesmerising effect that the previous presentation had.

2) Raffles' Girls School - Indian Orchestra
Bo Shambo
Raagamaalika

Both songs, especially the first one, had a fast tempo and the sound of the strings always have the exotic feel to them.

3) CHIJ St Theresea's Convent - Anklung & Kulintang
Gamelanesque
Mamma Mia

The conductor & the ensemble left an impression on me as they were visibly performing with the melody in mind... meaning I can see them waving, moving, dancing to the rhythm.

4) Tanglin Sec - Guzheng
映山红
陆游与唐婉

This was quite an action-packed presentation as the female guzheng players were constantly making broad sweeps across the strings and you almost felt that there would be darts and blades flying out of the instrument, killing the audience in the recital studio.

5) Damai Sec - Guzheng
天山玫瑰
青藏高原

The 1st piece had the exotic melody of the minority tribes in western China, and was quite enjoyable. The 2nd piece felt more like 30+ guzhengs playing the same song in different octaves. It was also a rare occasion for me to see the modified guzhengs which enabled the ensemble to play both notes of higher and lower octaves.

6) Siglap Sec - Anklung & Kulintang
Keroncong Untuk Ana
Danny Boy

The conductor was not unfamiliar to me, and the music was pleasant as well. I was also able to see the bass kulintang, complete with the 3 lower notes which were built on a separate mobile rack as it was seldom used. After listening to this ensemble's presentation, I would be keen to see the conductor's gamelan ensemble as well.

SYF Instrumental Ensemble Presentation I

Attended the 1st night of the IE presentation for SYF 2009. As usual, there are some which I found quite refreshing or impressive and some which I didn't quite enjoy. I must stress that my comments have more to do with the "feel" of the music than the standards of the performing groups since I'm not a music professional anyway.

1) Singapore Chinese Girls' School - Handbells & Handchimes
Furioso
Rock Around the Clock

Have been impressed the 1st time I heard Handbells 2 years ago. Still delighted by the choice of songs and the stage presence.

2) Yuhua Secondary School - Harmonica
Serenade Opus.48 - The Waltz
Riverdance

Both songs were quite nice, with Riverdance having a faster & upbeat tempo to it. I was hoping for the complete tune but since it is a guitar adaptation, there were limitations and the fast blood-rushing feel is not fully portrayed in the piece.

3) Dunman High School - Guitar
Mountain in Autumn
La Partida

4) Methodist Girls' School - Strings
Serenade for String Orchestra op. 11-4th movement:Marcia
Momentum Suite for Strings - 1st movement:Dance

They were quite impressive, partly because there was no conductor and the girls could start on their own. Not considering a part where they had to match each other's tempo, I felt they had done quite well. The choice of pieces were also quite good probably because they suited my preference.

5) Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' School - Harp
Waltz of the Flowers
Bengawan Solo

Very prim and proper... the girls dressed up in green dresses and the conductor matched their colours. The 2 pieces were fine. Harp music is always soothing and decent, but lacking some edge or power in the melody.

6) St. James Settlement Junior - Harmonica
The Scenic of Yang Tze River
Malaguena

The 1st piece was quite somber and reminded me of, well, some serious occasions when the mood was down. The 2nd piece was slightly more entertaining but not having a perky and fun tempo, lacking a tinge of wildness that is usually present in Spanish music.


7) St. Gabriel's Secondary School - Guitar
Summer's Breeze
The Beatles

It was relatively light music, but somehow lacking in terms of the spirit.

8) Raffles Institution (JC)
Wondrous Evening Air
String Quartet Op 10 - Allegretto furioso

The pieces had a very heavy feel to them. The music felt as if it was very highly strung or very somber, not some light-hearted refreshing music. It also felt quite fitting for an institution reputed for good academic performance and serious attitude. Nuff said.

I will be looking forward to tomorrow night's presentation with ethnic instumental ensembles. :)

The Great Spend Savings Sale Part 2

Well, this is the sequel to the blog entry with the same title.

Someone was unable to turn up in school today, so I stood in for her duties, thus delaying my own schedule.

Given the short span of time, it was already an achievement for me to be able to get
1) some pc games at a discount $59.80
2) a harddisk to replace the currently ailing one $72

after my evening appointment, there was more...
3) buy groceries $20
4) top up car petrol $68+

so that leaves me with some undone yet
a) MP3 player
b) haircut
c) red whiteboard marker pen
d) small ziplock bags
e) tupperware

so today's purchases easily exceed $300. No, I'm not rich, just that there are some things that had to be bought, and some things which wouldn't hurt to buy. Anyway, I don't spend such amounts everyday... such "spending spurts" usually occur once or twice a month only.

I must make special mention of one of my purchases - croutons.
I was looking for them for quite some time in West Coast Plaza Cold Storage, but failed to locate them. Tonight, not only did I manage to find them, Pepperidge Farm's croutons actually come in several flavours! (i.e. Classic Caesar, Onion & Garlic, Seasoned, Four Cheese & Garlic, Zesty Italian, Whole Grain Seasoned) In case you are wondering, croutons are those crunchy square bread cubes that you drop into cream of XX soup or mix them in a salad. I was on the brink of resorting to making my own croutons to have a good salad, but it seemed Lady Luck was smiling at me tonight.

Now, it's back to work...

The Great Spend Savings Sale

No, this entry is not about how much I spent at the GSS, but about the things I would need or want to get.

1) New Harddisk
Now that my desktop is throwing tantrums no thanks to the unreliable harddisk, it seems that getting a new harddisk is imminent.

2) New MP3 Player
My old MP3 player was working well and fine, until it decided to go kapuk one fine evening after I return home from work. Till now, attempts to revive it has proven futile, so a new one will be in the works.

3) Audio Cable
There have been so many attempts at playing soundtracks, movie clips, etc via the laptop, but no sound was produced. It was only when a PA/AVA student identified the problem as the faulty audio cable that I was able to uncover this mystery. Ah well.

4) Haircut
No, not because I need to conduct a hair-check, but simply because although my hair is growing a lot slower than it used to, it is still growing. Since I will be going back to reservist with a proper haircut, it would be prudent to time my haircut so that I appear neat at work and later in reservist without having to visit my hairstylist twice within 1 month. Yes, not to save $, but simply because the rate of my hair growth does not warrant me to trim my hair twice in July.

5) Red Whiteboard Marker Pen
Some people are notorious for borrowing things and not returning them. Sometimes, highly demanded items are left around and never to be found again. Whichever the case, I need to replace 1 marker pen. No, I prefer to replace it myself because I'm responsible for my own items. Foolish? Perhaps, but I'm sticking by my principles.

6) Small Ziplock Bags
Somehow, the entire pack of small ziplock bags I used to categorise my stuff has gone missing and I suspect a monster named "Mum" had taken off with them. Never mind, I shall get some more and get my stuff organised.

7) Tupperware
Well, not exactly those that you keep your sandwich snack or cookies, but more for storage purposes. (Most of you would have no idea how much things I have...) Some to store crockery, figurines, etc...

2 Scenario Answers

For those who have not gotten answers for the 2 scenarios I wrote earlier on, here's the answers...

Scenario A
Entering the premises, the visitors usually go about their businesses quietly, coming and going when they have achieved their objective. Most will refer to the electronic panels for their ideal results. Most will acknowledge each other's presence in quiet manner, though once in a while, you will hear someone greeting a familiar face, a couple of visitors chatting relaxingly over similar interests or pointing at familiar sights. Electronic voices acknowledge the visitors' efforts while a slip of printed paper records down the important details, and everyone leaves knowing they will be back for more.

Answer: Individual Physical-fitness Proficiency Test (IPPT) for NS-men.

Scenario B
Entering the premises, the visitors usually go about their businesses quietly, coming and going when they have achieved their objective. Some will refer to the electronic panels for their ideal results. Most will acknowledge each other's presence in quiet manner, though once in a while, you will hear someone greeting a familiar face, a couple of visitors chatting relaxingly over similar interests or pointing at familiar sights. Nonchalant faces acknowledge the visitors' presence while a slip of printed paper records down the important details, and everyone leaves knowing they will be back for more.

Answer: People buying 4D in a betting station.