Compiled by Atiqah Khairi and Nur Afiqah Azizan
I TOOK a seat at Talent Makers Music School in SS2, Petaling Jaya, as my interviewee practised his pieces in a room nearby. Soon enough, notes relentlessly flew off the violin strings, forming amazing melodies. Meet Antony Goon, an accomplished violinist.
he has a string of accolades to his name, including first place for a violin competition in Kota Kinabalu.
he was crowned champion of the Malaysian Youth Orchestra Festival in 2007, 2008, 2009…
and hopefully, 2010! How old is Antony? He’s 11 this year. this young man learns the violin at Talent Makers Music School and is taught by Lai Mei Kuen, the school principal.
That’s not all — he is taught by some of his “teacher friends” and even joins master classes! Antony learns songs by slowly learning the notes, getting in tune and rhythm, and gradually progressing.
“The metronome also helps,” he said. Antony also showed himself to be knowledgeable about the field he loves best — music.
when asked what he loved most about music, Antony said that he enjoys discovering different patterns in the various works of composers.
his favourite composers include Vivaldi, Bach, Kreisler, Haydn and Schubert — a pretty comprehensive list.
In fact, he had so many favourite composers that he couldn’t remember all! when asked if music is important, Antony vehemently answered yes.
he added that “if there were no music, there would be no life”. “I think music brings colour and passion to planet Earth.
If we didn’t have music, there wouldn’t be any radios and there would only be news channels.” well said! What are Antony’s hopes? his ambition is to be a scientist or a lawyer. however, now his goal is to join the Malaysian Youth Orchestra. the interview ended with Antony performing an excellent repertoire of music, namely the Polish Dance by Severn, Praeludium and Allegro by Kreisler, and pieces by Mendelssohn and Bach.
Antony brimmed with confidence while performing, and it totally blew me away. What these kids think: we asked some teens which musicians deserved greater spotlight in the media.
here are their answers: Mutemath and Regina Spektor.
— Nur Shahira Shaharuddin, 17, Taman Melawati Alanis Morissette.
She’s an amazing singer.
— Raja Fatimah Azzahra, 16, Damansara the Korean Band Big Bang and Charice, the girl on Oprah with the outstanding voice.
— Nurul Liyana Aminuddin, 16, Kuala Lumpur Estranged and Khalil Fong, a jazz singer from Hong Kong.
— Liyana Fatini Zamzuri, 15, Petaling Jaya Foreign musicians who come to Malaysia and local ones with good education because that will inspire youngsters.
— Nur Afiqah Azizan, 12, Bangi the one and only…
Super Junior! — Puteri Alia Halid, 13, Petaling Jaya Musicians like Yuna and Zee Avi.
Support local music! — Puteri Nadiah Halid, 16, Petaling Jaya Joss Stone, a talented blues singer.
— Puteri Alisa Ishak, 12, Petaling Jaya