TKU Chorus were the champions in both student category and Dr. Sun Yat-sen Special Award in the 12th National Chung-shan Golden Chorus Competition that was held on March 10. TKU won against 19 other competitors and is thrilled at the results.

TKU chorus was established in 1951 and has been in countless competitions of all sorts. It is an old association that has stood the test of time, formed by competent singers with impeccable group work. TKU had attended the Chung-shan competition since its first event. Yet, when TKU won the 9th and 10th event consecutively, the organizer decided to “suspend” TKU for two years. For some reason, the organizer changed its mind by shortening the suspension to one year. Despite missing the 11th event, TKU came back and took away the championship as if nothing had happened.

But the group members and the conductor weren’t so sure of their chances before the competition. Tsai Hsin-jieh, the chair of the Chorus Association said that they had only been informed of the decision two weeks before the event, so they were left with practically little time to prepare. With extra efforts and dedication of all members, they practiced five hours per day. Old members who had won the past championships also spent additional time instructed less experienced young members how to perform in an event like this. Du Ming-yuan, the conductor of the chorus, believes that this could be the key to their surprise success.

There were two songs they had to perform during the competition. The first was “Dr. Sun Yat-sen”, the mandatory number, has a somber overtone, while the second was “I am flying”, the optional number, is of light-hearted nature. They used their rich and versatile voices to create a wide-range of mood to fit the songs and for the second one they even rapped part of the lyrics which was refreshing and fun for everyone. However, Tsai said that this is no time for complacency. As the quality of the teams participating in this event is getting higher each year, she reminded her teammates that greater challenges lie ahead. For those who would like to see the live recording of the event can visit http://blip.tv/file/166303. ( ~Ying-hsueh Hu )