Transcript of interview with Reeves Wong (conducted by Amanda Lee), 6 February 2017, 3 pm, Skype.
Reeves is a 29-year old male Chinese Singaporean who is a piano teacher. Reeves likes English pop rock music as it is catchy. He thinks that there is a cultural connection as Singaporeans are very influenced by Western movies and music. Reeves does not listen much to Western classical music but likes a few pieces. Reeves thinks that Western classical music can be part of Singaporean culture if it were to be played in public areas and if Singaporeans were receptive towards it. Reeves likes Chinese pop music by artistes like Jay Chou and G.E.M. He thinks that there is a language connection with Taiwan and China, but not with Hong Kong, as Singaporeans know more about Hong Kong TV than its music. Reeves does not listen to traditional Chinese music and is neutral about it. He does not think that it expresses him as a Chinese person. Reeves thinks that traditional Chinese music expresses a cultural connection as the music would remind the listener of Chinese culture. Reeves liked Chinese crossover music as he already knows the tunes, and because it looks more modern. Reeves thought that it had both Chinese and Western influence. Reeves did not really like experimental Chinese music and does not like the sound of the dizi. Reeves does not think that it expresses contemporary culture since most people enjoy pop music and catchy music, which is something that the extract was not. Reeves listens to Singaporean artistes like JJ Lin and Tanya Chua. Reeves does not think that there is a distinctive Singaporean musical style as Singaporean music is very much influenced by Chinese or Western culture. Reeves thinks that it will be difficult to have Singlish comedy songs represent Singapore as not many people understand Singlish and it might not be something that Singaporeans are proud of. Reeves does not think that xinyao music was melodious, catchy, or attractive enough lyrically to become popular internationally. Reeves started learning the piano when he was nineteen years old. Reeves had always been interested in singing and thought that he should pick up piano playing as it was a good accompanying instrument. Reeves decided to teach the piano as he enjoyed teaching and likes playing the piano. His philosophy and approach to teaching students is to customize the lesson to fit their objectives. Reeves explains the students’ objectives to them so that they understand what they are doing for the lesson. He does this as he believes that one cannot really enjoy something unless they understand how it works. As he teaches mainly adults now, he does not have many issues trying to engage them in the lessons as they sign up for it. In the past when he had younger students, he found that asking them about their favorite songs and keeping activities short helped to sustain their attention. Reeves thinks that some parents might not have realistic expectations as some of his ex-students did not have enough time to practice and commit to playing the piano, which is something Reeves thinks is important. Reeves wants to change the Singaporean mindset of attaining piano certificates without mastering the fundamentals of music. This is because he has had students who had passed their grades but did not know the basic fundamentals of music. Reeves wants to inspire other adults to take up music lessons and show them that they are never too old to learn. Reeves thinks that more students should learn music in general as it helps with character-building. He thinks that people should take their time to decide which instrument to learn. Reeves thinks that it is easier for people to learn music now as there are cheaper instruments available.
“I do like catchy music and, er, generally anything relating to [English] pop, er, it’s catchy, I guess. So, er, it’s a very sellable genre if you were to ask me. So – ya, I mean for – for the line of work that I do, I have to know a lot of so-called catchy songs. So I do listen to quite a number of them, lah.”
“I think Singaporeans in general, we are very influenced by – by [UK, US]. As in the – whether it’s movies or [English pop] music, um, I think – ya. It – it does connect us to – to the Western society, lah.”
“Not much of a classical guy I must – I must confess. But probably like, um, um, I started out doing classical though, for a number of years. Um, so other than the regular Bach, Chopin, Beethoven, Mozart – people like that. Er, I don’t know a lot – a lot of composers. But – ya, generally I know that few classical composers, lah.”
“Because I started piano as an adult. So, um, I did not actually have, um, I – I wasn’t exposed to classical music, lah. My parents are definitely not classical music listeners. So all along I’ve been very much influenced by the pop music, the rock music, whichever – mainly the contemporary stuff. So it was, er, until when I started doing my exams, then I started listening to some classical.”
“I think if people listen to classical music, then we try to influence – you know – people more by giving them more exposure. Like for example, imagine like Starbucks was playing classical music, or imagine shopping malls start playing classical music.”
“I don’t think so much about the genre – which genre appeals more to who, but how much of that genre do you listen to it to really define you as, um, you know the type of listener that you are. Mm. Ya, so I think there’s a chance lah, but it depends on whether the general public is willing to – you know – expose the – the – I mean like the rest of the people to the certain type of music, lor.”
“Er, [Chinese pop] artiste not really that much. I work mainly based on songs. But, er, Jay Chou, I suppose? Ya. Um, if you talk about Chinese – ya, it’s pretty much Jay Chou and probably Deng Zi Qi.”
“There’s a lot of artistes that’s super famous in China but they are relatively unknown outside of China. Er, whereas there’s, um, some Taiwanese singer that might break into the China market. But, um, we know them, but we probably don’t know that many like Chinese singers. So probably not so much with China though, but I think there’s a very strong connection with the Taiwanese I suppose.”
“[Traditional Chinese music] sounded, er, happy though. Ya, kind of. And ... ya, to be frank if you put this piece and probably another piece of Chinese music, er, that is along – along this line, I might not be able to tell the difference.”
“[Traditional Chinese music] give us a ... certain imagination towards, um, whether it’s people, whether it’s the landscape, whether it’s the picture that goes on in our minds. So, um, I think the scales, um, and pretty much I think the chord progression been used in this song itself, er, pretty much reflects the – the Chinese culture. Yup.”
“[Chinese crossover music is] pretty awesome. First and foremost I think, er, the main reason is because I know those tunes. Ya. And, um, as compared to the first extract I think in terms of the melody-wise, the – the melodies are a lot more obvious. And ... I think the other thing is that because it has more of a modern feel to it.”
“I think [Chinese crossover music is] a bit of both. I think it’s a bit of both. Ya, it sounded like extremely Chinese but the melody comes from an English singer. Um, the instruments were like half-half. So I think it’s pretty much in the middle.”
“Er, let’s just say that I wouldn’t complete the whole [experimental Chinese] piece, lah. I am not so much a fan of dizi to be frank.”
“I think, um, um, we are more accustomed – I mean, most people are more accustomed to very, very catchy music. And, er, to be frank I don’t think [experimental Chinese music] is that catchy. Even though I know that, er, I know that it sounds, um, complicated, to be frank. And I think there’s a lot of musical value that comes with it.”
“I don’t think [there is a Singaporean musical style]. Um, as in because right we’re pretty much influenced by either the Chinese – I mean like the Taiwanese culture, if not it’s more towards the English culture. So I think, um, you won’t be able to tell like firsthand, “Oh, this is written by a Singaporean.” I don’t think so.”
“I don’t think a lot of people really do understand Singlish unless you’re Singaporean. Then the second thing is I don’t think our government is that active in wanting to promote Singlish as – you know – so-called an official language. [Singlish comedy songs are] kind of something that we Singaporean like to use but we are not particularly proud of. Ya, so it might be tough.”
“To be frank, I think it’s more towards the melody line. Again – once again I think it’s always about the melody line. I – I think [that xinyao’s] the melody lines to be frank not really like that catchy. And even though it’s catchy, but the lyrics is not really like attractive enough.”
“I first started learning the piano when I was nineteen. Ya, I know it’s pretty old, right. Um, initially that experience was, um, it was pretty exciting though now that I think of it. Um, every single day, every single lesson, um, I really, really look forward to it, um, even though I was playing some really kiddy songs, um, but I – I kind of like it.”
“The reason that actually makes me decide to learn the instrument is because – to be frank, I kind of flunk my education. As in I didn’t do very well for my O Levels, so, er, what I did was – I just asked myself, you know if, er, I could choose anything that I want to do in my life, what would that be? And music was the answer.”
“I really, really like to sing. Um, and I – I always felt that pianist are – are like super cool. But – ya, I mean what’s stopping me was my age, lah. Because I didn’t have musical lessons. Because everybody will tell you that, “Hey, you know what, you should start when you’re four, if not – you know, it’s too late” that kind of thing. So – yup.”
“I was watching like this concert by Jay Chou. And then he was playing and singing. So given somebody who likes to sing, I thought that it’s a – it’s an extremely good idea lah, if I can play and sing. I think that will be pretty awesome.”
“Then, um, piano is one of those instruments where it’s not like violin or probably other solo instruments where you can’t play and sing. Piano you can do a solo, you can also play and sing. And ... I don’t know it’s just –you know some instruments just comes naturally to you, so piano was that instrument for me. And – ya, so that’s kind of like the defining moment lah, why I choose piano.”
“I actually like to teach. But given my grades, er, which I was very bad in Math and Science, so there’s no way I can be like a full-time MOE teacher. So I have to – I have to evaluate what can – what I can actually do. So, um, I like piano. I love teaching. Um, so it’s kind of like a very easy decision for me.”
“I just make sure that my student understands what they are playing. But, um, one part of my lessons is that I always try to make sure that I follow my students’ objectives. Like before – when they start lessons with me, “You know what’s your objective, what do you want to achieve?” Then I’ll customize my lesson plans according to what they want.”
“So if you talk about philosophy, put aside what my student wants, I always felt that you can’t really enjoy something unless you really understand it. So I always – I always make sure that they understand the theory – how – how does thing works and, er, how do you actually create something out of nothing just based on theory.”
“But for me, because my [adult students], they – they make the choice themselves, so it’s easier for me to engage them lah, so long as I teach them like the songs that they like. Um, I try to minimize the theory for those people who don’t like the theory lessons. I think that’s pretty much okay, lah.”
“When I used to teach kids, I’ll ask them, “Oh, what are the types of songs that you like?” Um, and then I realized that most of the songs that they like are the songs that their parents like. Then once in a blue moon, you get songs like Let It Go (2015) where all the kids go crazy over it. So, ya – these are things that – that keeps them engaged, lah. And the other thing is I try not to mention examinations to them. Because I think it’s – it’s kind of like pressurizing for them.”
“I’ll try to, er, split my lesson into a few categories, so we did different things at different points. Especially when [it comes to] kids – they have very, very short attention span. So I try not to stay on a certain topic or certain thing for more than five minutes. Probably I just do the scales for five minutes, songs for five minutes, then probably some theory for five minutes.”
“I think one thing parents – I think one – one of the most important thing that, er, that is stopping kids from really practicing is the expectation of parents. Because they want their kid to, um, from my own perspective lah, what I see, what I learn – is they have a lot of commitments to many different things. And for music you need to make sure that you – you have the time to – to practice, lah.”
“I can honestly tell you it’s never so much about teaching kids. I mean, um, I think I’m alright with kids, I wouldn’t say I’m very good with kids but I’m alright with kids. But it’s always about the parents’ expectation. Um, the parents failing to understand that ... you know in order to do well in music you need to commit to it. And ... a lot of it is to do with the certification, lah.”
“The best pianist that I have the privilege of knowing in real life, he has got no cert. And I’ve seen so many students of mine who had like grade eight background right, they don’t understand the most basic fundamental of music. So for me – I’m quite, um, I really want to change this – this whole entire – I wouldn’t say issue lah, but this whole entire culture of our music learning.”
“We need to really make sure that once we get the cert, we also learn stuff. Ya, just imagine – just imagine a chef having like a certification from [Singapore Hotel and Tourism Education Centre]. But he doesn’t even know how to – how to cook fried rice, I think it’s quite pointless, lah.”
“I mean [learning] music is good. Er, from my own experience, music has helped me a lot in life, lah. Not just in terms of the – the monetary side but the character-building side as well. But I wouldn’t say piano, lah.”
“So I think piano is a very convenient instrument. But that doesn’t mean that people should opt for this instrument, lah. I think people should really be given a choice to recce around, look around and see, um, the instruments that are available. And just to choose from there, lah.”
“If this job doesn’t pay that well, I might do something else. Um, but one of the greatest motivation is – I really want to change the musical culture in Singapore. As in, um, I felt that people are too obsessed with certifications.”
“Basically I just want to also send this message to, um, to the adults that, um, because I started as an adult mah, so I want to tell them that, er, you don’t really need to start at four years old, lah. Ya. You can – you can start whenever you want so long as you really like it, you have the passion for it, you’re willing to work hard for it.”
“To learn music you need money. But nowadays there’s like so much more cheaper options. If you cannot afford piano, you buy a keyboard. If you cannot afford a $2000 guitar, you buy a $90 guitar. You know it’s never about the equipment, lah. It’s about who you are as a person. So, um, just do what you like lah, and you’ll go far.”
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