Singapore Armed Forces Band
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The Singapore Armed Forces Band (commonly known as the SAF Band) is the musical arm of the Singapore Armed Forces. Playing a vital role in the ceremonial parades and ceremonies, the SAF Band provides musical support for parades such as the National Day Parade, SAF Day Parade, Passing Out Parades, Change of Command Parades and other duties. Other than discharging Ceremonial Duties, SAF Band also presents concerts which aim to bring music closer to the masses. It also seeks to build up the band's music repertoire into an extensive array of styles and variety.
Through the years, the SAF Bands has had the opportunity to work with several distinguished conductors and soloists including Frank Renton, Steven Mead, John Sharpley, Evelyn Glennie, Jan Van der Roost, Toshio Akiyama, Yasuhide Ito, Eric Whitacre and Hardy Mertens. More recently, the Bands were conducted by Philip Sparke, Frank Ticheli, James Barnes, Roger Swift and Prof. James F Keene of the University of Illinois.
In recent history, the SAF Band has been representing Singapore at international music festivals. These include the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers street parade in Australia; the Festival International de Musiques Militaires in Saumur, France; as well as the Kuala Lumpur Military Tattoo in Malaysia.
In 2006 the Band will participate in the Brunei International Tattoo 2006 (Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam) in July and the Wonju Tattoo (Wonju, South Korea) in October. The highlight of the year end is a concert with renown conductor Douglas Bostock.
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[edit] History
The SAF Bands is formed in 1994 comprising of men and women made up from the Singapore Infantry Regiment Band, Republic of Singapore Air Force Band and Republic of Singapore Navy Band. The formation of SAF Bands come in a restructuring of the bands within the Ministry of Defence for more effective distribution of manpower. From 1994, the different bands within the SAF Bands operated at different camps and locations. Central Band and HQ(RSN) in Tanglin Camp, Parade Band B (RSAF) in Tengah Airbase and Parade Band A (SIR) in Pasir Laba Camp. These sections combined in November 2003 after the completion of renovations work to the 'White House' the former British Colonial Officer's Mess in Nee Soon Camp.
[edit] Logo
The logo of SAF Bands is a combination of the three services within the armed forces. Light Blue signifying the Air division, Red signifying the Land division and Deep Blue signifying the Sea division all united within the Lyre, a universal symbol of military musicians. The Logo is topped with the National Coat Of Arms which was launched on 3 December 1959 together with the National Flag and National Anthem at the installation of the Yang di-Pertuan Negara at the City Hall steps and adopted by government agencies nationwide. Below the Logo is a banner inscribed with the Band's motto, "In Harmony".
[edit] Mission Statement
- To provide quality music support at major State & Singapore Armed Forces functions, parades & ceremonies.
- To project the professionalism of the Singapore Armed Forces through musical excellence.
- To foster closer relations with the local and international populace as music ambassadors of the Singapore Armed Forces
[edit] Structure of SAF Bands
The Bands are made up of 4 sections mainly : Bands HQ, SAF Central Band, SAF Parade Band A, SAF Parade Band B.
[edit] Bands HQ
The HQ is the main support wing of the SAF Bands. providing logistical and administrative assistance to the operations and training of all SAF Bands. It comprises of administrative staff, as well as a Training Wing, whose function is to train musicians and to prepare them for their duties in the main bands.
The SAF Bands HQ is led by the bands' Commanding Officer/Senior Director of Music, MAJ Philip Tng and Regimental Sergeant Major is 2WO Abdul Razak.
The SAF Bands Training Wing is led by the bands' Chief Instructor CPT Muhd Yusri.
[edit] SAF Central Band
Singapore Armed Forces Central Band is the premier band of the Singapore Armed Forces, and consists of a core of professional regular musicians, supplemented by Full-time National Servicemen (NSF) fulfilling their conscript duties.
The SAF Central Band which is made up of members of the former Republic of Singapore Navy Band performs as a concert band, a marching band as well as a ceremonial band. It is further able to perform in a variety of smaller configurations, of which include a brass quintet, a combo & stage band, ceremonial fanfare trumpeters and a clarinet quartet.
The SAF Central Band is most often seen in the public eye at major parades like the National Day and SAF Day parades. On a more regular basis, the band stages three concerts a year as part of its In Harmony and Chamber Repertory series.
The SAF Central Band is led by Director of Music, CPT Chua Siong Loo and Senior Director of Music, MAJ Philip Tng.
[edit] SAF Parade Band A
The SAF Parade Band A was formerly known as the Singapore Infantry Regiment (SIR) Band. With the restructuring of the bands in 1994, the SAF Parade Band A evolved as one of the two Parade bands of the Singapore Armed Forces.
The band's duties include most official parades like the monthly Istana Changing of the Guards Ceremony, Officer Cadet School (OCS) Commissioning Parades, Guard of Honour(GOH) Parades for visiting dignitaries and other internal SAF ceremonies.
The SAF Parade Band A is mostly made up of Full-time National Servicemen (NSF), supplemented by several specialists, and led by Director of Music CPT Johnson Lee.
[edit] SAF Parade Band B
Formerly the Republic of Singapore Air Force(RSAF) Band, the band was subsequently renamed the second parade band of the Singapore Armed Forces.
Co-sharing duties with the other parade band, the Parade Band B is constantly on the go as they perform to dignitaries, officials and the public.
They are most often publicly seen marching down Orchard Road for the Istana Changing of the Guards Ceremony with the Provost unit.
The SAF Parade Band B also regularly fulfils other SAF-wide commitments like GOH Parades. Comprising of mostly Full-time National Servicemen, the SAF Parade Band B is led by Director of Music LTA Tan Aik Kee.
[edit] Key Personnel
- Chairman, Singapore Armed Forces Music Board: Brigadier-General Tsoi Mun Heng
- Head, Joint Manpower Department, Singapore Armed Forces: Colonel Peter Wee
- Senior Director of Music/Commanding Officer, Singapore Armed Forces Bands: Major Philip Tng
- Director of Music (Central Band): Captain Chua Siong Loo
- Director of Music (Parade Band A): Captain Johnson Lee
- Director of Music (Parade Band B): Lieutenant Steven Tan
- Chief Instructor (Training Wing): Captain Muhd Yusri B M Ali
- Regimental Sergeant Major: 2WO Abdul Razak B M Noor
