To those in the know, it is no secret that outgoing Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) President Enoch Weng has a passion for music. His past involvement with different music clubs campus gave him a unique perspective on the relationship between the clubs, “I started to notice that there was a few people who overlapped, but for the most part, the music clubs were all so isolated,” Weng told The Peak.
After witnessing this isolation first hand, Weng thought he “could unite them with some purpose.” Out of this, the idea for the Music Showcase Extravaganza was born, albeit in a nebulous form. “I called a meeting with all the presidents of the music clubs at the time together, to see what we could work on. It was great connecting everyone together, as many ideas were shared, and in the years afterwards, collaborations between clubs started happening,” stated Weng.
His ultimate goal, however, was to see all the music clubs on campus come together to perform in a single concert that would showcase SFU’s “musical ohana” as he called it. This dream wasn’t actually realized until this semester with the first Music Showcase Extravaganza happening on March 31.
He brought the idea forward to the Events and Promotions Committee for two reasons. The first being to realize his long standing dream of a single music clubs concert, the second “to offer something new to the SFSS. Primarily the events thrown have always featured the same types of genres (like EDM), and the lack of diversity did not reflect our entire student membership,” he stated.
While the Music Showcase Extravaganza might have been Weng’s brainchild, he noted that “the clubs have all been very enthusiastic and have been on board since the very beginning. They have helped give input on the planning of the event, and have been so responsive throughout.“
Nathalie Scott-Hsiung the co-president of the Concert Orchestra, and current co-lead for the project, the other being Weng, stated through email, “It’s a great feeling to host a concert where the final result is due to all the extra time students volunteer on top of their school and work life, and to do it with other student musicians is a real treat.”
Scott-Hsiung also stated that, “We [the Concert Orchestra] are most excited to expand our audience and give a little taste of our sound to those who haven’t attended a concert of ours.”
Aside from the Concert Orchestra the Music Showcase Extravaganza will feature Jazz Band, Recital Society, Vocal Jazz, and SFU Choir.
The Music Showcase Extravaganza will be held on March 31 at the SFU Burnaby Theatre. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the concert starts 6:30. Admission is free.
