Alex Kalino Hooi, Singapore’s Guitar Prodigy did an interview with us!
At just 16 years of age and already the Young Guitarist Of The Year 2018 Finalist, Alex Kalino Hooi, Singapore’s Guitar Prodigy did an interview with us! To date, no one else has come close to Alex’s achievement. As he is only 16 years old, we were curious to find out more about his plans and future projects! Alex very kindly came to our music school in Singapore for an in-depth and exclusive interview!
Young Guitarist Of The Year Experience
Perhaps the one question that everyone has is why and how did Alex Kalino Hooi prepare himself in the final round of the Young Guitarist Of The Year competition! Or maybe what techniques he used to hone himself into becoming Singapore’s Guitar Prodigy. Turns out, it wasn’t about planning, strategies or even thinking of ideas to outdo his competitors! Here in Singapore, we have been ‘trained’ by our kia-su mentality to think that is what we need to be doing if we ever want to win a competition. However, the real reason why people are winning competitions comes from deeper within than just unadulterated competitiveness or rivalry. Alex shared how he had a great time during the competition period and how he became close friends with Abgail Zachko and Hunter Hallberg instead of seeing them purely as his competitors.
Alex Kalino Hooi, the cat person!
If you’re thinking Alex looks like a dog lover, sorry to burst your bubble – because in our interview Alex shared that he’s definitely a cat person! Here at Vinnie Classroom, we are very cat-oriented too! If you don’t already know why, it’s because we have 2 cats Mao Mao and Meow Meow! They are our PR managers and have been doing a good job so far with their daily duties of entertaining our students and parents diligently! Cats are awesome!
Our Interview with Singapore’s Guitar Prodigy, Alex Kalino Hooi
Full, in-depth and exclusive!
Let’s cut the blog short and let Alex share all the juicy information in our video! Do remember to watch until the end for the cool outro. Also, do subscribe to our Youtube channel to help us create more of such awesome content!
Movie Poster for Weathering With You (Tenki No Ko)
Why does the Weathering with You theme song sound so emotional?
You were most likely affected by the overall story line and how cleverly the song was used in various parts of the movie. The recurring theme was presented in a few different ways throughout the movie. Along with some cinematic pauses and silences, tears were probably rolling down your cheeks.
When it comes to music, we can’t just put in any piece of music and assume it will have the same effect. This post helps us a little in understanding a tiny bit of music theory. Just enough for you to know this effect better.
Descending Bass Line.
The use of the descending bass line has been around forever! With some exceptions, music written with descending bass lines tends to be emotional and sound depressing. By descending bass line, we’re not talking about going down the chromatic scale. No, we are mean going down the diatonic scale and harmonizing along the way. In the case of 愛にできることはまだあるかい (Is there something I can still do for love), the song started with D to A/C# (A first inversion) to Bm to A.
The descending bass line has been a powerful tool in the music industry all over the world. Below are some examples of songs that use the descending bass line.
安靜, the classic song from Jay Chou. Jay Chou, from the Chinese Pop scene, is not just the king of Mando-pop but also the king of descending bass lines. Most of his songs are rather sad and depressing, a good match for most people who adore his music. It helps people reconnect with their lowest periods and allows them to embrace the sadness. If you pay attention to how the Mandarin music industry has been for the last 30 years, nothing has changed. Also, the descending bass line is also present in his latest【說好不哭 Won’t Cry】! However, this song is way more complicated than those he wrote in the past. I will explain more on his latest song in another post! Stayed tuned.
While My Guitar Gently Weeps is more than an iconic song and a very good example of the descending bass line. The verse contains the perfect example of how the descending bass line should sound. Again, it is a rather depressing song.. until it goes from minor at the verse section to major in the chorus section!
Stairway To Heaven ! The most widely banned song in all guitar stores around the world. Yes that song is actually very good lesson material for all guitar students because of the descending bass line and the wonderful chord harmony and progression! My guess is, the song became popular and teachers started teaching their students. Then those students started teaching their friends and so on. The chain effect went crazy and suddenly everyone was playing it in the guitar stores… Now that’s a different kind of depressing music!
If the Descending bass line is sad, will Ascending be happy?
Absolutely right! This is the magic of music! Again, with exceptions, music written with the ascending bass line tends to be more positive and happy! It is like walking towards a bright future!
Heal The World – Michael Jackson. If you have never heard of this song Greta Thunberg will probably say “Shame on you”. This song has so much positivity and good vibes, it needs to go viral again.
Live High – Jason Mraz. Again, a good example of how the ascending bass line creates a rather positive and happy song! Jason Mraz is the king of good vibes and we can trust him to create songs that lift your spirits! Any time, any day!
スパークル ( Sparkle ) – Radwimp. How about that? In the last movie that they worked with Makoto Shinkai, they did the theme song in ascending chord progression for a rather sad ending movie and this time round in the reverse! Hats off to Radwimp, both of these 2 theme songs gave me the goosebumps!
If Weathering With You inspired you, it’s time you got creative!
Now you know the trade secret of song writing, take out your instruments and start creating a song of your own! Positive or Negative, Happy or Sad, it is your call! If you actually do write something after reading this article, please let me know! I would love to hear how my article helped someone to go on and create something amazing! If you need more inspiration or help, take up lessons! Or catch the movie 天気の子(Tenki No Ko, Weathering with you) before it is off the cinema!
Exclusive Interview: Jack Thammarat with Vinnie Classroom 2019
As much as I think that perhaps it was just a dream, I actually did an exclusive interview with Jack Thammarat IN HIS STUDIO in Chiang Mai! He shared more information than I was hoping for. In fact we went in-depth into his past: how he first started playing the guitar, how he realized his love for it, and how Jack Thammarat eventually became Jack Thammarat! Ladies and gentlemen, may I present, the Jack Thammarat Interview 2019!
Jack Thammarat started on the guitar at 12 years old!
We’ve all heard how various guitar maestros developed their love for the guitar at a young age, well, Jack was no exception. He started playing the guitar at the age of 5 under the influence and guidance of his father. This seems to be a familiar story with all our favorite guitar heroes. While it may be a little too late for many to get really serious about the guitar dream, it is not too late if you are going to become your child or nephew/niece’s best guitar teacher! But of course, we highly recommend you send them to a music school for a more well-planned learning experience.
Guitar Idol 2009 changed his life forever.
Without a doubt, many know Jack Thammarat from the iconic guitar competition back in 2009. The stage was filled with amazingly talented guitarists from all over the planet and nobody expected the winner to be someone from Thailand (although to be fair, most of our guitar heroes back in 2009 were primarily from the U.S.A.) Jack took to the stage with precision playing and his powerful stage presence. Watching the video footage of the competition today is still as jaw-dropping as ever!
Jack shares how his life experiences and his good attitude helped him to eventually win the competition. This is definitely helpful if you are planning to live your life as big as him!
His experience while touring with Wang Lee Hom.
Jack Thammarat now spends much of his time as a touring guitarist with Chinese Pop superstar Wang Lee Hom. Together, the team tours all of Asia and seemingly endless rounds in China. To date, they have done around 200 shows and over a period of 2 years! That is a really insane figure if you realize that every show has an audience of at least 10,000! Jack shares his story on how he tackles these mega shows.
Jack Thammarat soloing during a Wang Leehom concert in China
Jack Thammarat, 10 years from now!
Because we all know Jack Thammarat as a guitarist and a guitar idol, therefore it is most natural for us to hope that he will resume writing his amazing songs. Well, HE IS! Jack shares how he plans to release more of his original compositions in the near future. What’s more, with all the experience he has accumulated from his years of guitar-playing performances, Jack’s performing as a solo artist is only coming back stronger and crazier!
The Asian guitar hero!
As much as I hate to say this, there aren’t many notable guitar heroes from Asia. So Jack is iconic as he has journeyed on the road to achieving his dreams. We all know Jack did not get this overnight. It was after years of hard work and dedication. No sidetracking or losing focus. 10 hours of daily guitar practice and an endless number of shows, Jack is definitely an Olympian in the guitar industry. Jack, if you are reading this, thank you for inspiring all of us! You are the perfect role model, and we all can’t thank you enough!
Help Vinnie score more of such interviews!
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Guitar master Paul Gilbert here for Asian Tour 2019!
Paul Gilbert live in Singapore 2019! Paul Gilbert is one of the reasons Vinnie Classroom exists today in Singapore. Since emerging on the scene with RACER X, so many lives around the world have been transformed by his mad skills – his amazing speed and accuracy, along with beautiful melodious phrasing. But to the general public in Singapore, this name is probably not so well-known. So just who is Paul Gilbert?
Paul Gilbert Biography
From platinum album sales and number one chart success as a founding member of MR. BIG, to frightening the guitar community with new levels of ferocious picking technique with shred-pioneers RACER X, to exploring punk, pop, classical, blues, jazz, and progressive instrumental styles in his solo career, Paul Gilbert has recorded a massive amount of stunning guitar music, all while circling the globe to play sold-out arenas from Japan to Jakarta.
Paul’s style stands out for it’s rare combination of accuracy, creativity, and power – all which are balanced with Paul’s sense of humor and pure love of music.
Although Paul is best known for his work with MR. BIG and RACER X, he has also toured with Joe Satriani’s G3, played in a host of tribute concerts with legendary drummer Mike Portnoy, and been integral in the design of his signature Ibanez PGM and Fireman guitars.
Paul Gilbert posing with his wall of guitar cabinet back in Racer X days.
Paul Gilbert’s Legacy
Paul’s legacy as a guitar instructor began when he was eighteen, when he was hired to teach at Hollywood’s Guitar Institute of Technology. Paul’s groundbreaking “Intense Rock” videos and DVDs have inspired legions of guitarists to improve their accuracy, speed, and phrasing. Years as a columnist for Guitar Player magazine, and most recently, Premier Guitar magazine, along with giving countless clinics, private lessons, and serving for five years as the dean of MI Japan, have given Paul deep experience in the art of communicating music to all levels of guitarists.
Over twenty-five years in the music business have only increased Paul’s passion to explore the possibilities of music and the art of playing the guitar. Whether he’s playing to 10,000 fans or jamming one-on-one with a student, Paul is living his childhood dream of taking the sounds in his head and bringing them into reality – on the electric guitar.
Musicians from the golden era of rock music are now granted greater mobility to travel the world. Thanks to Inokii, this is the first time we can experience Paul Gilbert live in Singapore 2019 as a solo artist! This means less talking and singing, and more wonderful showcase of his guitar mastery! As the the venue Substation is not a particularly big space, it means you get to be up close and personal with Paul even if you are the last person to enter the hall! Missing this show will be a huge loss for any guitarist or aspiring musician!
Paul Gilbert performing as a solo artist for the first time in Singapore!
Asher Fulero (keyboardist), Timmer Blakely (bassist) and Bill Ray (drummer) will be part of Paul’s band line up!
More guitar shredding, less singing!
Small venue means a ridiculously close-up view of Paul on the guitar.
Missing out on this show is not advisable.
Where to get the tickets?
Tickets are available from BookMyShow.com. Early bird tickets are all sold out, but if you are a student of Vinnie Classroom, you get a special discount from us! Speak to our admin today! This is because I truly believe I have the duty to get as many people as possible to see my hero first-hand. Besides, what’s do you have to lose?!
Also, the number of VIP tickets are selling out fast! With so many freebies that come with the VIP ticket, you must get it!
VIP Meet & Greet Package Includes:
Concert ticket x 1
Item to be autographed x 1
Individual photo with Paul Gilbert x1
VIP lanyard x 1
VIP tag card x1
Priority entry queue x1
Asia Tour T-shirt (S/M/L/XL/XXL) x1
Behold Electric Guitar CD album x1
Paul Gilbert Live In Singapore 2019 Promo Video
Good morning #PaulGilbert fan. Pls like and share this beautifully crafted video by our team #hea Paul Gilbert – Live In Singapore 2019 Behold Electric Guitar🇸🇬🎸Only a handful of VIP tix left.Details at event page. Date of m&g is 1 day before the show 9 December 2019 (timing to be confirmed) tentatively evening.
If my video hasn’t sung enough praises about my guitar lessons with Jack Thammarat, let me emphasize yet again! It was such a rewarding trip. I am very thankful this took place! I guess the lesson was not so much about how to pick faster or how to play crazier. It was about how to discover and rediscover myself. It is only when I discover more about my own routine, habits and attitude then I can move forward. However, you probably need not start with someone like Jack to correct your playing. If you are keen in improving your guitar playing, sign up for a trial lesson with us!
My first-hand experience!
If you have not read my detailed blog post about this experience, just clink on this link to read more about it. Sometimes, it is easier to write my experience down. But if you’d rather watch, then this video above should be for you!
Interview with Jack Thammarat
If you are waiting for the interview video I did with Jack Thammarat, subscribe to my youtube channel and set the notification bell on. I will be premiering it on 24th September 1am Singapore Time, or 23rd September 1pm GMT -4.
My Current Goal
Jack Thammarat’s YouTube Silver Play Button
I know most people don’t regard this as anything special or significant. YouTube creators have repeatedly shared that having a huge subscriber base does not equate to more views per video too! However I feel that should I cross the 100,000 subscribers mark, I will be able to get my work out to a greater group of audience. Furthermore, if they subscribed to me it’s because they like my content! So if you have not subscribed to my YouTube channel and you agree with my hardwork in creating all this content, please consider subscribing.
The Compass Awards Presentation 2019 is widely known to musicians of Singapore! This is probably the most celebrated event in Singapore for musicians! Composers, lyricists and musicians gather at this highly anticipated event annually without fail. Catching up with old friends, meeting new people, opening up new opportunities, the night was nothing less than amazing!
The Cocktail Session with the right atmosphere
Cocktail Session before the dinner!
I’ve been to many cocktail sessions and they are mostly rather dull and boring. However, because musicians are primarily social animals, the amount of socializing here was off the roof! Evidently from the above photo, people were in the best spirits and are having the time of their life!
After registering ourselves for the dinner, Zee and I had our drinks and were ready to start chatting with people. It did not take long before Remy hit us up!
Ma chère Mademoiselle… the dining room proudly presents your dinner…
The door opened on time and we were all greeted with a magnificent and grand setup! I have to say, after attending the Compass Awards Presentation for 10 years, they never stop trying to improve on their ballroom decorations!
We were also treated to a sumptuous 8-course meal! Food and service was definitely first class. But we were not there just for the food. It was the night for music, for celebrating and showcasing Singapore’s vibrant and successful music industry! I personally was excited to see what the Awards of the night were and who were the successful musicians receiving them! As a Singaporean, I am proud that we have such a well-established music industry even though the country has never emphasized music!
The Awards and their Recipients!
Below are the list of awards and their respective recipients! Congratulations to all who attained them! To those who didn’t, keep it going! In the words of Louis Soliano
There is always room for one more and that one more could be you
Wings Of Excellence Award – Lee Wei Song
Wings of Excellence Award – KahChun Wong
Top Local Songwriter Of The Year – JJ Lin
Top Local Artiste Of The Year – JJ Lin
Artistic Excellence Award – Ann Hussien
Artistic Excellence Award – Derrick Fitzgerald
Meritorious Award – Nona Asiah
Meritorious Award – Louis Soliano
Top Local
English Pop Song – Lin Ying
Chinese Pop Song – JJ Lin
Soundtrack – Li Fei Hui
Lin Ying
Li Fei Hui
Li Wei Song
KahChun Wong
JJ Lin
Ann Hussien
Derrick Fitzgerald
Nona Asiah
Louis Soliano
Best Catching-Up Session!
The dinner may have brought joy to those Award Recipients but we all know that true joy is when musicians gets to meet and chat! The photobooth was constantly filled with laughter and table shots with friends taking place every minute of the night!
Jimmy of Jimmusic with his wife Carol. Jimmy does all sorts of production work! Hit him up!
Find out more about Jimmusic if you need a production team for your music career!
Kelvin sends his boys to Vinnie Classroom for drum lessons! He is a Chinese Rock music composer!
Send your kids to Vinnie Classroom too! We currently offer a *Free Trial Lesson!
Hong Jun Yang! Best known for his participation in Project Superstar 2005! He now tours with JJ Lin as one of the vocalists!
Photobooth filled with aspiring and well known musicians!
The night was also filled with superstars everywhere! Can you identify those I captured from tables far away?
Watch the video if you are not satisfied!
If, after reading this entire article, you still wish to learn more about the night, I’ve pieced up video highlights for you!
Conclusion
Like I said, despite attending 10 years of Compass Awards Presentation dinners, there was never a dull moment. I learned new things, got to know new friends, met up with those old friends and got seriously motivated to push harder again! Every year’s dinner reminds me that I am indeed in very good hands for hustling on my music career. All I need to do is to keep trying! Maybe someday, someone out there will be writing an article about me instead. Well, I’ll keep that in my bucketlist and crash for now! Thank you Compass Singapore for hosting this annual event! It was an honour to be an attendee all these years!
Jack is no stranger to Singapore and has been coming for masterclasses, clinics, and shows on our sunny island over the years. He was here doing shows as early as 2012! This is mainly thanks to his success in the 2009 Guitar Idol competition his endorsements with various brands and the small but active guitar scene in Singapore. Because he is such a successful artist, it was hard to imagine that I would be able to call him my teacher one day!
How I first met him
Jack Thammarat and students of Vinnie Classroom 2016 at Wala Wala Singapore
It was during a clinic he did back in 2016. Vinnie Classroom was still a very young music school and I was desperate to make it work. As you can imagine, I felt lost from time to time. However, the stars aligned and we received information that Jack would be coming for a clinic. I gathered my students and brought them to the show and boy, were we all inspired! His playing was phenomenal and might I repeat, inspiring. After he left, I started working really hard on my guitar all over again. Our students were also motivated to perform better during our recital. Of course, he doesn’t know what magic he did for us.
I went to Chiang Mai for lessons!
Took this photo the moment I reached my hotel in Chiang Mai
So about a year ago, I met Jack again at another Masterclass he did in Singapore. This time, I felt the need to bring things to another level. I was hoping to have lessons with him, probably via Skype. Never did I expect myself on a flight all the way to Thailand to have up close and personal lessons with him!
Surreal Lesson Experience!
My view for the full 60 mins was nothing but astonishing! Jack’s playing is nothing short of jaw-dropping. However he didn’t get this because he was born genius or because “he simply has it”. It was nothing but extreme hardwork. Having one-to-one lessons also made me realise so much about my own playing! Jack would ask me to play some lines and he would immediately set to work checking all my flaws and bad habits. I never knew I was so bad in my guitar playing! However, that’s ok and as a matter of fact AWESOME! Because the best way to improve is knowing where you went wrong and correcting mistakes accordingly! I felt I improved by a whole lot in just the first 60 mins than if I were to continue working hard blindly on my own for another year. This is the thing I always emphasize about having an actual guitar teacher than doing skype lessons or learning on YouTube. This was just unbeatable.
Jack Thammarat has some awesome new picks made for him!
Conclusion
At the end of the lesson, I was given 3 guitar picks and A HEAP OF HOMEWORK! I will be spending the next 2 days practicing hard in Chiang Mai before I go back for another lesson with him! After that, Jack will be continuing his tour with Wang Leehom in China. These guitar picks are his latest signature picks and I have to say they feel really good on the strings! There is this rubbery texture that helps with the grip. The sharp end of the pick cuts the string at just the right angle. The size feels great and most importantly I like how it is Red and Gold. Jack’s logo looks really awesome too! Ok, too much of talking.. I should head back to the woodshed!
Yes that is right, I actually set my guitar on fire! Now I know that many will be out there ready to call my move a gimmicky one or simply a “click-bait”! It is more than just that.
I was influenced by Jimi Hendrix
You see, as a guitarist, I’m a rather big fan of Jimi Hendrix! I was always fascinated by that iconic moment when he lit his guitar on fire with zippo ON A LIVE SHOW. I will certainly not get a clearance in doing this on any stage I perform so I choose doing it in a controlled environment. So, if my guitar sacrifice ritual is a gimmicky move, I guess so can be said for the legendary Jimi Hendrix.
I set the Gibson SG on fire
I’m actually particular about my guitars!
On regular days, I am very careful with my instruments. I was from a concert band beginning and was a trombonist. We were taught to take very good care of our instrument from day 1. Not even a fingerprint was supposed to be seen. So trust me, burning this guitar is quite a scary moment for me. However, over my years of working in a guitar store, I picked up the skills for repairing and modifying guitars. With that confidence in mind, I took this old guitar I had lying around for a really long time to prove a point. Will the paint on the guitar body help against the fire? I was also interested to know if I can create a unique finish through this ridiculous move! Or will I simply destroy a guitar and offer it to those above.
See how careful I am to my instruments? I just added bubble wraps to the inside of the flight case! I don’t trust the flight case! As to where I am headed to, follow my Instagram to find out more! It’s gonna be a very exciting trip!
Going on a trip!
Yes as mentioned above, I’ll be off on a rather exciting trip! I can’t wait to share more here! To get a more instantaneous update, follow my instagram now!
However, if playing guitar is all you wish to do, you can find out how here.
You can also find out if I will restore this guitar into it’s former glory if you subscribe to our youtube channel!
Sweetwater and Rob Scallon sets the world record for World’s Largest Pedalboard!
If you are living under a rock, you will be delighted to learn that someone made any guitarist’s dream come true by chaining up a total of 319 effects pedal to 34 Temple Audio Duo 24 Templeboard ! A complete madness for anyone who understands what all these means. But everyone knows how this is going to turn out, a heap of noise! Still, it did not stop these adventurous people from putting it all together! I’ll put the link of the video for the world’s largest pedalboard at the bottom of this post.
But here in Singapore, if we have any talent at all, we are extremely good at setting the world records! Though some are really silly, we have some impressive records too!
‘Senital’, a robot made out of 79,854 balloons by Ms Lily Tan and her team of 50 people!
Most number of blind dates in 12 hrs (536 was looking to get attached)
World’s longest Satay (140.02m!)
World’s largest cupcake mosaic (110.6 sq meter)
World’s longest Chain of Helmets (yes they basically align them next to each other)
Most number of Vinyl Records Smashed in 30 seconds (They destroyed 38 vinyls that day)
Largest Cha-cha dance (3379 participants)
Largest Limbo dance (1208 participants)
Most game of Scabble played simultaneously
Most game of Sudoku play simultaneously
Most number of people skipping simultaneoulsy
Largest Egg and Spoon race
Most number of people married in a single location in 24 hours
Point is, now that Sweetwater and Rob Scallon set the world record for the largest pedalboard, they are only sending out invitation to a boring country like Singapore to take it over. Or we may not do it at all because it seems the records our country did are usually rather nerdy! Anyway, here’s the video of the record setting event!
POG2 has been around in the guitar industry for a rather long time but it has never been a popular pedal. Many bought and sold it soon after because of the “limitations” of the pedal. However, these limitations are a result of the user’s imagination! Think about it, the pedal allows a massive 8 user presets to be stored and there must be a reason for that! Still on the subject of “limitations” of pedals, you may want to check out this other episode where I create TONES with Cheap China Pedals! Really interesting even for me…
In this episode, I share 4 of my presets that are guaranteed make you rethink the Electro Harmonix POG2 Polyphonic Octave Generator on your pedal board. Maybe those who don’t own one will now change their minds, and those who blacklisted it will take the listing off! To me, this is one of my must-have pedals ever since I bought it and the versatility it provides is still beyond me!
