Singing for Our Dreams, Fighting for Our Friendships

Source:国际学院 Date:2014-01-17 Hits:134
September 28, 2013, the school song chorus competition, held by the students’ union at 2:30 at the auditorium of Jinan University, came to a successful end. The competitors creatively combined acting or dancing with singing, giving audiences a visual and auditory feast.
The contest lasted for about 3 hours. Every team brought us different styles of performance and showed the own features. At the beginning of this competition, the Literature Academy provided us with a short traditional Chinese crosstalk and elegant dance, greatly arousing the interest of the audience. When it was the International School’s turn, two boys performed: Brandon, from 2013 IET sang the Coldplay song, Viva la Vida, with Aidan from 2013 Finance providing the accompanying B-box rhythm. When it came to the part, “Students all over the world, gathering together”, everyone held a small national flag and we saw colorful flags on the stage, swaying along to the music. It seemed just like a strong wave.
Besides the performance, their conductor was also impressive. The only foreign conductor in the competition was Raewyn, a beloved oral English teacher from New Zealand.
Were they nervous on the stage? “No!” said Yu Jie, one of the team members, “Because everyone is here with me. I feel we are a family.” They told us about their fatigue from preparing for the contest (actually they first set about training in the freshmen training camp). But at the same time they found it worthwhile for them to learn singing skills, to enjoy the partnership among team members and to fight for their honor.
Finally, the International School won the Excellent Prize. When we asked Raewyn about her feelings, she spoke highly of the choir members in the International School. “The singing was very good and of course, our wonderful students were excellent. They deserve to win a prize.” Weary but excited, our participants gathered on the steps of the School Auditorium to take a photo with the whole choir team. Smiling in the sunshine, they eventually achieved their common goal. As Bo Xue said, “we are happy to join in the group to fight for the prize belonging to all of us. I feel such a great sense of belonging.”
 For the students, this contest enriched their extracurricular life much more than watching movies in the dormitory or playing computer games. Also, it enabled them to win friendship through making a joint effort. Last, but not least, during the performance they showed their love for the International School, for Jinan University and for the golden times of their lives.
 
Written by Cai Yanning
Photo by Feng Zishan
Revised by Raewyn
Edited by Andy