Music has always been a source of inspiration for many. And Methodist Girls’ School hopes their musical efforts will inspire others, too.
As part of their 125th anniversary celebration, which happened on Monday, MGS collaborated with the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) to produce an album of pop songs.
According to the school, about 3,000 albums were produced and the proceeds from Voices Of Hope, through the Community Cancer Fund, will provide necessary relief for needy patients as well as improve cancer care and prevention.
Called Voices Of Hope: A Hope For Every Season, the album features the vocal talents of MGS students such as Nathania Ong, as well as old girls, including singer-songwriter Natalie Hiong and former Campus Superstar finalist Rachel Lim. Also performing are the school’s Primary and Secondary School choirs, as well as the Secondary Handbell Choir, and string and guitar ensembles.
Explained the school’s vice-principal, Diana Goh: “It was NCCS who brought the idea up to MGS to consider recording a CD with the talents of MGS girls … a CD which could be enjoyed by listeners and especially those who needed encouragement and joy.
“We jumped at the possibility of creating something more tangible, something that could be replicated and shared out of our talent. On top of that, the project would give our girls the experience of being involved in recording an audio CD.”
The album isn’t your regular collection of choral tunes. Instead, the school opted to record pop songs – some of them written by their own girls – done in an indie pop format, with the central theme of hope.
“We wanted this CD to be current and contain songs which reach out to a wider audience; to the young and older,” elaborated Goh. “We wanted music that spoke to the heart and we wanted lyrics which people could identify with. Most of all, we wanted to have songs which were connected to one’s experience of losing and finding hope.”
And does the school hope to do this on a regular basis? Said Goh: “It would require planning and budgeting but why not, given sufficient resources and if the purpose is meaningful, we can consider doing this again. Given all the good that came out of it, we will not stop here.”
You can get Voices Of Hope from Methodist Girls School at S$20.