Competition 2006 report

The Competition saw 15 contestants playing in the Final on 13th May 2006. Seven contestants competed in the Venus Category, while eight competed in the Jupiter Category. So, how did it go? Please read on.

There are numerous photos included in this report. They are not meant to be exhaustive but they do capture much of what happened in the Competition. Note that some of the photos were captured out from video footage so they are not very clear.

Some contestants arrived at Blackpool Holiday Centre (see details later) before day break! These were the four from Guangzhou and Shenyang provinces in China. Their travel connections involved Guangzhou, Beijing, London and Manchester airports, and Blackpool North train terminal. And then a taxi ride from Blackpool station to the Holiday Centre. After that long journey, they arrived in the Holiday Centre in the early morning. Holiday Centre Security checked them in to their rooms smoothly.

Three Electones were on their way to Blackpool that day. EL900 from Milton Keynes, EL90 from Leicestershire, and Stagea from Surrey. That's not a big deal compared to Blackpool Festival that uses five or six different electronic (or electricity-powered?) organs every day. Yamaha is probably the most popular brand, as well as Wersi, Bohm, Roland, Allens and so on.

The three Electones were ready for practice in the evening. This is the first time I went to this Festival. Eventually we found a large hall and we moved the EL900 and the Stagea there for contestants to practice on. Contestants either somehow found their way to the hall, stumbled across it, or we managed to 'phone them. Most of the contestants managed to practice that evening.

From Milton Keynes in the South to Blackpool in the North East. Because of traffic condition and we needed to make a detour to East of England, the whole journey took us about 7 hours.

Everyone was tired because of the long travel. But no one appeared to be nervous at this stage. There was a scare when a contestant could not access her data on the stagea. But Chris Stanbury came to the rescue and fixed the problem with the floppy disk drive (nothing wrong on the Stagea, if you are wondering!!)

	Yoshiki Kawamoto practicing on EL900
	Ni Zhe Practicing on Stagea

While we were about to retire for the evening, a phone call came to me, the group from Shanghai had just arrived! The first group that arrived earlier that day had a somewhat "torturous" journey, long and in completely unknown territory. The second group flew in to a London airport and a friend met them and took them to London Euston train station. The friend then sent them off on the train to Preston. They then changed to the connecting train to go to Blackpool North station. Unbeknown to them, Chris Stanbury (one of the adjudicators) was also on the train and he did think they could well be competitors from China!

Manchester Theatre. The Tenerife (Spain) group arrived in the UK on Wednesday. They visited Mancester and Liverpool before going to Blackpool on Friday 12th May.

It was only this evening that I knew who managed to attend the Final stage Competition. Apart from one contestant, all the others managed to arrive that day: three from Tenerife (Spain), four from England and Scotland, three from Guangzhou, one from Shenyang, and four from Shanghai (the last three are provinces in China).

After breakfast, we moved the EL900 and Stagea to Prince Theatre which was just next door. Arranging the stage did not take long since the stage manager was very helpful. At about 930am, the EL900 was ready, followed by the Stagea and then the EL90. Contestants then started practicing, sometimes using headphone so that two or three people could practice together without interfering the others.

As the stage preparation was under way, the trophies were for the first time taken out of the box for display at the front of the stage. Did the contestants come to have a look at the trophies? Don't think so! I won't bear the pressure if I was a contestant! Ha!

During the morning when contestants were practicing, people who attended the Festival would come in to see what's happening. Some lingered for a few minutes. Some returned later in the morning. A few stayed most of the morning, just taking in the sight and sound of contestants (and organizers) getting ready. In most of the Electone shows and Electone Festivals I have been involved in, I have rarely been in the audience, and never have I sat through a practice or rehearsal. I think it's an unusual experience, if not also a good educational experience, for the audience to witness contestants practicing: contestants sometimes were still adjusting their techniques or registration, hitting their nerves and finding ways to cope; they drew from their reserves to prepare and enjoy the Competition.

At the same time, being a contestant during this practice time is probably one of the toughest experience as you sat and waited for the moment you could go up to practice. All the preparation now filtered down to this point in time and at this location.

Anyway, last minute changes meant that we decided to start the Competition at 1pm. We allowed more time for contestants to get ready, and for the audience to have time to have their lunch before coming to the Competition.

Photos of some contestants. Above: Back row: Zhao Jingwei and Lai Shupeng, middle row: Ni Zhe, Ren Xuefei, Silvia Corona Gonz¨￠lez, Luke Smith and Yoshiki Kawamoto; front row: Ikuko Yokoyama, Alicia Desir¨| and Raquel Luc¨aa. Below: Alicia, Ikuko, Silvia, Yoly Su¨￠rez, Raquel and Yoshiki
	Yoshiki Kawamoto and Phebe Mann, with Prince Theatre in the background
	Setting up Prince Theatre Stage

	Chris Stanbury encouraging contestants before they started Competition
	Ikuko Yokoyama (Jupiter) The Throne Room (EL900)

Matt Richardson began the proceeding with a brief welcome (as our time was short) and then introduced Chris Stanbury. Chris entertained everyone in the hall with a variety of music from his Stagea to set the scene for the rest of the day. Chris also said encouraging words to the contestants to make sure that they would be able to focus on their performance and do their best.

Cai Hui (Jupiter) Férie (EL900)

Matt Richardson then said a few words about the Competition and the contestants. The Venus Cateogory was for contestants with about grade 8 (Yamaha) standard and/or who have performed not more than twice in public in the past year. The Jupiter Category was for contestants with about grade 6 standard or higher and/or who have performed more than twice in public in the past year.

The two categories in practice are not that much difference, although some competitors' hitherto experience did give them an additional "edge" as they drew from their experience of having performed regularly in public. The categories were designed this way in order to attract a wider range of contestants than it might do using an age-based division (a younger player may have much more performing experience, or have passed a much higher grade examination, than an older player.)

Anyway, the Competition began.... For the video recording of the Competition, you can order the Competition DVD on the ES Plaza. You may also like to have a look at the Competition Poster and the programme of the day. You can also use the finalists page to see who played what music and on which model.

Hayley Gibbs (Jupiter) Lord of the Dance [arranged by Joanna Clarke] (EL90)

Silvia Corona González (Jupiter) Well You Needn't (EL900)	Jiang Wenchun (Venus) Symphonic Rhapsody No.2 'Genesis of Century' (EL900)
Zhao Jingwei (Venus) Cat (EL900)	Luke Smith (Venus) Big Band Medley (EL900)

For the record, the way we decided upon the sequence in which finalists came on the stage to play was by lots. This was done about 10 minutes before the respective category started, because this was the only time when all the finalists were together. Also, we had a 15-minute break between the Venus and Jupiter Categories which was a good respite for the audience and contestants. The adjudicators used this time to discuss the performances so far. We also had a 15-minute break after the Jupiter performances, where they made their final decisions.

In terms of timing, while we started the proceeding an hour later than planned, we reached the end about 30 minutes later than planned.

Adjudicators: Chiho Sunamoto, Prof Roger Windmill and Chris Stanbury during the Competition. It's a pint of lager the gentleman (behind Chris) is holding in his hand, not a pistol!

Trophies! Phebe getting the Competition ready

Evening Concert performers: Wang Xiaowei, Qi Liang, Jiang Wenchun, Ren Xuefei, Luke Smith, Hayley Gibbs, Zhao Jingwei (we ran out of time to include his performance) and Lai Shupeng	Matt Richardson and Talent Winners performers: Lai Shupeng, Alicia Desiré, Raquel Lucía, Jiang Wenchun, Qi Liang, Ren Xuefei and Wang Xiaowei
>The Electone Society would like to thank all performers who took extra effort to perform in the Evening Concert and the Talent Winners

Firstly, the support from Sceptre Promotions was again outstanding throughout our preparation for the Competition. They had given numerous ideas in our planning and programming, as well as making things easy for us so we would just concentrate on the show itself. While we were there, the staff also unreservedly gave us numerous help and advice to ensure that the programme run effectively. Secondly, the competitors have done marvellously in their performances. They have also shown phenomenal courage in the few hours leading to the Competition, and also sustaining for another day to perform in the Talent Winners. Thirdly, the decisions from the adjudicators, to be honest, have pleasantly surprised me. They have stuck to their responsibilities as adjudicators (as well as their roles as examiners, performers and show choreographers). They delivered the decisions jointly but independently of anyone else. Fourthly, those in the audience who thought they could contribute to the goal of the Electone Society by offering us "helpful criticisms" did not verbalise their comments to any of us directly. If they did so, some of the competitors did not have enough command of the English language to fully comprehend them. Fifthly, the Festival organizers offered tremendous support for us in the way they started and ended each of the three programmes. You can see this in the DVD. They made a resounding start to each programme so that it became easy for Matt to start the programme immediately. As Matt finished the programme, the organizer made sure we had more exposure by saying kinds words about our events, and inviting the contestants back on stage for the audience to show their appreciation and to take photos. The events were commented by several audience to be free concerts of world class standard. Not sure where we were going, but we had a very good time! Shanghai contestants (Gang of Four?) The tower in the background is Blackpool Tower. Maybe next time we will visit that?

Dinner on Sunday, after we finnished all engagements! Time to relax and share gossips!     Contestants, organizers and supporters visited Blackpool on Sunday after dinner

I want to express my deepest gratitude to Matt Richardson for his unrelenting enthusiasm for the Competition, and the unsurmountable interest in making the contestants feel at home in Blackpool, making sure we do our best to make things easy for them. From the point when we tried to find a place to set up the Electones to practice on Friday, to the point when you tracked down the contestants as they were getting on the taxi to leave the Centre for Blackpool train station, you had done so much that the contestants went back with a lot of good memories beyond the Competition. Thank you very much, Matt!

For the rest of the reflection, I shall split it into two sub-sections: the audience and the contestants (including those who participated only in the Preliminary).

The Competition was witnessed by an audience ranging from about 200 to 400. I didn't actually count all the heads. People went in and out throughout the day. This is customary in such Festivals when parallel programmes take place all day and all week long. The Evening Concert was witnessed by a full capacity audience, I think 1200.

I noticed too that a number of people sat through the entire practice time of the Competition. Some sat through the entire practice time leading to the Evening Concert and the Talent Winners.

What struck me most was the large amount of people coming to us to offer words of encouragement. Many wanted to get near to the contestants to say hello and congratulate them, as well as to take photos. At the end of the Talent Winners, a couple came to talk to us for about 15 minutes. They were Mr P. and Mrs E. Brown. Mrs Brown was keen to say that they had listened to all three of our events. All the three times Jiang Wenchun played her piece ("Genesis of Century"), it brought tears to Mrs Brown's eyes.

Mr Brown said many thought-provoking things to us as well as several contestants. The following was his own writing: "The Chinese girls and boys work very hard and we in England can learn from their advanced playing. Please come back again."

Mrs Brown said what's remarkable with some of the performances was the way different parts/sections of the music seemed to flow continuously, even though there were changes in rhythm, meter, texture and so on.

One audience made the remark that people should pay to watch the finalists because they were all of very high standard. Numerous people said to us that having watched all the finalists perform, they found a new sense of satisfaction ("it has made my day").

Congratulations to the winners! 祝贺所有的获奖者！
These images were captured out of my own camcorder footage. You will see the prize giving in full in the Competition DVD 这组照片是从我本人拍摄的相片中摘取出来的。 您将在DVD中可以观看整个颁奖仪式。
Venus 1st prize: Jiang Wenchun 2nd prize: Lai Shupeng Joint 3rd prize: Qi Liang and Zhao Jingwei 金星组 一等奖：蒋 汶淳 二等奖：来书鹏 并列三等奖：齐梁， 赵经伟	Jupiter 1st prize: Ren Xuefei 2nd prize: Wang Xiaowei 3rd prize: Cai Hui 木星组 一等奖：任雪飞 二等奖：王晓伟 三等奖：蔡慧

My sincere thanks to all the finalists who made it to Blackpool this year. My utmost respect for all of you in your friendliness and youradmirable characters going through the motion of the Competition and yet enjoying the experience. To complete the line up for the Competition, my thanks goes to Hayley Gibbs for bringing her own EL90 Electone, and Chris Stanbury for giving the Competition a tremendous start and the contestants a calm start with your encouraging words, as well as allowing us to use your Stagea!

I also want to thank all those who took interest in the Competition whether you eventually entered the Competition or not. If you remember, the first step of the Competition was to enter the Preliminary Stage (closing date 1st Dec 2005). Here, I want to thank all of you who entered the Preliminary stage. Selection was very difficult due to the standard of your performance based on your audio recording. For various unavoidable reasons, some contestants had to withdraw at this stage. Even in the Final stage, several contestants had to withdraw due to other commitments they could not avoid. The act of applying to the Preliminary, with an audio recording of your own playing, is a major achievement in itself. I want to acknowledge your commitment to the Competition and even though you may not have made it to the Final in Blackpool, your participation had brought a lot of excitement (hoping you would come to Blackpool) and enjoyment (listening to your recording) to the Society. So, please be assured of our attention to you who participated in the Preliminary. We will take note of your future participation in our Competitions.

Hayley Gibbs playing in Competition

Selection of Finalists took a few days as we were keen to inform the contestants as soon as possible. The result was published and all contestants informed in mid December 2005. All those who were successful in being selected for the Final were required to apply to enter the Final. When they applied, they could state a different music that they would play in the Final. We want to acknowledge your interest in electronic organ playing. I hope what we do in this Competition goes some way in encouraging you in your music making, when electronic organ playing amongst young people is a rarity outside of Asia. You represent several countries in this Competition. Let's hope that Electone interest will multiply in your countries following this Competition!

Wang Xiaowei (Jupiter) Piano Concerto No. 1 Op.23 Third Movement [Tchikovsky] (Stagea)   Qi Liang playing in Talent Winners

There was a contestant (contestant "A") who did not get on the Final list of contestants and was put on waiting list. "A" contacted me several times to check if anyone had withdrawn from the list. In fact, another contestant ("B") later did withdraw due to school work commitment. "A" eventually made it to the Final and won a prize. Such were the spirits of these contestants. "B" was so disappointed about not being able to participate in this Competition that the family immediately placed an order for the DVD.

Many of the contestants had to rearrange their work or study schedule to come to the Competition. It has brought to my attention as the contestants were going home that some of them had to take their school examinations in order to be at the Competition, and some also had examinations to take the next day after they arrived home! I hope that all of you have done very well in your examinations. Thank you for sacrificing so much to make this Competition such a success!

Contestants letting off pressure by playing in the arcade!

Another contestant ("C") had to endure ill health even when leaving home. "C" did not feel well the whole weekend. In spite of that, "C" played extremely well in the Competition. "C" also went with us on a brief tour of Blackpool. To "C" (you know who you are), we hope you are feeling much better now. We want to specially acknowledge your spirit in the Competition, despite all the problems you faced even though we only came to know of it indirectly after the Competition. Thank you.

I would also like to acknowledge the support and guidance from teachers, friends and family members of each contestants. A special note of gratitude to the UK Embassy / Visa Offices in China that made it possible for the contestants there to come to the UK.

Blackpool Festival programme. Wish you were here?

Interested in some video previews? Note that the following files were experimental transfers on my home equipment. I took these before passing the tapes to a professional team to prepare the DVD. So what you see in these files are of lower quality. But the idea here is to give you an idea of the sight and sound of the Blackpool events. When I get the final DVD, I will see if I can extract a few minutes from it so that you get an idea of the DVD.

Please click on the following to download the files. The server may be slow, so you are better off saving them on your computer first before playing.

Evening Concert DVD extracts

1	Opening: Wang Xiaowei - Lai Shupeng 1.41 minutes		small (17MB) large (86MB)
2	Middle: Hayley Gibbs - Luke Smith 1.32 minutes		small (16MB) large (76MB)
3	Closing: Qi Liang - credits 3.04 minutes		small (31MB) large (164MB)

We will be happy to take your order for the Competition DVD. Please go to the ES Plaza.

After Talent Winners, Jiang Wenchun, Qi Liang, David Wong, Phebe Mann and Ren Xuefei

Shanghai contestants with Esther Liu. Special thanks to Esther for helping out in the Competition

PS The Electone Society also runs other small-scale events (e.g. Sept 2005 workshop). We are looking for sponsors as well as for volunteers in all aspects of what the Society does. A few more helpers will make the work lighter for each of us, and together we can reach our goals quicker. Please don't wait for us to contact you because we don't know you are there waiting to be asked. We have plans to put in action, we just need performers and/or helpers. You contact us, we action the plans.

David Wong
Electone Society