Quartet Work @ Lasalle with Rick Smith, Stacey-Jane Douglas and James Heng

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Last Sunday I visited Lasalle College of the Arts to work on some quartet material with Rick Smith, Stacey-Jane Douglas and James Heng. Even though  I flirted with the idea of studying a Lasalle after my National Service, and subsequently taught several students who were interested in studying there, I had never actually visited the campus prior to this gathering.

It is a gorgeous and inspiring campus and I envy the students enrolled there.

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lasalle-college-of-the-arts-foyer02I am very grateful to Stacey for organizing the get-together and I am also very thankful that we could find a time to meet in spite of my nightmarish schedule.

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It was also nice to meet Rick Smith. I have always seen him around classical guitar events but we never formally cross paths or worked on any material together. He’s a really nice guy and an exceptional musician.

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And as always, it was nice to work with my long-term  partner in crime, James Heng. It just occurred to me that we’ve known each other for around 10 years now!

We worked on a variety of music together, but one of the most notable pieces we tried was a quartet arrangement of Quantock Prospect by Patrick Benham, which Patrick specially arranged for Stacey.

From left to right: Dedrick Koh, James Heng, Stacey-Jane Douglas and Rick Smith.
From left to right: Dedrick Koh, James Heng, Stacey-Jane Douglas and Rick Smith.

Lately, I’ve relished working with creative people again. Having started my career in creative industries, the creative professional and musician in me feels at home working with creative people in creative surroundings. The no-holds barred atmosphere of free expression and experimentation is a breath of fresh air.

I’m supposed to host and organise the next meeting and I’m looking forward to it!

Author: Dedrick Koh

Dedrick Koh is an acclaimed , fully-booked classical guitar teacher who teaches from his home studio at Sengkang. He has been teaching the classical guitar since 2006 and has successfully prepared students for ABRSM and Trinity exams and he holds a flawless 100% pass rate, and a 90% merit/distinction rate for his students. He was previously an instructor cum assistant conductor at Ngee Ann Polytechnic Strings under Alex Abisheganaden . Dedrick Koh is also a former public relations and communications specialist, having carved out a notable 10-year career in both the public and private sector. He has work for/on brands like Nanyang Polytechnic, Coca Cola, DHL, Nokia, Nestle, the Health Promotion Board, the Economic Development Board of Singapore and the President Challenge. He also also been featured in the Straits Time, the New Paper, and CNN.

4 Replies to “Quartet Work @ Lasalle with Rick Smith, Stacey-Jane Douglas and James Heng”

  1. This really gives a great insight into your wonderful creative environment. Thanks too for the mention of my piece. It makes me feel part of the project despite being so far away!

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