Cheryl’s thoughts: 至少还有你 (At Least There Is You)
Joyce & Melvin’s wedding was a night of firsts for me. It was the first time I had the pleasure of working with the beautiful and quirky Hui Ming, and the talented and patient Wilson.
There were quite a few firsts in the repertoire too, which are now playing on repeat in my head, particularly 我喜欢 (I Like) and 你是我心内的一首歌 (You Are A Song In My Heart) – both super cute and bubbly songs.
It was the first time I’ve seen live feeds of photos taken with guests being projected in the ballroom – super cool! And most importantly, the first time I’ve had so much interaction with guests and couple alike. For the keyboardist who normally stays quietly in the back, it was a memorable experience to say the least.
Joyce and Melvin eschewed the cookie cutter wedding dinner format of video montage 1: childhood photos, video montage 2: day of the wedding and ‘formal speech by wedding couple’, and instead went for simple and sincere.
They spent more time than any other couple I’ve seen mingling with the guests and having their photo taken with various friends and family. Proof of this personal touch was seen projected on the big screens overhead, as I mentioned earlier, and I really was impressed by this.
Seeing baby photos is all very nice, but there’s something really special about seeing a photograph of yourself and the happy couple on their happiest night on the big screen. It was a really special touch, and extremely thoughtful of Joyce and Melvin.
The thoughtfulness and sincerity continued. Joyce herself came to speak with us during the sound check to make sure we were doing alright. During the break between sets, the band had an opportunity to take a photograph with the couple, and although we’d never met before, Joyce and Melvin both eased into friendly bantering and conversation with me, even offering to introduce me to their eligible bachelor friends.
For me, it also spoke volumes about how comfortable they were with each other, to be able to just take things easy and stay relaxed on what can often become the most stressful night of a couple’s life.
While other things can be done away with, the traditional ‘yum seng’ toast is still a must at Chinese wedding dinners. The toasts were given with gusto and enthusiasm, by the young nieces and nephews of the couple and the older aunties and uncles alike. That kicked off the second set, and we soon accumulated a young fan club of sorts.
A group of about 7 to 10 youngsters, getting restless after more than an hour at their seats, started to congregate around the keyboard. Although shy at first, they were soon chatting with me between songs, and sometimes even during songs, telling me about their own piano playing experiences.
The highlight of the night was when the most enthusiastic 7 year old, a nephew of the couple, stood next to me during From This Moment, reading off my lyrics sheet and singing along with Hui Ming! Looks like a potential future member of the ALD team 🙂
At this point, special mention must be given to the title song of this post – 至少还有你 (At Least There Is You). Not only is it now one of my favourite songs to play, with haunting piano lines and emotive singing, the lyrics are really powerful and meaningful. With Hui Ming’s sweet vocals and Wilson’s perfect harmonies, it was my high point of the evening as far as songs go. If you haven’t heard it yet, take a listen!
The perfect end to my wonderfully personal night was when Hui Ming slipped a card to me as we were packing up to leave. I thought it was a complimentary parking ticket, but then I realised that they had printed out the photo of us and Joyce and Melvin, and given each of us three a copy as a keepsake. The photo is now sitting on the shelf above my keyboard at home, a reminder of the evening that Joyce and Melvin shared with us.
Joyce and Melvin, thank you for letting us be a part of your special night, and here’s wishing you a lifetime of happiness and that comfortable companionship together!
Band: Hui Ming, Wilson, Cheryl
L-R: Cheryl, Joyce, Melvin, Hui Ming, Wilson
Repertoire:
I Love You (First march in), Have I Told You Lately, Kiss Me, From This Moment, Love Me, My Valentine, Way Back Into Love, 小手拉大手 (Small Hands Hold Big Hands), 至少还有你 (At Least There Is You), 我喜欢 (I Like), 读你 (Reading You), 今生今世 (In This Lifetime)
L-O-V-E (Second march in), La Vie En Rose, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, 有你真好 (It’s So Good To Have You) 你是我心内的一首歌 (You Are A Song In My Heart), 小夫妻 (Couple), 给你们 (To Give You All), 伴（Partner）, 家后 (Queen Of The House), 手中情 (Holding On To Love)
Compliments:
Hi Cheryl, Hui Ming & Wilson,
Thank you so much for the wonderful performance on our wedding night!
We’ve received very good feedback from our relatives and friends, telling us “It’s so nice to have the live band”, “The performance was marvellous”. You really did us a wonderful favour by helping to leave them with deep memories of our wedding.
Thank you again for making our wedding a joyous and memorable one!!
Cheers
Melvin & Joyce
Songs To Recommend
Joyce and Melvin introduced us to some beautiful songs. Here they are:
给你们 (To Give You All)
伴（Partner)
手中情 (Holding On To Love)
