High Note From Legal Eagle
By Intan Maizura Ahmad Kamal
SHE’S a legal eagle with a voice that’ll reduce you to tears – in a good way, writes INTAN MAIZURA AHMAD KAMAL.
Her dream musical is Broadway’s Jekyll And Hyde, and in a way, the genial Cheong Whye Mun is a bit like that, albeit in a nice way.
By day, she’s an in-house lawyer for a foreign bank; by night, or whenever she gets the chance, the 36-year-old brings the house down with her beautiful voice.
“People are surprised when they find out that I’m a singing lawyer because when I’m at work, I’m really quite serious,” she says with a giggle.
“It’s not common for people to meet someone who has a ‘seriously proper’ day job and yet can just put together a gig whenever she feels like it.”
The talented soprano who’s been singing solo for the last eight years is looking forward to lending her voice (as a guest soloist along with Geoffrey Woo) to a forthcoming production, a musical called A Grand Night For Singing with the Canticle Singers, a voluntary and accomplished vocal group with a passion for music.
Proceeds from the show will go towards Rumah Juara, an established children’s home located in Petaling Jaya.
There’ll be a rich collection of choral music and solos comprising loved Broadway numbers as well as top hits from the pop, jazz, rock, folk and gospel genre to look forward to.
The repertoire will include choral medleys from Oliver, Lion King, Fiddler On The Roof, Mamma Mia! and Miss Saigon. There’ll also be individual numbers from Sweeney Todd, Light In The Piazza, West Side Story as well as hit compositions by Earth Wind and Fire, Simon and Garfunkel, Queen and other artistes.
“I’m very excited,” confides Cheong, who’s a huge fan of musicals. “On my part I’ll be singing two solos – a song from King And I called Something Wonderful and Somewhere, from West Side Story.
Cheong, who cites Les Miserables and Miss Saigon as two of her favourite musicals, prefers to sing ballads.
With a chuckle, she confides that her friends used to tag her the `queen’ of tragic ballads. “I used to get so choked up whenever I got too much into the songs. They’re so incredibly moving.”
Continuing, the Aries recalls: “Back in 2005, a couple of friends and I got together and we did a review of songs from different musicals that we liked. The theme running through the show was love songs; any genre and we called it Aspects Of Broadway’ It was from here that people got to know about what I do best.
“Even now when I perform for a show, I’d mix jazz with musicals because most people who attend would be looking for my signature trademark – musicals.”
But the balladeer from Ipoh has moved on somewhat with her repertoire and today, as she beamingly confesses, does “happy, happy” love songs as well as jazz and other popular songs!
Cheong, whose other passions in life include good food and wine, began singing with the Selangor Philharmonic Choir in 1996 and has sung in most of their productions including Haydn’s Creation and Carmina Burana.
To further her passion for music, she underwent classical training with baritone, Cha Seng Tiang, which subsequently improved her technique and expanded her vocal range tremendously.
“I used to sing with my university choir when I was studying at Britain’s University of Birmingham,” says Cheong.
“I got into musicals after catching a few West End shows like Joseph And His Technicolour Dreamcoat, Miss Saigon, when I was in London for a year doing my Bar. I was so inspired.”
Did she enjoy singing as a child? She nods enthusiastically. “I knew I could carry a tune since very young but never thought I could sing very well. Growing up, my parents (dad was a businessman and mum worked in a bank) never sent me to vocal classes but I did get to learn the piano.”
The eldest of four siblings (she has three brothers), Cheong, who admits that she’s not the sort that sings in the shower or at home, loves what she does as a lawyer but at the same time, is passionate about her singing.
“I don’t get to indulge much in the latter because of my hectic work commitments,” says the big fan of Belgian-Italian songbird, Lara Fabian. “I sing when I get the chance and I practice, with a piano, only when I have a show coming. I’d run through my music, the lyrics and see how I’d want to interpret them.”
Asked why she loves to sing, her expressive face instantly lights up. “That’s how I share my feelings – through the songs that I pick. It’s my way of expressing myself.”
* A Grand Night For Singing will be staged at Lambang Sari at Istana Budaya from July 16-20, 8.30pm with 3pm shows (Sat & Sun). Tickets from RM48. Call Axcess at 03-77115000 or visit www.axcess.com.my.
(c) 2008 New Straits Times. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.