07/06/2026

theSunday Special III ON SUNDAY JUNE 7, 2026

Have fun, feel the joy It is said that Johann Sebastian Bach inspired many jazz pianists, with the legendary German composer becoming an honorary member of the jazz pantheon. “His pieces are used as a foundation for improvisation by jazz musicians. There are musicians who play Bach jazz and singers too like the Swinglers, a UK-based a cappella vocal group.” The trio must have impressed, as the band is now off to the Bachfest Leipzig starting June 14. “We’ll be flying off in two weeks, and will perform as WVC Jazz Ensemble. It’s a first for us,“ said a visibly thrilled Tay. According to Bachfest Leipzig, WVC will be presenting a special programme titled Malayan Dialogues with Bach , which reinterprets the immortal classical creations of the 18th century maestro through a “unique Malaysian jazz lens”. The band will comprise Tay on piano, AJ on bass, Adriel on drums, tenor Tan Chee Shen, bamboo flautist Tan Jie and Vicky Ramakrishna on tabla . “Jazz is a niche genre. In a way, it is an achievement to know WVC has survived. “The core members are still the same. We have a common goal, to play music and have fun. “It’s great to have like-minded members. I learn much from them. Like AJ, he’s always bubbly and happy. “Early in my career, I did feel depressed. How can I make it as a jazz musician? People didn’t understand. But AJ said, have fun lah . I thought about it. Yes, we should have fun, because if we do, then the audience will feel the joy too. So, I appreciated his viewpoint. “This coming from the eldest in his family, who was told by his parents when he said he wanted to be a musician: ‘Are you kidding?’” Sense of giving back The years have packed many memories for this father of two, with not just performances, such as at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre and Damansara Performing Arts (where the music proved too irresistible not to dance to), but also teaching and talks, including TEDx events. One such recent talk was to a group of students in UTM Skudai in Johor. “One side of us pondered whether it was worthwhile to do this, another side of us wanted to help the students who took the initiative to put up the event and were willing and daring to ask for participation from professionals of different fields. “So, we said yes. It took us three and half hours to drive in the early morning to arrive for sound-check, getting to know the students, and then we did our thing. No payment!” They also took the opportunity to visit an old friend in nearby Kulai, a Mr Tan who was one of the earliest hosts of WVC’s tours. This sense of giving back he credits to jazz doyen Michael Veerapen. “He set up the whole ecosystem for jazz in Malaysia, I feel. I just met him this morning. Thanks to his status in the music arena, jazz took off in Malaysia. “He led us younger musicians to try new arenas. It was unselfish, as he just wanted to see young people make a living with music. Enjoy it, then you can do more and lift the music scene,” said Tay. He in turn helped Veerapan with The Malaysian Real Book , compiled by the Malaysian Jazz Piano Festival Committee. It documents a comprehensive repertoire of the country’s musical heritage. Priceless performances on train Tay’s journey as a musician also saw him take on gigs with the Eastern & Oriental

piano stool!” “

Tay relaxing at his home while surrounded by his favourite keyboard and books on music and literature. – SUBHADRA DEVAN/THESUN

Adrien will be saxophonists Farid Izwan and Julian Chan, singers Janet Lee, Junji Delfino and Izen Kong, and narrator Lim Soon Heng. He teases: “The set list will have Bach, our favourites and a new piece called Cat In The Box .” The WVC 20 Malaysian Jazz Ensemble anniversary concert promises to be an unforgettable ride. Tickets and details on CloudJoi.com.

Sometimes when the train is making a curve, I need to engage my core to make sure I don’t fall down from the

whole keyboard fell on the floor. “The music kept going, I was playing bending down until the end of the song. It could have been a disaster, but we turned things around and made it gold.” He is now all geared up for the 20th anniversary concert at D Theatre at Hextar World Empire City in Damansara on July 23. “It’s going to feature cats,” he reveals with a grin. “It will start with Schrödinger’s Cat. It’s a famous 1935 thought experiment in quantum physics, and a way of saying that if you can’t see the result of a yes-or no question, the answer is ‘yes and no’ until you check.” Tay pauses to greet and let in a team from China Press , allowing me a breather to ponder on this concept of his. “You jazz cats are always interesting,” I tell him. He laughs, and continues: “Yes, there’s going to be a lot of cats. “The premise is that the cat in the box is alive and dead, at the same time. So, one has to open the box to find out. “It’s a bit like our journey, like Bach jazz, you don’t know unless you try, so open the box and see. “When I think back, WVC’s journey was like that. I am not saying there was no struggle, but the positives were always bigger.” On stage with Tay, AJ and

Award-winning veteran jazz vocalist Junji Delfino will join the anniversary concert. Express train. “Playing piano on the train does need some martial arts training, as our rails are narrow gauge. So, sometimes when the train is making a curve, I need to engage my core to make sure I don’t fall down from the piano stool! “The romantic notions of the scenery flying by while music is going on is quite unique and priceless.” He recounted one incident when during a heated moment for the drum solo, his keyboard stand gave up and the

Izen Kong lends his voice as well at the anniversary bash.