Bevlyn Khoo

OK so I’ve been back for 1 week, so maybe it’s about time I share some photos and my voyage!

My Europe trip was packed, with great views + nice friends to catch up + random friendly people (+ horrifying incidents which I may share if I have time)… I was most pleased to catch up with some friends, and also to experience for myself the change from Spring to Summer (i’m curious cos it’s summer all-year round here), and of course La Fete De La Musique (Music festival)!

So I bunked in with a friend who lives very near to Notre Dame, so I walked by this area really often…it’s cool, but after some time, it became too busy and crowded for me cos there were simply too many tourists (the pot calling the kettle black haha).

On the first day there, I went to my favourite corner of Paris, Montmartre. On the way near Sacre Coeur, I saw this lovely couple performing and I was so thrilled. They even performed ‘La Vie En Rose’ without me requesting!

And I had a good time looking at the paintings and all sorts of creativity at Montmartre (and fighting off artists offering to paint portraits of me for free). Then I chanced upon this artist, and I like his work very much. It’s charming that he actually painted for all to see at that time:

Anyway, I was walking so much for the whole trip, there were times I just want to do what the bird did (above). My poooor feeeet!

On the 3rd day, I went to Versailles! I’d been to Paris on other occasions, and this time round, I made sure I do a visit there. I dedicated 1 whole day to it yet I could not finish touring because it’s simply humongous! This is really one of the days when I wish deep in my heart that someone can plonk me and my heavy bag on a cart. The scenery was really breath-taking though:

(Above) The castle at the back and the nicely designed and trimmed garden.

This fountain is not even the middle of the whole area…See how it stretches on and on…

(Above) I really love the flowers…a lot of heart and thought and efforts must have gone into making this so beautiful.. (Below) And these are cute huh! (yes I live in a concrete jungle, deal with my silliness)

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I wish I had more time to just sit there for the whole afternoon, or do some canoeing and picnic… (below)

This room is kinda cool with the harp and the antique piano (I’d want it minus the scary mirror and the curtains). I’d speak with the King later in my dreams

Anyway I just want to say that angels are disguised as old gentlemen in France. 2 stories to support my claim:

1) When I was on my way to Versailles on RER C, I didn’t know I had to change my train to another. I was happily shooting video inside the train, then suddenly an old gentleman called out to me “Versailles!?” “Il faut que vous changiez le train!” (It is necessary that you change the train). I just blindly followed him and be led to the connecting train. Imagine if I didn’t meet him….and he was so nice and friendly to me!

2) I decided to go to Pere Lachaise to visit the tomb of Edit Piaf, and I actually forgot to take a map at the entrance. Initially I thought “Hey i can do this! i have sorta memorised the tombs’ locations!” And I was soooo wrong. After 10-15mins, I realised I was totally lost. And just when I was about to drag my feet back to the entrance, an old man spoke to me from behind. To cut the long story short, he was so nice to offer to be my personal ‘tour guide’ so that I don’t go back to get a map. He took me to the tomb of Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde and some others. I realised I missed Stephane Grappelli’s one!

Tomb of Edith Piaf: I’m really happy I paid my respect to her….And this one is Oscar Wilde’s…with a lot of kisses and ‘i love you’ by his fans…

It’s funny because at the start of the conversation, he told me he lives ‘à coté’ (beside), and I imagined for a split second which tomb he’s ‘living’ next to. I’m crazy…

And ta-dah! Some of the albums I bought…hihi:

Will upload more photos sooooon!! This is probably only 1/3

So I’m back in Paris again, and this time round my visit coincides with the World Cup again. What with the buzz going on, my attention was really on meeting and catching up with FRIENDS, and, FOOD:

The food I had been dreaming for the last 4 yrs - Kebab

Maybe it’s just a kebab…but if you know any other kebabs which beat this, tell me! (btw the kebab is as big as my face)

And, my french friend Dim is so nice to bring me to a nice French restaurant, and the duck confit is to die for (in my opinion). Everything is just right and balanced (the skin, the meat, the juice, the fat):

And the dessert Ile Flottante (Floating island) as the name implies:

It was really a very enjoyable evening (minus the jetlag):

And another friend invited me to this nice restaurant called Bel Canto. What’s so interesting is, the waiters and waitresses break into song(s) in between your bites, and everyone stops talking/eating to look and listen at the performers. The waiters/performers we had that night are all professional singers (as opposed to some of the others who are music students), and the arias they did were simply breath-taking!!

Ok, more updates later! France vs Mexico tmr!

I like today!

“It’s like graduation day for you; after seven years of erratic Uranus in your sign, you are finished studying at the School of Unexpected Changes. Today, Uranus leaves fishy Pisces to enter enterprising Aries and your 2nd House of Self-Worth. You are beginning a long-lasting phase when you can improve your self-esteem and find ways to increase your income. Start by setting new goals at work but remember that the improvements will not happen overnight.”

Everything is timed…Everything in its time

I totally agree with her that there’s no way one can explain how one genuinely writes a song….More often than not, it’s a passing thought which is captured…and if I am under the right conditions to continue be absorbed into it….a song is born.

And this is such a powerful song, and of course sung by a powerful and very convincing singer…

If you prefer the lyrics version:

I stumbled across this song by Fergie…and I think it is really a beautiful song. Beautiful vocals, beautiful emotions, beautiful words, beautiful melody, beautiful arrangement.

Finally

Now my destiny can begin

Though it will have a different set

Something strange and new is happening…

22 Mar, exactly a month after my birthday is when I receive a couple of presents. But the wait was worth it…My crazy friends actually bought me (in partial… hence forcing me to pay the rest of it haha) a limited edition Taylor Swift baby guitar! Only 10 pieces in Spore so far…woooooooo…….I’m so happy! So we had this little jamming session at the resto after I’ve opened up the huge box…

And Tienyao and Ein tested the guitar, and Joey even sang! We really terrorised the resto, even though we were already tucked at one corner far away from the rest of the patrons. Here’s a closeup of the guitar (you have to use a mirror to see the reflection for the words haha):

I’m not a HUGE Taylor Swift fan…but I love watching her perform, and the love and simplicity she has for music. I love the fact that this guitar has the words ‘Love’, and ‘Fearless’ written on it. What great reminders, especially before a performance

And my dear French friend Dimitri sent me this CD, giving me such a fantastic surprise! I certainly didn’t ‘wait’ for this, so for the fact that I didn’t wait for it, the surprise is, SWEET.

The album is by Bénabar, titled ‘Infréquentable’. You may preview the music here.

This is my favourite song (so far):

Thank you to all of you for being my crazy friends. I am so in love.

Hello guys, so I’ve been slacking with my blog updates. Sometimes I just imagine I have already shared what I’d like to share, but of course, it was only imagination. This time round, it’s not laziness at work…many things happened and time just flew by….

My baby wedding-singing group A Little Dream had our AGM again on 30 Jan, nothing formal because AGM stands for Annual Gossiping Meeting afterall. I wish we had more moving space (cos the area was quite small), but it was still heart-warming to see so many of the musicians make time for this meetup.

Then….it’s the Chinese New Year celebration! It’s my favourite holidays of all year, mainly because I get to meet and catch up with some of my relatives….Well, Beanie is not a relative, but he is nonetheless quite family!

And yes..everybody’s been asking about my MV…well, some things happened and we decided to reshoot it. We might make it just in time for the 1st year anniversary of the album ha. But I want it good, it’s ok. At least we had a lot of fun heee:

A lot of things have been delayed….if you believe in astrology, it’s because Mars turned retrograde during this period. Yes….I do believe in all these, haha! (It just turned direct recently, so yeah!)

We had this MV re-shoot on the eve of my birthday celebration. We didn’t quite sleep, hence by the time it was the birthday dinner, I was ZOMBIFIED. Nobody really seemed to notice, maybe because Cafe Iguana was sooooo dark. I’m so blessed to have this group of friends!

And then….the E-awards pre-show event “姜是本地辣” on 27 Feb 2010 @ Bugis Junction. Definitely an honour to be invited back to perform for the organisation after they awarded my EP album with “2009 Best Local Indie Album” last year. This category is so encouraging for the local music scene - not only do they root for fellow musicians who have already made it overseas, they are also showing support for many more of us who are really just trying to reach out to a wider audience. This time round, I played the piano and sing, and had Jixiang to back me on his guitar. I love it! The first thing to strike me when I arrive at the scene was, “Who are all these people with professional BIG and LONG camera lens?” I really don’t think all of them are from the media…how interesting. I’d really like to know!

Someone from Facebook took this photo of me….and I LOVE it. Mainly because I have NO…IDEA…just…what…I…was…doing….ha ha ha ha ha….!

And of course, I went overseas to record the French album of my dreams. But that’ll be another entry when I’ve more time. Going to watch Pink Martini’s concert now. Tata!

….of holdin my head up high all the time…Isn’t it tiring if you keep looking into the sky?

Like a kite on a draft flowing toward the ground….I just need a lift…

But I’m so heavy…..so tired…With constant reminders of real deaths, and manoeuvrings amongst unknowns….

Is it me? Again?

But I did all that I could. It was a different set of situation. I gave my best.

Is this what life is about?

I need the freedom to create. The freedom to take charge in what I believe in.

Do you believe in me?

I do. Because I know myself the best. No second person can claim that.

The wind blows in all directions. Maybe it’s my time to rest a while.

I just attended Babyface’s concert…he’s such an amazing songwriter (and singer). R&B and soul is my love, and I basically grew up listening to his songs…

Maybe I just need to re-find my soul.

Remember my little post last Oct?

It has always been a secret wish…for my works to be part of a movie soundtrack.

And my wish came true tonight! It is actually a project by Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s 2009 Grad students from the Film Sound and Video course (School of Film and Media Studies). 6 groups produced a short film of approx 15min each and voila! Many people’s dreams came true yesterday night, because the films were screened at GV, Great World City!

Funnily, the students used the demo I anyhow-recorded at home as the ending song. Not ideal (cos I hear all the mistakes and lack of right reverb etc lol), but definitely all in good spirit

I am most happy to be involved in one of the films, specifically a musical titled ‘Love Story’. The pride I got when I hear actor Rayve sing my song with the emotions and all that jazz on the big screen - priceless! (Incidentally Rayve is the actor in the recent Koka advertisement which I loveeeee.)

Many thanks to people I’ve come to known because of the film: Calvin, Singwei, Jean (for the wonderful arrangement to my song), JJ, Marilyn, and many others for making this such a memorable one for me. It’s my first time doing this, but definitely one of good experience! Hope for many more of such to come. Here’s the trailer for you: