Composer Imee Ooi, a renowned name in Buddhist music circles, has been on a roll this year.
In early 2024, she staged a tour in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore, then she collaborated with Nepali singing nun Ani Choying Drolma in September to perform in the Lotus Resonance Dharma Charity Concert.
That in addition to all her other projects left her little time for respite.
“I thought that was enough because it's exhausting to run a one-woman show, taking on the role of composer, singer, producer, publicity, etc. But then, at the last minute, I decided I needed to do something new and find some new audience to wrap up the year.
“And since there was a slot at the theatre, I said I'll take it up – even if I don't usually do annual concerts,” she says in recent interview.
The Imee Ooi & JSJG Aspiration And Blessing 2024 Year-End Concert will take place at Pentas, 1 KLPac this weekend (Dec 7 and 8).
“This time, there's going to be a drastic change with different visuals and stage presentation compared to the past 10 years. Nothing elaborate but I've put in some heavy, six-figure investment and roped in renowned Singaporean lighting designer Gabriel Chan to transform the stage,” she reveals.
Making an impression
“Besides spreading dharma, we also have to think of the entertainment value. When we went to recce KLPac, the stage manager told us it was the first time this kind of lighting was going to being used – it's only seen in mega shows like Taylor Swift or Coldplay! It's not so much the magnitude of it but the mechanism involved,” says Ooi.
The founder of IMM Musicworks has more than 500 songs in her repertoire and 50 albums to date, the most popular being The Chant Of Metta (1999), in Mandarin and English, which has attracted a global audience.
Metta means loving-kindness in Pali, the lithurgical language of the Theravada Buddhists.
Ooi’s unique musical arrangements combined with her ethereal vocals have resulted in her creating a genre that has transcended religious barriers and touched different cultures and age groups.
In 2015, she founded a male vocal group called JSJG (Jing Shi Jin Gang). The eight members, who will be accompanying her in this concert, are also on a mission to contribute to a better world with songs of loving kindness, peace and light.
Almost 70% of Ooi's concert will include new arrangements of beloved songs as well as new compositions.
She says: “I have hundreds of songs in my catalogue but not all of them are suitable to be presented on stage; some are more for meditation or healing purposes. Concert-type songs cannot be too tranquil or serene.
“I've maintained some of the sing-along songs as well as dug out old songs that have never been presented. There will be a new arrangement to my Heart Sutra and I hope fans will like it."
A festive nod
Since it's Christmas season, Ooi is going to use her nimble fingers on the piano to play Charles Gounod/J.S.Bach's Prelude in C version of the classic hymn, Ave Maria.
Two members of JSJG have been rehearsing hard to do the singing in Latin.
“Playing Bach's Prelude in C brings back childhood memories because my late mother would make me memorise and practise this for finger-discipline. All piano players have to go through this song as it has a consistent rhythm that requires smooth, even finger pressure on the keyboard.
“So, this is like a tribute to her and all the mother figures that I'm still playing the tune out of compassion and love,” says Ooi.
Her mother Tai Cheah Peng was one of the pioneer piano teachers in sleepy Taiping, Perak, where Ooi grew up with her siblings. She trained hundreds of students who are now second and third generation teachers themselves.
Ooi herself was a piano teacher once but has since shifted her focus to Buddhist creative arts.
“My mother was a run of the mill music teacher but I am blessed with this niche talent so I'm putting all my effort into it.
“I have received lots of offers to conduct masterclasses for those who are into singing, composing or playing piano to professional standards but I don't have time at the moment.
“When the time is right, I will do so,” she says.
Imee Ooi & JSJG Aspiration and Blessing 2024 Year-End Concert will take place at Pentas 1, KLPac on Dec 7 (8pm) and Dec 8 (3pm).
