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June 24, 2006

Tokyo Concert Sharing (21 April at NHK Hall)

Written by ‘N’ from Hong Kong (8 May)

My friends said I was crazy, when I made a last minute decision on 17 April to fly over from Hong Kong to Tokyo to see Leehom’s concert at NHK Hall (21 April).

I told my friends I just could not resist! I saw Leehom’s live performance at his autograph sessions in Ximending last Dec, his round-the-world tour concerts at the Taipei Arena, and I just missed his performance so much after seeing him at the APM during his Hong Kong trip on Good Friday. I knew it was worth going.

It was not easy to make all the arrangements to fly over to Tokyo at the last minute.

First, I have to get a concert ticket. It would not have been possible to get hold of my concert ticket without the help of a Japanese fan whom I’ve only just met when I attended Leehom’s Taipei Arena concert in March.

Then, there’s the problem of getting a flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo – I only managed to get hold of an air ticket the night before the concert! I was then told by my travel agent hotels were pretty full for that weekend and she could not get me into any hotels near the Shibuya area!

I just told myself, it didn’t matter, as long as I got the air ticket to fly over, and a concert ticket, I should be able to find a place to stay in Tokyo. Again, my new Japanese friend came to the rescue. She called around to all the hotels, even late at night, and managed to book a room for me in the Omotesando area! Now, I was finally all set to fly over to attend Leehom’s concert!

However, there were more challenges ahead. On the morning of 21 April, my flight, originally scheduled to depart at 0920, was delayed at the Hong Kong airport and did not depart until 1000 with the new estimated time of arrival being 1500. Throughout the flight I worried if I would still be arriving at Narita airport in time to meet my Japanese friend at around 1630 at the Tokyo JR station. Unfortunately at 1500 the plane was still high up in the air with no signs that the aircraft was going to descend! I asked the air-stewardess, and learned that there was a really bad thunderstorm ahead of us, so we have to wait. I was so worried that I might miss Leehom’s concert… at that moment, I heard a really big ‘bang’! It sounded like an engine failure or the aircraft was hit by something. Alas! We were hit by a hard thunder. I was seated opposite to the air-stewardess, her face went blank, and she looked out of the window to see if the aircraft was still intact…everyone on the plane was shocked, fearing that the aircraft might fall at any time. For myself, maybe because I am a seasoned traveller, or I just kept thinking about Leehom, I remained calm. A few seconds later, the air-stewardess made an announcement that the captain confirmed the aircraft was not damaged by the thunder. Everyone was relieved! Finally, the aircraft touched down at 1530 and I was the first to get off the aircraft, fled to the immigration and customs, and managed to catch the 1615 JR to Tokyo Station.

I made it! At last I reached the Tokyo Station at 1715, still in time to rush to the NHK Hall before the concert started.

This was the very first time I visited the NHK Hall. Though small and compact, it has got a very good atmosphere, especially when Leehom has got a full house for that night. The concert started at around 1910 with Leehom dressed like a King in his ‘Yellow Dragon’ outfit. The rundown of the night was pretty similar to his Taipei Arena concert. But different in the sense that Leehom tried to communicate in Japanese with his fans most of the time. Though I did not understand Japanese, from the way he was received by his Jap friends, I could tell he spoke Japanese very well. It was indeed a very interactive session. Leehom sang three Japanese songs (if I recalled correctly!) – Dream Again, Forever Love (this was the very first song I liked among Leehom’s pieces, and in fact that night was the first time I heard the Jap version, which was equally awesome to the original Mandarin version! Still my favourite!), and The One and Only (partially in Jap!).

But the climax for the night was the part where Leehom played violin solo on the Theme from Cinema Paradiso. Leehom said this was one of his favorite soundtrack piece. When he started playing, I was just speechless…oh my god…I have heard this piece before on the radio and it was also my favorite even though I did not have a clue as to the name of the song. Leehom’s violin performance was just fascinating. Not only did he demonstrate his superb violin technique, but he played this song so melancholy. I was touched. That moment was like an ecstasy. And I really wished that time will stop and the piece would never end. Everyone in audience, including myself, held our breath, until Leehom played the very last note…

The concert ended with the very last encore piece The One and Only. All the fans were just reluctant to leave and sang happy b-day song for Leehom. Leehom came out again to greet his fans and finally disappeared under a giant round of applause.

Leehom is not only a talented singer, composer, but also an all-rounded musician, whose great works will leave a striking legacy. And I am thankful to Leehom - not only does his music bring joy and happiness to us, but also allows me to make friends from other parts of the world. Without their concerted efforts, I would not have been able to fly over from Hong Kong to join this concert! That night after the concert I went out with other Jap fans to have dinner, and of course, we were still reminiscing about what happened at the concert, and sharing all the news about Leehom. We bid farewell, and looked forward to seeing each other again at Leehom’s next world tour concert.

Editor’s note: The author wishes to remain anonymous as 'N' as shown in the article .

Posted by staff at June 24, 2006 10:04 PM

Comments

Posted by: cc at July 1, 2006 09:55 AM

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