The Random Truths: May 2010

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Harmoni Mei : Hits Mania.

Alhamdulillah, bulan ini saya kembali mendapatkan undangan untuk menonton live taping HARMONI di Balai Sarbini. Kali ini saya dan @dierabachir duduk di bagian VVIP SCTV, yang ternyata lokasinya tidak jauh berbeda dari VIP. Memang yang paling ampuh undangan dari @asty_ananta, yang lokasinya pas di bagian depan panggung. Bahkan BOD SCTV pun ternyata jatah tempat duduknya di belakang section artis, tsktsktsk.

Tentunya kalau dibandingkan dengan Harmoni itu sendiri, pembahasan tempat duduk langsung menjadi topik yang tidak penting. Karena mau dimanapun tempat duduk kita, tidak terlalu berpengaruh terhadap kepuasan menonton acara ini. Saya bisa jamin, karena saya sudah mencoba hampir semua titik, mulai dari baris ke-4 dari depan, sampai baris no dua dari belakang – dan di setiap kesempatan, saya selalu saja puas dan terkesan dengan persembahan Andi Rianto lewat aransemen-aransemennya yang nggilani kerennya.

Dan hal itupun yang saya rasakan hari Kamis lalu saat menonton Harmoni episode 5 dengan tema Hits Mania. Sekali lagi Andi Rianto membuktikan bahwa lagu apapun bisa diaransemen ulang sehingga menjadi sangat jauh dari kesan alay ataupun kampungan. Seperti “Mau Dibawa Kemana” yang dinyanyikan Rizal “Armada” dengan nuansa bossanova, ataupun “Lupa Lupa Ingat”-nya Kuburan Band yang tiba-tiba berubah menjadi teatrikal, dihiasi dengan duel tinggi-tinggian nada antara Priya “Kuburan” dengan Magenta Singers. Amat sangat menghibur, dan tidak disangka-sangka.

Setiap menonton Harmoni, yang selalu saya rasakan juga adalah rasa kagum pada para vokalis-vokalis band yang biasanya saya (maaf ;P) cela-cela. Karena ternyata kualitas vokal mereka bagus dan sangat bersih. Seperti contohnya Dide “Hijau Daun” di episode ke-2, yang ternyata suaranya tidak kalah disandingkan dengan penyanyi Tenor. Juga Anji “Drive” yang memukau saya di episode ke-4. Dan kali ini saya pun mengubah pandangan saya tentang Ifan “Seventeen”, yang menyanyikan “Selalu Mengalah” dengan aransemen sederhana yang menonjolkan kualitas vokalnya. Memang hebat Andi Rianto, yang bisa mengangkat kelebihan dari setiap vokalis dengan aransemen yang tepat.

Bagian favorit saya dari Harmoni episode kali ini ada dua. Yang pertama adalah Medley lagu cinta yang dibawakan oleh Magenta Singers, backing vocals Magenta Orchestra. Bagian ini sukses membuat saya ndredeg karena begitu indahnya harmoni ke-4 orang Magenta Singers dalam membawakan lagu demi lagu, terutama Nuansa Bening. They sure deserved to take the main stage. Luar biasa. Kemudian yang kedua adalah duet Nania dan Cindy Bernadette yang menyanyikan “Mengenangmu” (Kerispatih). Juga sukses membuat merinding karena begitu powerful-nya duet ini

Artis-artis lain juga tidak kalah menghibur. Gita Gutawa, Maia, Sherina , Vidi Aldiano dan tentunya Afgan, semuanya memberikan penampilan yang berkesan, baik dari kostum maupun vokal. Yang membuat saya paling terkesan adalah duo Maia yang tampil beda dengan gaun panjang simpel nan elegan. Cantik sekali, terutama Maia. Sayangnya gaya robotic tetap dibawa, sehingga terasa kurang cocok ^^;; Tapi dengan aransemen yang begitu bagus, saya rasa gaya robotic – dan kesalahan fashion lainnya, seperti pita Meichan yang begitu besar – masih bisa dimaafkan ;P

Seperti biasa, bravo Andi Rianto!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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# posted by @dessey : 11:18 AM 0 Comments

The Osaka Trip

Before writing this post, I looked through my previous post to see what I had wrote about my first Japan trip in October 2008.

Was quite embarrassed when I saw the title : The Japan Trip - Part 1. Because obviously I had intended to write a Part 2. But I never did.. and now here I am, already back home from my second Japan Trip ^^;;

Anyway.

When I got back from my first Japan Trip, I thought it would took me much longer to come back there. So it was such a blessing for me that I get to chaperon a family of four - the winners from my brand's activation - to Japan, less than two years later. It was supposed to be a 7 day trip, but because I had to attend a meeting first, I flew a bit later and caught up with them in Osaka, and spent 3 days there.

Like I mentioned in the Part 1 post, I'm crazy about Japan. Everything about Japan excites me, hence you can imagine how actually being there got me excited even more! I could just walk around by myself, and still be happy just by enjoying the atmosphere and hearing people talking in Japanese! Made me feel like I was in scenes of those J-doramas I've watched.

Osaka was great. I get to visit Universal Studios Japan (USJ) for the very first time, and it was awesome! I'm always amazed by how detailed theme parks abroad are, and USJ was not an exception. Of course, as a Disney freak, I love Disneyland/DisneySea more, but still.. being in USJ also made me feel like I was in a different world, far far away from reality.

Some tips about Universal Studios Japan
1. If you're staying in a hotel near USJ, and you want to go there straight from KIX (Kansai International Airport), they have a shuttle bus going there every 30mins or so (I forgot the exact timing). They have English versions of the signage, so it should be easy to spot. It costs JPY 1,500 and you have to buy the ticket from a vending machine near there. Not to worry, they have people standing by near the machines to help confused tourists.

2. About the rides. If you only have time for just 3 rides, then my suggestion would be Spiderman - The Ride (indoor roller coaster with 4D experience), Hollywood Dream - The Ride (said to be world's smoothest roller coaster, with a bit of "flying" sensation), and Jurassic Park - The Ride (most appropriate description would be a FAR COOLER version of Niagara-gara).

3. If you're not into queuing, go for Single Rider where available. It means that you'll be filling up for empty seats, hence you will not be side by side with your companion(s) during the ride. But it is still possible that you'll be in the same cart. Anyway, for certain rides, it's worth sacrificing togetherness over saving a loo-oot of time queuing. True Story.

4. After spending the day at the theme park, if you still want to hang around the area, go to the Universal City Walk, located just next to USJ. They have a Takoyaki Museum there. Well it's not exactly a museum, but it's like a place where they put a whole lot of Takoyaki hawkers (I don't think this is the right word, but you know what I mean) together. Get your fix of Takoyaki here!

I also had fun strolling around Shinshaibashi area (thank you @nefretiriii for the suggestion), and went all the way to Nanba and Doutonbori. There are lots of shops and cafes along the way, and it was fun just getting in and out of them. I had lunch at this place called Pastel (a pasta and cake place) at Shinshaibashi Suji, and I loved it! Both the pasta (I had spaghetti in lobster cream sauce) and the cheesecake were perfect!

All in all, it was another great trip to Japan.
And here's wishing I would have the chance to go back there again, hopefully soon enough :)