AN UNEXPECTED musical treat was given to the audience at the award ceremony for the Straits Times Athlete of the Year, in the form of two performances.
And the two singers could not have been more different.
On one side was Amni Musfirah Abdul Rashid, with accompanying guitarist Charis Tan, invited to perform by the Singapore Sports School.
SOURCE: ST Photo Lim Wui Liang
On the other side was Tao Li, accompanied by a nervous giggle, made to perform by her peers for the sake of the honour of the Singapore Sports School.
Amni is trained to sing by the School of the Arts (Sota), where she studies. Tao Li trains herself by singing at KBox, after she studies.
On stage, Amni is experienced: she has good stage presence, holding the microphone easily, and starts by introducing her guitarist, and thanking the school for asking her to perform.
Tao Li, however, is not as comfortable: she stands a bit stiffly, looking like she would rather not have to be there in the first place, and starts by giggling nervously again, and asking for forgiveness if she is unable to sing well.
But after the music began, both of them started to become more alike than they may have realised. Tao Li’s nervousness dissipated as she started singing, and her enthusiastic vocals matched Amni’s rich voice. The first notes of Rihanna’s "Take A Bow" did away with Tao Li’s self-consciousness, and she started to look as polished as Amni as when the Sota student sang Christina Aguilera’s "Come On Over".
And by the end of the respective performances, it was obvious that they both had won the listeners’ admiration, as the crowd burst out in applause. But once again, there was a difference for the two girls.
When the audience clapped for Amni, they were appreciating her voice.
But for Tao Li, it was just like at the Beijing Olympics, when she came in fifth in the 100m butterfly finals, when she captured the hearts and dreams of a nation of fans: they were applauding her heart.