KUALA LUMPUR, July 6 — The Victoria Institution Cadet Corps (VICC) Band, representing Malaysia, did the country proud at the recently concluded World Association of Marching Show Bands (WAMSB) World Championships that were held in Denmark from July 1 to 5, 2015.

In the finals yesterday at the Brondby Stadium, the Malaysian team took top honours in the Drum Battle where they beat Famuta from Brazil.

The Malaysians also took third place in the Show Band/Tattoo competition where after mounting a phenomenal challenge, they lost out to Famuta and Roskilde Garden of Denmark, who took the first and second spots respectively.

The difference in scores between the top three teams was only 1.4 marks.

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Members of the VICC Band with their trophy after taking third place in the Show Band/Tattoo. — Picture courtesy of VICCB parents
Members of the VICC Band with their trophy after taking third place in the Show Band/Tattoo. — Picture courtesy of VICCB parents

After the preliminary rounds, the VI Band occupied the fifth spot, thus giving them a final berth where the top 12 teams out of more than 50 bands moved onto the finals.

In the finals, the VI Band managed to oust two other favourites, including one of the bands from Germany, to take the third spot.

In the finals of the Drum Battle, the VI Drum Line donned Baju Melayu and drummed their way to victory against the more favoured Brasilian team.

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There were various categories of competition and more than 60 bands took part in these World Championships.

They participated in various categories, including the Street Parade, Drum Battle, Show Band/Tattoo and March Parade.

Malaysia was represented by the VICC Band and they took part in the Street Parade, Show Band and Drum Battle categories, as well as an Open Talent Showcase event where the Bagpipers and Drummers performed. It was certainly an eye opener for the judges and spectators to see a Malaysian band playing the bagpipes with such precision.

The street parade was held in Copenhagen, Denmark and the VICC Band performed admirably, although they failed to finish in the top three.

The VICCB band, consisting of almost 80 members, competed in Denmark with funding from the parents as well as sponsors including Westport and Muhibbah Engineering.

The boys stand tall in their Baju Melayu after the finals of the Drum Battle. — Picture courtesy of VICCB parents
The boys stand tall in their Baju Melayu after the finals of the Drum Battle. — Picture courtesy of VICCB parents

A Parents Support group was set up to not only help secure the sponsorship, but to assist in the welfare of the Bandsmen by helping out with the provision of food during training and other matters. 

The VICC Band is considered one of the oldest school bands in the country and has done Malaysia proud in numerous international competitions.

They trained tirelessly for the last few months. In the last month, in particular, the band trained until 10:30pm in the school Quadrangle. On the last few nights before leaving for Denmark, they trained past midnight. 

This bunch of schoolboys showed uncanny discipline and passion to raise their performance to compete against International competition in Denmark.

They performed superbly once again and proudly showed off Malaysia to the world.

The motto of the band is ‘Rise to the Occasion’ and it appears that they did just that in Denmark!