PUBLISHED ONSeptember 11, 2024 3:40 AMBYKhoo Yi-HangIt doesn't have to be a Taylor Swift concert — a brass band for the Pope is more than enough to bring people together.
And that's what Hai Sing Catholic School student Arissa Nabilah Arman did.
The 14-year-old, who plays the tuba in her school's concert band, shared with AsiaOne why she decided to perform for Pope Francis' visit to Singapore.
Arissa, a Malay-Muslim, is one of the volunteers in the combined schools' brass band that will play in the papal mass at the National Stadium on Thursday (Sept 12).
"I've always decided if there was a music event — including religion — I would participate in it no matter what," she said.
"Music always brings people together, regardless of religion, race, or anything of that matter."
Her parents were of the same mind when they learnt that she wanted to perform for the Pope.
"They were the ones who encouraged me to join in the first place," the teen said.
"My family doesn't mind because they know my passion for music, and they know music knows no bounds whatsoever, so they know I'll perform either way."
Arissa also shared that some of her classmates didn't want to sign up for the performance at first because they aren't Catholic or they "just didn't want to participate in something as big as performing for the Pope".
"I did my best to encourage them and some of them got in just because of me," she said.
According to the Catholic News Singapore, a total of 4,500 volunteers will serve at the papal mass.
They include a 1,600-strong Archdiocesan choir, 600 hospitality ministers, 360 Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, 300 altar servers, 270 security personnel, 140 medical personnel and some 200 people involved in the pre- and post-mass productions.
Arissa has also been enjoying the rehearsals for the papal mass — interacting with tuba players from other schools.
"We've been getting along well," she said.
They help each other with difficult segments of the performance, discussing how they would sync up their sounds and cover for one another while a player takes a breath.
While some may think that playing in a combined schools' band is scary, Arissa believes otherwise.
To her, rehearsing with other schools amid differing expectations is exciting because she gets to interact with many different people, she said.
"I get to see how people react to parts they don't understand and I get to help others while also learning stuff from people too," Arissa explained.
Arissa also shared that she looks forward to performing for the Pope and bringing honour to Singapore.
This would mark her first big performance, she told AsiaOne.
"It's totally new, totally different, I've never done this before, so I would love to try it."
The teen also hopes to "just have fun" with her friends through this experience.
"Music is all about going with the flow. While we do have to practise — that is important — at the end of the day, you have to go with the flow. If you mess up along the way, you just keep going," she said.
Pope Francis is visiting Singapore from Sept 11 to 13 as part of his tour of the Asia-Pacific region.
For more on Pope Francis' state visit, visit our microsite.
ALSO READ: A former bouncer who loves pizza: 6 things to know about Pope Francis
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