Sax and the city
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Koh Mr Saxman and his friends raise funds for the Christian Foundation for the Blind
Leading saxophonist Sekpol Unsamran, who is much better known by his stage name of Koh Mr Saxman, gets all the credit for jazzing up a small charity concert last Sunday that would have been far less interesting without his presence on stage.
In addition to playing his sax and singing his songs, he helped spice up the performances of other singers taking part in the “Touch of Jazz” concert with his energetic and animated sax-playing, moving rhythmically around the stage and dancing playfully with the singers. Many of the songs performed by Koh were from his latest and seventh album “The Visitor” and included “Secret Love”, “Tonight” and “My Heart”.
Koh, who also acted as the concert’s music director, teamed up with the Jazz Brothers Band, made up of four professional and award-winning young musicians, to perform his trademark instrumental number “Mr Saxman”. The longest show of the night was also its highlight, with Koh energetically playing his sax and the band members taking turns for solos on lead guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and drums. The audience was impressed, applauding and cheering long and loud when the number finally drew to a close.
The two-and-a-half-hour concert at CentralWorld’s 450-seat Centerpoint Playhouse also featured five well-known and not-so-well-known singers – Pongsak “Aof” Ratanapong, curvy duo Napassorn “New” Phuthonjai and Piyanuch “Jiew” Suajongpru, Mariam Grey and Naris “Kom” Sampaiworakij.
Aof Pongsak wowed the audience with his song “Sing Mi Chiwit Thi Riak Wa Huajai” (“A Living Thing Called Heart”). He danced and hopped around, joked with the audience, and encouraged them to sing along. He was joined by Koh for a superb set that was well liked by the audience. Aof and Koh later confessed that they had not practised together before the concert.
Duo New & Jiew were greeted with excitement and performed their own songs “Kon Jao Namta” (“Easy Weeper”) and “Ro Laew Dai Arai” (“What Do I Get for Waiting?”). They also sang “Price Tag”, English singer-songwriter Jessie J’s major hit.
Mariam Grey, who emerged on the scene several years back as part of Bakery Music’s B5 project of young musical talents, mesmerised the audience with her beautiful chiming voice on “Dao” (“Star”) and “Kid Thueng Ther Thuk Thi Thii Yoo Kon Diew” (“Think of You Whenever I’m Alone:).
A good-humoured Kom Naris sang “Sway” in a performance that featured two female dancers. The new singer joked that he’d hired the dancers to ensure his set compared well with those of the more experienced singers at the concert.
Originally scheduled for November, “Touch of Jazz” was another victim of last year’s flooding. All proceeds would go to the Christian Foundation for the Blind in Thailand, according to the organisers the Touch fashion magazine, which held the event in celebration of its first anniversary.
Concert-goers also helped the foundation by dropping cash into the donation box and purchasing Koh’s new album as well as T-shirts designed by Ek Thongprasert.
