2007 Heavenly Melody Chorus Concert

Heavenly Melody Chorus Concert Full of Laughter and Tears

Syue-Fang, a 34-year-old girl with Achondroplasia, who is independent, strong-minded, and enthusiastic, regularly takes 4 hours from middle Taiwan to Taipei to participate in the chorus every Saturday. Mei-Yin, who was affected by Spinocerebellar ataxia 8 years ago, struggles to sing with her barely remained but discontinued voice. A-Sian, who used to be a tennis player, lost his ability to walk and talk while Wilson's Disease stroked him three years ago. But now, he revives to walk, talk, even sing and expects to become better and better. Singing is nothing special for healthy people, but a difficult task for rare disease patients. Rare disease patients have to concentrate and use whole body's strengths to sing.

In order to honor the chorus and share the beautiful voice with the general public, Taiwan Foundation for Rare Disorder held the concert at Grace Baptist Church on April 20, 2007. The popular singer, Yan-Tzy Sun(Stefanie Sun), was invited to attend the concert and co-perform with rare disease patients. The duet, Yu-Chih and I-Chun, affected by Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI), sang hymns of praise to God giving them courage to conquer diseases. The 23-year-old girl of muscular dystrophy, A-Min, performed with her mother, who has supported her since disease stroked her for many years. A talented violinist of Thalassemia major, Feng-Chun, played the nocturne composed by Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin. The concert was full of laughter and tears.

Heavenly Melody Chorus, whose members include rare disease patients and their families, has been established since 2004. The chorus tutor, Ms. Shang-Jen Fu, a master of Manhattan School of Music, NYC, has led the chorus for 2 years. Altogether they have spent almost 5 hundred hours learning the way to pronounce, read notations, sing, and even more to share the lifetime when their bodies gradually weaken. Instead of beaten by difficulty to sing, these brave fighters choose to face their defects and dedicate to singing with their whole strengths. Through singing, many members and their families become more cheerful and optimistic. After 2-year continuous participation, they have been invited to many concerts as guest performers and have impressed audience with their voice deep from their hearts.

TFRD established a "Performing Workshop" that meets once a week and consists of painting and singing, the latter progressed to the Heavenly Melody Chorus. The workshop serves as a dual purpose. There are benefit performances and exhibitions for social interaction, but it also helps the patients build self-esteem as well as reducing the physical pain and psychological pressure that they might feel. The Heavenly Melody Chorus Concert was held to provide opportunities for rare disease patients and to appreciate the public’s support.

"I love singing and appreciate that TFRD gives us a chance to make dream come true," said by Syue-Fang, a member of the Heavenly Melody Chorus, "I have never thought that I could perform on the stage, however, TFRD really made it possible."

"I attended the concert because of the popular singer, but eventually was moved by patients' spirits", an audience said. Rare disease patients showed not only beautiful voices but also strong minds which really brought the audience impression and courage.