Ng Wai – iconic music man

THE EDITOR: Joey Ng Wai has left us. So sadly young but uniquely immortalised through the legacy of his astounding musical talent.

For lovers of music, you just got it. You could not help but be impressed by Joey’s range, aptitude, and plain, raw, deep understanding of his instruments.

Talent can come and go, but dumb passion is a lifelong gift. Joey’s passion for music has been a lifelong gift.

I met Joey in 2022 when we collaborated to produce a steelpan version of Stevie Nick’s Landslide. I picked this beloved classic perhaps out of sheer curiosity. Could it be done? Would it be worthy of even being shared? What reaction could such a production elicit, if any at all?

A good musician knows his weapon of choice.

A good singer understands vocal range and uses it. A good pianist understands his instrument and how to blend discordant notes to create a moving piece. A good drummer knows every component of his percussion and how to use them to construct expressive beats. A good guitarist knows his guitar intimately, from its hollow body to its neck and headstock. A good pannist, well, he can just command the pan to do anything!

Joey was all of these. He played a broad range of instruments expertly.

After completing a draft instrumentation piece, Joey and I met up to record vocals. As I sang, I watched him test and perfect his instruments. With no small amount of amazement, I observed how in a matter of a mere few minutes, Joey transformed what previously sounded to me like a mundane, humdrum musical piece into a perfect, rhythmic, rich, and harmonious blend of sounds.

We might loosely define musical aptitude as “having a fine ear for music.” This is the skill of the musician who knows and understands pitch, rhythm, harmony and the elements of musical composition. When a musician knows the interplay between all these elements, just know he comes up with something extraordinary!

And Joey did precisely that.

He produced his steelpan instrumentation version to perfectly match the vocals by masterfully annexing and blending guitar and drums.

That song engendered admiration and excitement from many who heard it. American family and friends were impressed by the never-before-imagined steelpan version of the well-known classic which has now been played well over 200,000 times on the popular platform YouTube. We later collaborated on a second song.

But while Joey’s impact on an unmitigatedly positive, joy-filled endeavour was large and his music touched so many of us, a proper tribute to this wonderful guy is also impossibly difficult.

As one committed to his art, he was full of gravitas and energy. But he was beyond that – a beautiful, luminous soul who shone brightly.

May his beloved family, friends, and fellow musicians find comfort in knowing that our dear Joey might be sorely missed on this side, but is now clasping his great guitar in the sky.

May he ascend to his rightful status as patron saint of glorious and exquisite musicians.

JUDY KUBLALSINGH-MATTHEWS

via e-mail