almost famous: Amabel Liu

by P.Ramakrishnan

Amabel Liu may appear one of the fresher faces on the local music scene, but she has a long history in the arts.

Liu, who will perform at the Fringe as part of jazz and blues band Subito, may be familiar to some as one half of the now now disbanded girl group, Sisters.
"Well, I do enjoy singing and my sister and I - we were in our teens - had signed this contract with a company and we had to perform songs in a particular style that was, well, pretty formulaic. I was in it about two years and then... it didn't work out that well, for me at least."

Hence, the repeated appearances on local TV shows and radio petered out. "We wanted to compose our own songs with a bit more diversity, but the compaany wanted us to do just the pop stuff. I really didn't."

So she hung up the microphone and left the music scene. Now she is back.

Much to the joy of the Fringe Club's Catherine Lau who says of Liu: "She's what I want to be - a singer, an artist, a pianist who does jazz. She's studied in New York. She's doing a course here now in fine arts. All this and she's just 21."

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Liu went through the rigmarole of the averaage local student, with school followed by extra-curricular activities that required as much, if not more, effort. "I've been playing the piano and composing my own songs since I was seven. I started learning the piano quite young and I was no genius that learnt everything in a year. I hated going to the exams."

If Liu's relationship with music has been tempestuous, her affair with painting is more stable - even if it's being enforced by her courses at university. "I love music, but that's just a part of me. I enjoyed painting and signed up for a course in upstate New York where I was for a year, and now I've transferred to the Chinese University and doing my bachelor's degree in fine arts."

As a professional singer, it's perhaps easier to gauge one's own success, but what's it like in the finicky and struggle-filled world of the ever-suffering-artist? "I've had my paintings exhibited and sold a few already. It's cool to find someone like-minded, who didn't just say they liked my work, but went out and bought it as well.

"I know I can't just be an artist and live off that, I'm a realist," she continues. "But I have my own studio and I'm there often and the money that I get through sales may not buy me a Mercedes, but I can get my brushes and canvases and paints, things I want and need."

Although Liu's shifted focus slightly, she's never let go of her musical roots. "Music is very much a part of me. I get it from my mum. She has all kinds of music and I'd go through the discs and find something odd and old and I'd really like it. When people come to a performance, I think they are taken aback by my choices. I love Julie London - she has the sexist voicce ever. I just love it. Billie Holiday, June Christie. The golden oldies."

Subito was born after a series of fortuitous meetings and now consists of Liu on vocals, Chris Gordon on guitar, mandolin and banjo, joined by Julian on double bass and Les on drums [both say they prefer not to use their surnames].

"During the breaks, each individual performer has a chance to showcase their solo pieces too so I get to present my compossitions or just play what I want to play. This freedom is much more fun then constantly being told what to do."