FOR the team behind the sights and sounds of the National Day Parade, hearing spectators cheer when fireworks rain gold from the night sky is a rush.

But when 27,000 people fall silent in awe, the tingles run up their spines even more.

'Twenty-seven thousand people being quiet is very powerful,' said Mr Brian Gothong Tan, the parade's visual effects director.

The crowd whooped and cheered the 21/2-minute fireworks finale, which lit up the sky at the end of the National Anthem. Patterns of hearts and starbursts in a kaleidoscope of colours filled the night sky like drops of fire.

An appreciative Shaun Wong, a 21-year-old student, said: 'The fireworks were awesome, and their synchronisation with the performance was much better than in previous years.'

Almost 800 rounds of fireworks were fired at 15 key moments in the show, the work of 30 civilian contractors working on a precise schedule, supported by 80 Singapore Armed Forces personnel.

Overseeing the fireworks display for a second time was Colonel Tham Tiem Foo, who called it a 'heavy responsibility'.

'Your hair stands when you see the fireworks, and the crowd cheers. It is an emotionally charged moment,' he said.

Retiree Kway Yew Tong, 70, who has seen four parades live, voted for this one as his favourite: 'The sense of history this year is very strong. This is very good for the younger generation.'