-- PHOTOS: KEVIN LIM, COURTESY OF RACHEL CHUA

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Like countless other singer wannabes, 13-year-old Zack Hourihane has staged many rock concerts... in the comfort of his bedroom.

This year, he will finally get a taste of the real deal when he performs at Singapore's annual ChildAid charity concert in December. It will be staged for the first time at Resorts World at Sentosa and promises to be bigger and better than ever.

'Sometimes I have my concerts at 7am and my parents will tell me to 'be quiet' or to 'keep your music down',' says the fan of pop star Avril Lavigne and R&B singer Beyonce.

Zack, a student at United World College, will take part in the opening act and also emcee the concert, which is now in its fifth year.

Concertgoers can look forward to seeing the most performers ever to have taken part, plus more group acts and - for the first time - a full orchestra of over 70 players adding back-up oomph to the young stars on stage. There will also be another first: The orchestra will be joined by 11 harpist and 50 recorder players.

Even before tickets go on sale next month, a record sum of over $600,000 has already been raised from big-hearted corporate donors, topping last year's tally of $506,000.

Beneficiaries include The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund, which provides needy schoolchildren with pocket money.

Zack the early morning vocalist, along with three other singers, a choir and the full-on orchestra, will perform what promises to be a knock-out opening song - an original composition called Stars Out Tonight by Cultural Medallion recipient Iskandar Ismail.

Iskandar is also music director of this year's ChildAid.

More than 250 performers are taking part in the entire concert, a big increase from last year's 61.

This is partly because this year saw 550 acts audition for a spot to perform at ChildAid, as opposed to 360 last year.

Iskandar says: 'It was a small programme when we first started, but over the years, there have been so many exceptional kids who want to get involved.'

Indeed, to enable as many children as possible to perform, the concert will feature more group items, including a seven-member drum ensemble.

There will also be several large-scale production numbers choreographed by Jason Ramsburg from Universal Studios. Universal Studios has a theme park at Resorts World.

Iskandar says: 'Many of our previous performers wanted to come back and help, but we have to turn many of them down because showcasing new talents is one of our objectives.'

Ms Andrea Teo, vice-president of entertainment for Resorts World at Sentosa, echoed his sentiments. She says: 'We are bursting at the seams with talent.'

But organisers stress that ChildAid is not an idol search.

Mr Peter Khoo, organising chairman of ChildAid and the ST Pocket Money Fund, says: 'While musical excellence is our first priority, we are also looking for people who have the love and want to serve. During the audition, the children had to give reasons why they wanted to take part.'

The children's enthusiasm to give back to society is mirrored by corporate sponsors.

Despite the economic downturn, many have upped their donations.

Global bank HSBC tops the list of sponsors this year with a donation of $160,466. Porsche dealer Stuttgart Auto, New Creation Church and health supplement provider Cerebos also increased their donations to $100,000 each this year, an increase of about $50,000 to $70,000.

A thankful Mr Khoo says: 'The applications to the fund from the first half of this year exceeded those from the whole of last year. There are real needs from the ground.'

In addition to coping with the increased demand for charity, organisers face another new challenge - the fact that the venue is currently unfinished.

He adds: 'We are planning on paper but no one knows how the sound or the lighting will be like. Even Sistic has never sold a single ticket for that venue.'

But the organising committee remains optimistic.

'Rest assured that everyone at Resorts World Sentosa is going all out to ready the facilities for ChildAid,' says Ms Teo.

Mr Khoo says: 'We're opening at a very exciting venue and it'll be a great way to celebrate our fifth birthday.'

songyuan@sph.com.sg

'Sometimes I have my concerts at 7am and my parents will tell me to 'be quiet' or to 'keep your music down''

'We're opening at a very exciting venue and it'll be a great way to celebrate our fifth birthday'

Love power

Age: 15

School: Anglican High School

Performing: Power Of Love by Celine Dion

It was sheer coincidence that brought teenager Rachel to audition for ChildAid.

Rachel, who represented Singapore in Taiwan's One Million Star 5 singing contest, was approached by the organising committee of ChildAid when she was at their office for an unrelated interview.

'I asked my manager to pick it up and we were really keen on it,' she says.

She auditioned with Vanessa Williams' Colours Of The Wind, but will sing Celine Dion's Power Of Love at the concert instead. 'I decided to sing this song because it has a bigger wow factor,' she says. Her parents are in the tourism industry.

An only child, she first wowed audiences with the song when she performed it for the talent segment of the Little Miss Cinderella contest, a beauty pageant for juniors in 2003, which she won.

She will try to repeat her winning performance in December.

'We are all students, so why not help each other? If my singing can help to earn them some pocket money, it's worth my time and effort,' she adds.

Original song from band

ExDee comprises students (from left) Eugene Gan, Pua Yi Sin, Marcus Lee, Daniel Lim and Lenny Wee. -- ST PHOTOS: TERENCE TAN, ALBERT SIM

Who: EXDEE

Ages: 17

School: Raffles Institution (Junior College)

Performing: Tipping, Falling, an original composition

While many other first-year junior college students are studying or out having fun, the five members of rock band ExDee spend a large part of their Sundays at drummer Daniel Lim's house practising.

Bassist Eugene Gan, guitarists Pua Yi Sin and Lenny Wee, and lead singer Marcus Lee do so for a good cause.

'Most of our public showcases have been for charity,' says Yi Sin.

In August this year, they organised a fundraising carnival, Nudge, at the Sentosa Cove arrival plaza for The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund, where they performed with four other bands. More than $40,000 was raised.

Once again, they will put their talents to good use at ChildAid, performing an original composition, Tipping, Falling by Pua.

'It's one of our favourite pieces and we auditioned for ChildAid with it. We were unsure about our chances, but they called us back eventually,' he adds.

The five-year-old band were set up when all the members were schoolmates at Raffles Institution.

The band also performed at this year's Baybeats, Singapore's largest alternative music festival, being one of the auditioning bands which made it through.

'Since we were exposed in secondary school to community work through a service learning elective, it has fuelled our interest to do charity work,' says Yi Sin.

'Personally, I like children and working with them best. Maybe it's because I'm a teenager and it's easier to relate to them,' he adds.

Rehearsing at odd hours

Age: 12

School: Homeschooled

Performing: Panis Angelicus by Cesar Franck together with fellow singer Anisa Kureishi

Even a bout of chickenpox could not stop Andrew Sanjay from travelling from Malaysia to Singapore to audition for ChildAid.

The member of the Kuala Lumpur Children's choir fell sick about a week before the auditions.

'My parents were shoving Chinese medicine down my throat,' recalls Andrew, who hopes to make singing his career in the future.

'But by the end of the week I was fine, so the doctor said I was good to go,' he adds.

The journey was worth it.

The classically trained singer, who started vocal lessons when he was seven, was chosen out of the 550 children who auditioned to be a part of this year's charity concert.

He was overjoyed. He says the moment he saw the advertisement for the auditions in newspapers, he wanted to put his talent to good use and be a part of ChildAid.

His father, George Thomas, who runs a business consultancy in information technology, says: 'He takes his singing very seriously and fine-tunes it to such a precise point.

'Once, before his previous performance, we woke up in the middle of the night to find him rehearsing in his room.'

Andrew says: 'This is not any other performance, but one that will benefit less fortunate kids.'

Fund still $2m short

Surpassing the amount raised by ChildAid last year may give organisers much to cheer about, but The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund is still a long way from its target.

The number of families who have sought help from the fund in the first half of this year is already 1,000 more than the figure for the whole of last year.

It is estimated that $5.7 million is needed for this year's beneficiaries, a 30 per cent increase from the previous year.

As of now, the fund is still $2 million short.

'More people are seeking assistance, but people are donating less,' says Mr Peter Khoo, organising chairman of ChildAid and the ST School Pocket Money Fund.

One corporate sponsor, HSBC, has given the cause a boost by donating $160,466 to ChildAid, of which the pocket money fund is one of the beneficiaries.

'We are extremely grateful for HSBC's support of ChildAid since 2000, enabling us to raise a record amount in this difficult period,' he says.

'The support from our sponsors is testimony to our cause, as well as a credit to the young talent in Singapore.'

Mr Goh Kong Aik, head of group communications and corporate sustainability at HSBC in Singapore, said: 'Recognising that the economic environment has been especially tough for these schoolchildren, we decided to give our young friends under the ST School Pocket Money Fund another boost by supporting the ChildAid concert.'

He added: 'What better way to do this then for us to donate the funds raised in the annual HSBC Youth Excellence Award concert.'

He was referring to the charity concert which features recipients of the Youth Excellence Award for musical excellence.

Past award recipients include pianist Abigail Sin and opera singer Janani Sridhar.