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FEATURES Wadcharin Suksabsri The Comeback Kid TEXT BY IVAN LIM Apr 21 2025 
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You can expect to see a diverse and dynamic programme from us. There’s also a little more pressure, more anticipation and perhaps a little more excitement at performing in a new city. For six years, Wadcharin Suksabsri went through a very dry spell as a classical guitarist – he didn’t perform, he didn’t take part in a single competition, and all he did was teach.
“Aside from teaching, I completely stopped playing – from a lack of inspiration,” says Wadcharin, or “New”, as he is known to his friends. He went through the rigours of teaching, enduring the tedium of work only because he needed the income to survive. Giving up, though, was not an option – he didn’t have any other options for work. “Of course I felt bored,” concedes New. “But I dismissed the boredom as being part and parcel of working life.” Then one day, when he was 29 and staring at the looming reality or turning 30 without accomplishing anything meaningful in life, he heard about the SEA Guitar Festival & Performance Awards 2019 in Jakarta. "At that time, I had never competed in guitar competitions abroad,” says New. “And I thought to myself, I'm not young anymore; I should finally do something I've always wanted to do.” Just like that, the new New decided he needed to push himself to an international level of competitiveness as a classical guitarist – so he practised hard and packed his bags for his trip to the competition in the Indonesian capital. He received a special award at the competition but the real prize was his revival – as a guitarist and performer. “I was deeply inspired by the experience, learning not only from the competition itself but also from the social aspects – the relationships and the friendships within the community. Since I had been away from the guitar scene for six years, it was an eye-opening experience at that point in my life,” says New. “I met fellow guitarists of my age as well as younger musicians, and I learnt a lot from them. We got to know each other, and from that moment on, I never thought of stopping again. That year, 2019, was the year I truly decided that I wanted to be a guitarist." He now has a strategy to keep the enthusiasm going. “You need to find opportunities to meet other guitarists at various guitar festivals or attend concerts – anything that allows musicians like us to connect with the audience, performers, and concert halls. For me, this is inspiring and makes me feel like I want to keep playing music.” THE SAGOBAKO CONNECTION One very inspiring connection he made that sparked his revival was with Huy Quang Tran – an excellent Vietnamese guitarist who would eventually become his partner in the classical guitar duo, SagoBako. At the time of writing, the multinational duo will embark on a 15-concert tour of Southeast Asia in April/May 2025, which includes venues in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Bangkok and Singapore. “We come from different nationalities, cultures, and languages, yet we communicate through music, which allows us to complete each performance successfully. Audiences are often curious about how we practise together since I live in Bangkok while Huy is in Saigon.” That 880 km-distance between the two cities is bridged by video calls, loads of messages and some serious individual work on their own respective parts of their duet pieces. Once they finally get to be in a room together to practise, it becomes quite straightforward – in part due to their chemistry with each other. 
Huy Quang Tran (left), Wadcharin (right)
Their collaboration as SagoBako began in 2023. “Huy invited me to perform in Saigon, where I had the opportunity to collaborate with students there. We also played a duet together on two pieces: Justo Tomás Morales - Milonga Argentina and Ruperto Chapí - Serenata Morisca. You wouldn’t believe it—we only practiced together for a few days before performing! We even recorded and filmed these,” says New. But the partnership wasn’t without its challenges. “I remember that time well – I was really homesick. Huy is very serious and hardworking, to the point that it wore me out! But I had so much fun because it was my first international concert in Vietnam. My English wasn’t very good at the time, so communicating was a bit challenging at first. But Huy made an effort to use simple words to talk to me. “Even now, I’m still trying to improve so I can communicate better with him and with everyone,” adds New, who started learning classical guitar at the age of 14 in his hometown, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, which is about an hour’s drive from Bangkok. New felt he wanted music to be part of his life the moment he became connected with it. “After being introduced to music, I immediately realised that I had to pursue it through high school and all the way to university. Eventually, I studied the guitar up to the master's degree level at Silpakorn University.” Today, apart from performing, he also teaches the guitar at two institutions: Assumption University of Thonburi under the ACT Music Center, where most of the students are beginners, and Bunditpatanasilpa Institute of Fine Arts, where he teaches undergraduate students. The challenge for me is preparing students for competitions or exams at various levels. When the results turn out well, it brings satisfaction to both me and the students, as well as their parents. That is the reward of being a teacher,” explains New. Aside from the guitar, New also plays the piano. “I can play a little piano, but I’ve probably forgotten everything by now,” he concedes. But for him, the guitar retains its charm. “I feel that the classical guitar is quite charming. It seems to have everything within this one instrument – drums, bass, melody and harmony.” And in contrast to the period where he played nothing, he now performs regularly. He even has a weekly gig as a performer. “I play music at a restaurant every weekend. Of course, I play pop songs, but I also play classical guitar,” says New, who enjoys listening to a variety of music genres aside from classical, and these include pop, R&B, soul and rock music. But classical guitar remains his true love. “Right now, I feel drawn to Napoléon Coste and the Romantic era. His music has distinctive melodies and allows me to practise various techniques that I had previously overlooked. Currently, I’m playing a piece by him called Les Soirées d'Auteuil, which I will also be performing on SagoBako’s 2025 tour,” adds New. “The solo piece I love and enjoy is Elegía Por La Muerte de Un Tanguero by Máximo Diego Pujol. This piece is my signature solo piece.” SOLO versus DUO How are playing solo and duet different? “I think solo performances are always challenging for me. Of course, I feel excited every time. The practice, the design and the performance on stage allow me to be myself and make decisions on my own. But for a duet, I believe that listening to each other is the key factor. We need to share ideas, produce something creative, and make the pieces more interesting, all while heading in the same direction. Listening and sharing are really important for me. “To put it simply, when playing solo, I make decisions by myself, but in a duet, I have to be fair to my partner.” And he admits that he leans towards playing in a duo, if he had to choose between the two. “Right now, I would say duet. Personally, I feel more confident playing in a duet. However, I still need to improve my solo performance as well,” says New. New and his partner, Huy, hope to grow with SagoBako, but they’re taking it one step at a time. “We are currently embarking on our maiden tour, which will span three countries in Southeast Asia – Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore. “Our next goal is to have the opportunity to perform in different parts of Asia, such as South Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan. We’ve talked about it and decided there’s no need to rush – it could happen even after we’ve turned 40. It all depends on when the opportunity comes. But we will continue to grow and develop together, one step at a time,” says New. A DREAM COME TRUE 
One step at a time indeed, but New feels that they have already taken a big step towards realising their dream.
“Actually, performing in Singapore has already been a dream come true for us, so this is another milestone achieved. Neither of us has been to Singapore, and we’re truly grateful for this opportunity.” While they pursue their dream of becoming an international classical duo, New hopes they will always remain focused on the all-important goal of being a good musician. And being good includes being a good human being. GOOD MUSICIAN, GOOD PERSON “Another important goal that I will never forget is that I want to be a good musician. More than that, I want to be a kind person – both to fellow musicians and to our audience. This is something that means a lot to me. Having good manners and showing respect to people in this industry is just as important to me as the music itself,” says New. Both New and Huy are under no illusion that there will not be serious competition from duos all over the world, but they won’t let that bother them. “It’s more important to focus on performing, improving, and gaining experience. Being able to meet talented guitarists, learn from them, and connect with audiences at different performances – that alone is enough for me,” says New. And what can we expect from SagoBako on their Singapore debut? “I will do my absolute best to make it worth your time to come and watch us perform. You can expect to see a diverse and dynamic programme from us. There’s also a little more pressure, more anticipation and perhaps a little more excitement at performing in a new city. " “It will definitely be different from others because, as I mentioned, I’ve never had the chance to come to Singapore. This is our first time, and of course, we will want to make it a very good debut. Please follow us and see you at the concert!” |