Singapore, 8 November 2022 (Tuesday) – Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) celebrates Music Director Tsung Yeh’s 20 wonderful years with the organisation. To commemorate this special occasion, SCO will be holding a special concert this November, reliving the milestones of Tsung Yeh. Since January 2002, Tsung Yeh has been constantly pushing frontiers of Chinese Orchestral music and expanded SCO’s repertoires with ground-breaking works, creating a uniquely Singapore character.
Titled “Tsung Yeh 20”, this concert features three mega productions which holds great significance to Tsung Yeh and SCO. Join us in taking a trip down the memory lane as Tsung Yeh relives the past 2 decades with SCO and breathes new life into the classic pieces.
3 Notable works
Specially curated by Tsung Yeh, the three pieces featured in this concert tells great stories. Kicking start the concert will be “Sea – The Source of Life”, composed by Eric Watson. This piece was originally written and performed as part of the sea segment for the 2007 National Day Parade (NDP), where Tsung Yeh was the Music Director of NDP. Tsung Yeh took a brave move and conducted an awe-inspiring performance comprised of musicians from SCO, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Armed Forces Central Band, Malay, Indian and Nanyin ensembles. The tableaux was intended to showcase the significance of water to the survival and growth of Singapore, the colour and teeming life of the sea and symbolically the harmonious multi-racial community in Singapore.
Next up will be “Zheng He - Admiral of the Seven Seas”, composed by Law Wai Lun. This piece was commissioned and presented by the Singapore Arts Festival 2005. The opera, linked to Singapore’s ancient past, was performed to mark the 600th anniversary of Zheng He’s adventures. This piece nicely blended the traditional and popular and was very well received by the audiences.
The last piece is “Marco Polo & Princess Blue”, composed by Liu Yuan. As part of Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay Opening Festival in 2002, this piece meant a great deal for Tsung Yeh. It was his first year holding the Music Director position in SCO and this was the first major project tasked to him. As such, it was a “make it or break it” project for him. The inspiration for this piece came when he was on the plane. He was reading the “National Geographic” magazine, and came across an article about Marco Polo and Princess Blue’s sea journey home from China. He was inspired by the journey, and conceptualised the love story between marco polo and princess blue. He then commissioned Liu Yuan to compose a song based on this story. According to records, the Italian explorer Marco Polo lived in China for 17 years. Sometime between 1291 and 1292, and under the commission of Kublai Khan, he came to escort Princess Buluhan (also known as Princess Blue - a member of Kukachin royalty) to Persia (present-day Iran) where an arranged marriage awaited her. This journey was the last undertaking Marco Polo would make on behalf of the Khan before he was finally able to leave China. Because of war – resulting in the torching of land routes between China and Persia – the entourage had to make their way to their final destination by sea. As the sea route passes by Southeast Asia, the entourage stopped by Singapore.
More about Tsung Yeh
Tsung Yeh joined SCO as the Music Director in 2002. He was also concurrently the music director of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra (SBSO) in the United States at that time, till 2016 where he stepped down from the latter. Holding a core position in two orchestras from different countries with different time zone is no easy feat and this took a toll on him and his family life. As such, he decided to part from SBSO in 2016, where he served as the Music Director for 28 years, and focus on his work with SCO. Upon his retirement from SBSO, Tsung Yeh was presented the “Sagamore of the Wabash Award” from the Indiana State. The mayor of South Bend City also declared 7 May 2016 as “Tsung Yeh Day”. He is the world’s first conductor to simultaneously hold music directorship of a Western symphony orchestra and a Chinese orchestra.
Understanding the unique culture of Singapore, together with his cross-disciplinary expertise, Tsung Yeh pioneered and developed SCO’s signature Singapore-infused style music, infusing Southeast Asian elements and heritage into symphonic works. Throughout the 20 years with SCO, Tsung Yeh has brought the orchestra on numerous international concert tours to great acclaim. In 2013, Tsung Yeh was awarded the Cultural Medallion; the highest accolade in the arts.
With relentless vigour, Tsung Yeh’s passion for music has never stopped and is always ready to take on new challenge. In 2022, he conducted “MEPAAN” and curated “Daybreak”. Staged in Pasir Panjang Power Station, “MEPAAN” is a breath-taking performance stirring strains of indigenous music and vocal tradition from Southeast Asia’s island nations are woven into a fabric of powerful orchestral compositions, evoking grand ritual and ceremony to transport the mind into the pristine rainforests of Southeast Asia. Performed in Esplanade, “Daybreak” is a concert that shines a light on legendary symbols of courage, and honours the spirit of great fortitude to chart new beginnings.
This November, join us in celebrating Singapore Chinese Orchestra Music Director Tsung Yeh’s 20 years anniversary! Take a trip down memory lane as Tsung Yeh relives the highlights of his 20 years with the SCO in this concert he has personally curated. Milestone works closest to his heart, including mega productions such as “Sea - The Source of Life” (first performed at NDP 2007), “Zheng He – Admiral of the Seven Seas” (Singapore Arts Festival 2005) and “Marco Polo and Princess Blue” (at the inauguration of Esplanade, 2002) are infused with new life, bringing back poignant memories not just for the Maestro, but for those who have witnessed the 20-year journey of Maestro Tsung Yeh and SCO, hand-in-hand, from strength to strength.
Celebrating this happy occasion, SCO Executive Director Terence Ho said: “Maestro Yeh has made great contributions to SCO and the music scene in Singapore. His vision, vigour and passion has constantly brought SCO to greater heights, locally and internationally. Thank Maestro for his 20 years of artistic leadership, remarkable achievements and SCO has grown into a distinctive world-renowned Chinese orchestra today.”
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SISTIC Link: https://www.sistic.com.sg/events/ty1122
Tickets (Excludes Booking Fee)
Live concert - $19, $38, $58, $88
Digital concert - $15
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Annex A
Programme list for Tsung Yeh 20
Sea – The Source of Life, Composed by Eric Watson
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Zheng He - Admiral of the Seven Seas, Music by Law Wai Lun, Libretto by Yue Meiqin, Law Wai Lun
Prelude
I: Sea Burial
II: Wandering Spirits
III: The Voyage
Soprano: Joyce Lee Tung
Tenor: Zhuang Jie
Narrator: Jeffrey Low
Choir: SYC Ensemble Singers
Chorus Master: Chong Wai Lun
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Marco Polo & Princess Blue, Music by Liu Yuan, Libretto by Wang Yiyan
I: Grand Ceremony
VI: Eden in the East
VII: Eternity
Soprano: Joyce Lee Tung
Tenor: Zhuang Jie
Choir: SYC Ensemble Singers
Chorus Master: Chong Wai Lun
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About Singapore Chinese Orchestra
Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) is Singapore’s only professional Chinese orchestra. Inaugurated in 1997, the orchestra made up of more than 80 musicians took on the twin role of preserving traditional arts and culture and establishing new frontiers through the incorporation of Nanyang music elements in its repertoire. SCO has impressed a broadening audience with its blockbuster presentations and is fast establishing itself among its counterparts around the world. Known for its high-performance standards and versatility, the SCO is recognized through invitations to perform at numerous prestigious events locally and internationally. In line with its vision to be a world-renowned people’s orchestra, SCO continues to inspire, educate and communicate through its music.
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