Singapore, 6 June 2017 (Tuesday) – Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) is once again proud to announce a new concert season in the second half of 2017, from July to December. We will be embarking on another thrilling adventure with our audiences around Singapore. SCO’s new season will be held at the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay and the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre (SCCC). Be prepared to be awed, as we have prepared a line of concerts of various genres that will fulfil your music buds and give you the satisfaction you will find nowhere else.
SCO Music Director Tsung Yeh says, “2017 marks the first time SCO is bringing our concerts outside of our home. This gives us the opportunity to work towards our aims of bringing Chinese Orchestral music all over Singapore and serenading Singaporeans so that they’ll better appreciate Chinese Orchestral music. This time, we believe that we’re able to achieve our aims as SCO will be performing at different parts of Singapore through 2017. In line with our mission of inspiring Singapore and the world with Chinese Orchestral music, we hope to see more people being touched by our music.”
A Grand New Concert Season
The first concert will kickstart with a gala concert featuring renowned pianist Sun Yingdi and organist Chelsea Chen at the Esplanade Concert Hall. Look forward to masterpieces being performed, such as Yellow River Piano Concerto, and be privy to the majestic pipe organ in action in Kuan Nai-chung’s Symphony No. 2.
Internationally-renowned Chinese bel canto vocalists – baritone Liao Chang Yong, soprano Huang Ying and tenor Zhang Jian Yi will grace the stage at the Esplanade Concert Hall this September. Join them as they journey from the Silk Road to the rest of the world with SCO vocal pieces, from folk favourites, to Italian opera arias, to West End musicals. These classic masterpieces include Why Are Flowers Red, The Vagrant’s Homesickness, Les Filles de Cadix, Mattinata, La Promessa, O Solo Mio,Una Furtiva Lagrima, Largo al Factotum, Summertime, The Music of the Night and many more!
The Bridge Between the Past and Present
Never will we forget our young – they, who will be the caretakers of the future. This concert season, we have once again prepared concerts for our children to participate in, with the hopes of introducing and awakening their interests in Chinese orchestral music. In ‘Concert for Little Tots – Myths and Legends’, assistant conductor Moses Gay and storyteller Kamini Ramachandran will be working together to create an enrapturing experience for all. The children will be mesmerized by riveting Chinese legends and music through pieces of our local composers, Ma Liang and his Magical Brush, Tikki Tikki Tembo’s day with his brother, and the Seven Brothers who saved each other from the evil emperor.
Lee Dai Sor, Singapore’s iconic Catonese storyteller in Rediffusion in the past, will have his classic piece Thunderstorm and Drought performed at our fourth instalment of the Young People’s Concert series: ‘A Voyage to Nanyang IV – Karung Guni Capriccioso’. Follow Ah De as he encounters the owner of an antique shop, Mr “O”ld-Fashioned (acted by Ong Teck Chon), and be amazed by things of the good old days, such as the abacus, typewriter, vinyl records, and many more! Pieces such as The Typewriter, The Syncopated Clock, and Mahjong Kakis will be played, and this concert will also bring to you the world premiere of local composer Phang Kok Jun’s Karung Guni Capriccioso! Should you ever have wanted to show your children or grand-children things to express the memories of your past, this will be the best opportunity for you to do so!
Do you remember the time, when Singapore was going through a time of reform? Tough times we conquered, accompanied by the vigour of music – Xinyao, Singapore’s song. This October, immerse yourself in the past and be proud of how Xinyao is a representative music era of Singapore. In ‘An Evening of Xinyao’, SCO will be collaborating with TCR Music Station to bring to you the familiar works of the pioneers of Xinyao. Established singers such as Roy Li, Jimmy Ye, Hong Shao Xuan, Alex Su, Pan Ying, Dawn Yip and Zhou Man Qi will belt out the best of Xinyao. This elaborate one-night concert with a part of Singapore’s music heritage, it is a show not to be missed!
Where East and West Collide
SCO’s composer-in-residence, Eric Watson, is one of the key composers of Nanyang music. Be introduced to his bubble of musical magic in ‘Eric Watson’s World of Chinese Music’, where a selection of his compositions will be presented to all in various ways. Let your breath be taken away by An Independent Note, whereby Lim Kay Tong, a veteran local actor, will be joining us in honouring Singapore’s independence, a significant part of Singapore’s history. Also joining us will be tabla performer Jatinder Singh Bedi, who will be presenting to us a Dialogue for Solo Tabla and Chinese Orchestra. Other pieces to be performed in this concert include The Ceilidh, Sea – Source of Life, Mahjong Kakis and Tapestries: Time Dances, the winner of the inaugural Singapore International Competition for Chinese Orchestral Composition 2006, and the world premier of Concerto for Sanxian, in which SCO musician Huang Guifang will make an appearance with the sanxian, one of China’s most traditional plucked-string instruments.
Music, Memories, and Emotions
Those who have been to Taiwan will be brought back to the country with ‘Portraits of Taiwan’. Get captivated by the splendor of Taiwan with our Taiwanese guest conductor Liu Jiang Bin, be introduced to the alluring charm of the people of Hsinchu through Sui Li Jun’s Wind City Overture. Liuqin virtuoso Chen Yi Chien, who will be performing with SCO for the first time, will be presenting Su Wen Qing’s Courtyard After The Rain, and SCO’s gaohu associate principal Zhou Ruo Yu will be performing Lu Yun’s award-winning The Lord of Western Qin.
Prepare to be hit by a wave of emotions in ‘Portrayal of Life’. SCO’s assistant conductor Moses Gay will be utilizing the power of music to incite your rawest emotions. Performing along with him will be our very own SCO orchestra members, dizi musician Tan Chye Tiong and erhu musician Yuan Qi. Allow them to take you on a tempestuous ride through works such as Kuan Nai-chung’s The Butterfly Dream, He Zhan Hao’s The Sorrowful Departure and Liu Chang Yuan’s Carnival Dance.
Classic Chinese Hits Render Nostalgia
Ever pondered over how it would be like for an entire section of a Chinese orchestra to take the centre stage along with the rest of the orchestra? ‘Hits of Chinese Music’is a brand new series of concerts, wherein the four respective sections of the orchestra will take turns to present a repertoire of classic Chinese music pieces in their original composition presentation through four concert series. The first series this year starts with the Woodwinds section, who will perform in a chamber and orchestra format, with pieces such as Red Blossoms Abound, The Phoenix Spreads its Wings, Salesman Comes to Village, and the world premieres of Journey to Gusu and Hundred Birds Worshipping the Phoenix.
SNYCO Presents:
Our very own youth orchestra, Singapore National Youth Chinese Orchestra (SNYCO), is back with two concerts for the new concert season. The first in July, will showcase their annual concert, ‘Exuberance of Youth II’. Guest conductor Sun Peng, first-prize winner of the Hong Kong International Conducting Competition for Chinese music, has been invited to conduct alongside SCO’s Resident conductor, Quek Ling Kiong. Two of our SNYCO erhu musicians, Li Siyu and Low Likie, will also be performing Phang Kok Jun’s double erhu chamber concerto Storytellers on Ann Siang Road. SNYCO will also perform Feng Xiao Quan’s The Soaring Chinese Music, Chow Jun Yi’s Momentum and Zhao Ji Ping’s Impressions of Macau.
Soak in the Christmas atmosphere in sunny Singapore, where the four seasons are but one – summer. ‘Christmas Summer Wonderland’ is a concert with a repertoire of joyful tunes perfect for the season, and is bound to immerse you into the winter mood. With it being free admission, anyone can join us to celebrate the festive month and the welcoming of the following year!
People’s Orchestra and Giving Back to Society
SCO firmly believes in putting the people at the heart of everything we do. We strive to let our music echo throughout Singapore and let people from all walks of life experience the vibrancy of Chinese Orchestral music, through initiatives like the SCO Caring Series, SCO Community Concerts, SCO Music Oasis Concerts and SCO Lunchtime Concerts.
Please refer to annex A for the list of SCO’s concerts in July to December 2017.
Priority ticket sales start now!
[50%] Priority sales for Friends of SCO from 29 May to 15 June 2017
SCO expresses our heartfelt thanks to the following partners for their support:
Official Radio Station: Capital 95.8FM, LOVE 97.2FM, Symphony 92.4FM
Official Newspaper: Lianhe Zaobao
Official Lifestyle Magazine: 品Prestige
Hotel Partners: Amara Hotel, Grand Park City Hall, Hotel Royal @ Queens, Oasia Hotel
Official Credit Card: OCBC Credit Card
Official Airline: Singapore Airline
Official Community Partner: PAssion Card
Official Lifestyle Partner: SAFRA Card
For request for artistes’ photos and interviews and more information, please contact:
Valesha Soon
Executive (Marketing Communications)
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DID: 6557 4037 / 9187 3418
Koh Mui Leng
Assistant Manager (Marketing Communications)
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DID: 6557 4047 / 9833 0556