pianomania

So we've reached the final day of the Barclays Asia Trophy, and Arsenal have a chance of escaping serious injury thanks to Everton beating Stoke City on penalties in their earlier match. Which means Singapore Selection has to face the music instead. (For the record, Singapore Selection fails to score, and loses 0-2 to Stoke. No great disgrace, really.)

The 52,000 and more who attended were treated to a masterclass of football which the Arsenal can only deliver these days. No longer are the days of "Boring, boring Arsenal" or "1-0 to the Arsenal", more like Özil to the Arsenal!

The stars have finally come out,
but no Alexis!

Santi Cazorla and Peter Cech warm up.

And the match gets underway!

Walcott opens the scoring, just like in the
FA Cup final, only earlier!

Cech collects in this great aerial view.

Cazorla gives a shot, and a goal is ever looming...

The magic of Santi in 3 frames...

The midfield maestro turns a defender 3 times!

Bang! Its the goal of the match!

Özil adds a third goal, and
Arsene Wenger is wondering how
Arsenal have yet to concede.

Everton attacks and get a reward with Ross Barkley's goal

Here's the final score and Özil.

One goal and two assists:
Santi Cazorla is Man of the Match!

Winners again! And now for the 2015-16 season!

We had a swell time,
isn't it fun to hang around winners?

WALTON'S CELLO CONCERTO

Singapore

Symphony Orchestra

Esplanade Concert Hall

Friday (17 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 20 July 2015 with the title "Sparks fly in fast romp".

The Chinese-Australian cellist Qin Li-Wei has become a permanent fixture in Singapore's musical scene, thanks to his position as Head of Cello Studies at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory where he trains young cellists to fill the world's orchestras. As a soloist, his appearances in concertos and chamber music continue to excite audiences and this evening was to be no different.

In William Walton's bittersweet Cello Concerto (1957), composed for the great Gregor Piatigorsky, Qin brought to bear his years of experience to give a totally compelling reading with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jason Lai. In the first movement's hushed and subdued atmosphere, the tone he coaxed from his 1780 Joseph Guadagnini was warm and transcendent yet keeping a cloak of melancholy and unease on.

He let it rip in the scherzo-like central movement with biting wit and edgy sense of irony. Sparks flew in this fleet-fingered romp which included double-stop pizzicatos and all manner of slaloming runs. The finale provided impassioned soliloquys in two cadenzas, moments of true catharsis before a return to the opening's lament and a final descent into depths of silence.

Qin, whom the audience genuinely warmed to, generously offered three encores by David Popper (Etude), Giovanni Sollima (Alone) and Prokofiev (March For Children), which displayed different vistas of his virtuosity. From this most eloquent voice, could one hope for local premieres of Britten's Cello Symphony or FrankBridge's Oration?

The second half focused on orchestral fireworks and showcased SSO Associate Conductor Lai as an interpeter of real maturity. His was not the geriatric protractedness-as-profundity kind, but one of nuanced dynamism and fluidity. Britten's Sinfonia da Requiem, originally written for the Japanese empire but subsequently rejected for its Christian slant, uncannily foretold the carnage of war following its 1941 premiere.

The wailing horrors of the Lacrimosa was steadily built up to a shattering climax, followed by the shrill and strident sprint of death in the Dies Irae. Lai maintained a tight rein and when push came to shove, the orchestra upped its pace to match and it became a thrilling meeting of like minds. The Requiem Aeternam closed with a conciliatory balm to the earlier violence, with paired flutes singing like doves of peace, before a final climax of rising hope.

Equally exciting but of a completely different complexion was Richard Strauss'Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration), a tone poem about rising hope for the seemingly hopeless. Here, a man's struggle with painful death throes was portrayed with chilling restlessness yet sympathy, which Lai and his charges brought out with a show of instrumental prowess.

Solos from Rachel Walker (oboe), Jin Ta (flute) and concertmaster Igor Yuzefovich (violin) stood out, and a magical moment was reached with the brass chorale's chant of the work's big tune accompanied by singing strings. That was just one of many instances where both conductor and musicians served the big picture of a masterpiece, which went on to close with a most reassuring C major chord ever conceived. The fear of death was never to be the same again.

FRANCK'S PIANO QUINTET

VCH Chamber Series

Sunday (19 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 21 July 2015 with the title "An edgy and lyrical afternoon of chamber music".

There are so many chamber concerts by talented young musicians these days that it is easy to forget that the Singapore Symphony Orchestra's own chamber series featuring its players still provides excellent playing and value for one's time. This latest concert underlines the importance of this series, which will in time get progressively ambitious.

The first half featured Russian fare, opening with a piano trio arrangement of Rachmaninov's Vocalise (Op.34 No.14). Violinist Chen Da Wei and cellist Yu Jing got the share of its juicy melodies while pianist Yao Xiao Yun's role was that of able accompanist. Unfortunately, some of the harmonies employed in this score were unidiomatic (one doubts whether the composer would have sanctioned it) and the result was more sickly sentimental than melancholic.

No such doubts existed for Shostakovich's Piano Trio No.1, a student work from his teenaged years. In its single movement, one already discerns the sparks of genius that would light up his precocious First Symphony. His brand of bittersweet was unlike Rachmaninov's, and one tinged with irony and parody, which was trenchantly brought out by the three players.

Emerging from occasional jarring dissonances, Yu's cello sang with much lyrical beauty but the throw-back to Romanticism was brief, soon to be overshadowed by the dark gloom that would mostly occupy Shostakovich's output. The trio responded well to abrupt swings in mood and dynamics, more than making up for the music's somewhat ambiguous ending.

On the same edgy frequency was Cesar Franck's Piano Quintet in F minor, one of the great repertoire works for this medium. One will scarcely find a more cohesive string quartet group than the one led by violinist Lynnette Seah, which included violinist Cindy Lee, violist Zhang Manchin and cellist Ng Pei-Sian. Their opening register was gripping, a sinister growl that would define the work's starkly sombre tone.

Pianist Liu Jia's entry was more leisurely, even mellow, but soon she would be dragged into the music's mesmerising intensity. She played with piano lid half down, which allowed better integration with the strings, rather than stand out as a soloist. This unity brilliantly bore out the music's unfolding upheavals and turmoil without letting up for a moment.

There were spots of transcending beauty in the slow movement, where Seah's violin sang out as if it were waxing lyrical in Franck's popular Violin Sonata. The calm was broken with the final movement's manic march to the edge of sanity, with a terrifying sense of momentum. The five musicians were fully in control while the music seemed to hurtle dangerously towards parts unknown.

Little wonder that its original dedicatee, the genteel Camille Saint-Saëns was so incensed that he stormed out after its premiere. On the count of this afternoon's commanding performance, the audience would stride out of Victoria Concert Hall with nothing less than total satisfaction and admiration.

Acknowledging the applause are Ng Pei-Sian,
Lynnette Seah, Liu Jia, Cindy Lee and Zhang Manchin.

SSO Music Director Shui Lan offers his
congratulations to the performers.

MARTHA ARGERICH & FRIENDS

LIVE FROM LUGANO 2014

Warner Classics 0825646134601 (3 CDs)

*****

The one defining feature of the Lugano Festival's Martha Argerich Project besides the legendary Argentine pianist's infectious musicianship is the sheer wealth of programming diversity on display, combining the familiar with the arcane. Her appearance in Mozart's popular Piano Concerto No.20 with the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana conducted by Jacek Kaspszyk finds her in typically fiery form, revelling in the music's stürm und drang (storm and stress).

There are two piano quintets offered, a sassy arrangement of Milhaud's jazz ballet La Creation du Monde (Creation of the Earth) and Borodin's lovely but rarely-heard Piano Quintet. An absolute rarity is Busoni's transcription of Mendelssohn's Mozart-influenced First Symphony for two pianos and eight hands shared by Akane Sakai, Lilya Zilberstein, Anton & Daniel Gerzenberg, who rip into the work with real relish.

Cello fanciers will enjoy the sonatas by Frank Bridge and Francis Poulenc, performed by Gautier Capucon with pianists Gabriela Montero and Francesco Piemontesi respectively. Argerich's favourite chamber music partners, the veterans Mischa Maisky and Gidon Kremer also make cameos in Beethoven's Bei Männern Variations from Mozart's The Magic Flute and Polish-Russian composer Miecyslaw Weinberg's Violin Sonata No.5. These sparkling live performances capture the true collegial spirit of chamber music, and this budget-priced box-set should be snapped up without delay.

ÉTUDE

CLARE HAMMOND, Piano

BIS 2004 / ****1/2

This album may have alternatively been named “Future of the Étude”, as it follows the piano study from its humbler origins as mere finger exercises well into the 21^st century. It was Chopin and Liszt in the early to mid-19^th century who transformed the étude into an aesthetically pleasing art form. The Russian Sergei Lyapunov was clearly inspired by Liszt to write his own 12 Transcendental Études(1900), of which three – Terek, Nuit d'ete and Tempete - have been chosen for their variety of expressive devices. Here the prodigious pianism of Liszt is united with the Russian nationalism of Balakirev and Borodin.

The 12 Studies Op.33 (1916) of Pole Karol Szymanowski are barely one minute long each, but filled with light and colour which take on the hues of Debussy's impressionism. The Korean Unsuk Chin was a student of the Hungarian György Ligeti and her Six Études(1995-2003) pay tribute to his own Etudes, wondrous essays of rhythmic and textural complexity which are modernistic, dissonant yet totally engaging. Finally, the Ukrainian Nikolai Kapustin's 5 Études in Different Intervals Op.68 (1992) employ the blues, jazz harmonies and syncopations in service of entertaining finger-twisters. The young British pianist Clare Hammond's readings of divergent styles are a revelation, and make a welcome entry into an over-populated world of recorded pianophilia.

ORCHESTRE DES CONTINENTS

Esplanade Concert Hall

Wednesday (22 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 24 July 2015 with the title "Cross-continental orchestra serve a treat".

Orchestre des Continents is a new international orchestra formed by students from three tertiary music institutions - the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, University of Music Lausanne and Geneva University of Music. It gave its debut in Singapore under the baton of renowned Swiss conductor Thierry Fischer, and will later perform at the Paleo Festival in Switzerland on Sunday.

Music is a truly international language, and thus with only a few rehearsals, the orchestra truly impressed at its first showing. The concert opened with Swiss composer Michael Jarrell's 3 Études De Debussy. There are not just mere orchestrations of Claude Debussy's late piano works but re-imaginations for orchestra.

How the piano's sound world and idiom translated so seamlessly into orchestral textures was the work of a master. The added layers of sound were sensitively realised, through the shimmering number For Repeated Notes, the languor of For Contrasted Timbres when muted woodwinds and brass stood out, to the virile athleticism of For Chords, where the exertions of the original piano pieces were all but forgotten.

Young Swiss-Chinese pianist Louis Schwizgebel then took centrestage in Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto. Although he took his time to ravish the work's opening series of chords, his was not an idiosyncratic look at a familiar warhorse. Neither did he feel the need to over-exert himself in order to be heard above the throng. This resulted in certain spots being submerged by the ever-willing orchestra.

His musicality came to the fore in the lyrical slow movement, where the climax was gradually built up, with the best moment coming when the piano truly sang while accompanied by just strings. His mercurial fingers distinguished the finale, which was unfailingly exciting, and he was even allowed a minor lapse in the seemingly easiest of spots. This performance scored far higher in poetry than Denis Matsuev's running roughshod over Rachmaninov with the London Symphony Orchestra last year.

Louis Schwizgebel
has legions of lady fans.

No symphony was performed but eight movements from Prokofiev's ballet Romeo and Juliet provided the meat for the main course. No longer considered fodder for orchestra pit bands, these have become bona fide concert showpieces requiring all-round virtuosity. The orchestra's prowess was immediately stamped in the Morning Dance and Juliet as a Young Girl, with playing of pinpoint precision and the ability to adapt to myriad shifts of dynamics.

From rowdy crowd scenes to a playful and winsome portrait of the tragic heroine, conductor Fischer kept his players on high alert in the music's many nuances. Extreme violence and crushing dissonances were delivered on triple-forte in The Death Of Tybalt and Montagues and Capulets, both bringing out the loudest brassy climaxes in the hall's reverberant acoustics.

The orchestra luxuriated in Romeo and Juliet Before Parting, which was the famous balcony scene, where its rapturous revelries soon evaporated for the sorrow of Romeo at Juliet's Tomband The Death of Juliet. Seldom has string playing portrayed so acutely a sense of loss, such that the concertmaster's calming violin solo provided an oasis of equanimity.

Performances like these from Orchestre des Continents send a strong signal that the future of classical music for the world is indeed in good hands.

TRANSFIGURED NIGHT

Singapore

Symphony Orchestra

Victoria Concert Hall

Thursday (23 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 25 July 2015 with the title "SSO returns to chamber music roots".

Moving back to Victoria Concert Hall to perform a pair of concerts, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra could be said to have returned to its chamber music roots. It was in 1979 when the fledgling outfit comprising 41 musicians took on the works of Beethoven and Schubert in its inaugural concerts. This evening, the concert's first half conducted by Music Director Shui Lan featured a work for wind ensemble and another for just strings.

Richard Strauss' youthful Serenade Op.7 was scored for 13 instruments: two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, three bassoons and four French horns. Yet the sound generated by these few musicians was voluminous, filling the reverberant hall with an ardent bluster. Thank goodness the playing was immaculate and crisp for this short single-movement piece, and muddiness in resonance was largely avoided.

It appears that the hall favours the strings, which have a mellower and soothing timbre. Thus in Arnold Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht (Transfigured Night), where the original sextet was expanded to a large body of strings including double basses, the overall effect was closer to perfection. The music is programmatic, narrating the intense feelings of a man and woman who share a dark private secret in the deep of night.

The build-up from quiet calm to wracking emotional turmoil was a gradual one, and even if the opening lacked a degree of mystery, the climaxes were palpably vivid. The larger group of strings was also ideally balanced with the small quartet group, manned by violinists Igor Yuzefovich and Zhou Qi, violist Zhang Manchin and cellist Ng Pei-Sian.

Shui's firm guiding hand ensured that the catharsis was for real, and the subsequent transformation from agony to acceptance provided the music's defining moments. What was that dark secret anyway? The child the woman was bearing was from another man's seed. True love thus reigned in that transfigured night.

Despite its pretensions to virtuosity, Robert Schumann's Piano Concerto in A minor is in effect chamber music writ large. Russian pianist Nikolai Demidenko, well known for his Rachmaninov and Prokofiev concerto performances, gave an intimate and anti-histrionic reading. Sporting eye-glasses, seated very low and near the keyboard, his stance was not of self-effacement but rather coming to grips to the work's very personal message.

His sensitive playing blended with the orchestra like a snug hand and glove. This was nowhere more apparent than in the slender 2^nd movement's Intermezzo, where repartee between pianist and ensemble was deliciously kept up until the finale's energetic romp. Here Demidenko's much-vaunted technique more than held up to scrutiny, with the tricky syncopations and fast slightly off-kilter waltz dancing its way to a brilliant conclusion.

His two encores were equally delightful, with rare concert appearances of waltzes from Chopin's Op.64 set, including the Minute Waltz, which now really sounds like a little dog (Valse du petit chien was Chopin's own title for it) chasing its tail.

SYMPHONIC GIFTS

Singapore

National Youth Orchestra &

Singapore

Youth Chinese Orchestra

Esplanade Concert Hall

Friday (24 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 27 July 2015 with the title "Youth orchestras make history and music together".

This will go down in history as a first ever collaboration between the Singapore National Youth Orchestra (SNYO) and the Singapore Youth Chinese Orchestra (SYCO), both National Projects of Excellent now under the umbrella of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth. Its respective conductors Leonard Tan and Quek Ling Kiong (below) took turns to lead and play chatty and convivial hosts for the concert.

Western instruments conducted by Tan opened with Leong Yoon Pin's Dayong Sampan Overture, not merely an arrangement of the popular Malay song but a symphonic fantasy. Amid the obligatory dissonances and busy counterpoint emerged that catchy tune on solo oboe, accompanied by violin glissandi. The SNYO gave an assured account of what must be Singapore's best known orchestral composition.

SYCO then followed, conductor-less, to perform works of two popular genres: Jiangnan Shizhu and Chuida, representing a culture of strings with winds, and winds with percussion respectively. Happy Times was a showpiece of huqin prowess that progressed from slow to very fast. Li Min Xiong's A Well-Matched Fight featured a raucous duel between solo drummer Lim Rei centrestage (above) and seven of her percussionist partners against the entire band, with both groups coming out first among equals.

Guest violinist Siow Lee Chin was the glamourous soloist in Kam Kee Yong's Kuang Xiang Qu (Chinese Rhapsody) for symphony orchestra, performing its fiendish free-wheeling part with the swashbuckling verve as if it were Ravel's Tzigane. The orchestration was not particularly Chinese, veering more towards the music for biblical epics by Bloch and Rozsa, and the end result brought out the cheers.

All ears were pricked for the second half's music, specially orchestrated for both ensembles combined. At this point, it could be said this was an exercise symbolic of solidarity between instrumentalists across the cultural divide rather than something truly practicable. But only time will tell.

Eric Watson's Tapestries – Time Dances now resembled a concerto grosso, with a core group of three Chinese instruments (ruan, dizi and guzheng) and four Western instruments (violin, cello, French horn and harp) backed by the over-hundred-strong mega-orchestra. One outcome was that Chinese instruments stood out in the solo parts because of their penetrating timbres, while violins, violas and cellos overwhelmed the huqinswhen massed strings sang. At parts, Watson's creation began to sound like those of his compatriot, Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Wang Chenwei's The Sisters' Islands took on a distinctly Nanyang slant, with its use of Indo-Malay melodies, and the symphonic poem had a particularly effective spell depicting an attack by pirates of the Singapore Straits. One only wonders which orchestra does a blown conch shell belong to. Both pieces were led by conductor Quek.

The concert ended with Jeremiah Li's arrangement of Kelly Tang's Symphonic Suite On A Set Of Local Tunes, helmed by conductor Tan. This medley mixed the Malay song Chan Mali Chan with Dick Lee's Home and Bunga Sayang and NDP favourite Singapore Heartbeat, with a Hollywood-like vibe. Home was accounted by solo erhu accompanied by yangqin, which lent a tender touch, and Tang's trademark in-joke was to throw in the fanfare from The Magnificent Seven, not once but twice.

As an encore, the audience was given permission to whip out their handphones and wave their built-in torches (above) to the strains of Home. After which they gamely rode off into the sunset.

Guest violinist Siow Lee Chin with Guest-of-Honour
Sim Ann, conductors Quek Ling Kiong & Leonard Tan,
with board members of the SSO & SCO.

Addendum

I am grateful to Professor Lim Seh Chun for offering this most interesting piece of history:

The SYO and SYCO has collaborated before, but way back in 1971. The two orchestras performed in several joint concerts in Singapore and in Lausanne, Switzerland at the International Festival of Youth Orchestras. The concerts were led by the legendary Goh Soon Tioe and two younger conductors Goh Say Meng and Lee Suat Lin.

Members of the SYO then included Prof Lim himself, conductor Lim Soon Lee, violinist Tan Peng Tow (who was the soloist in Mozart's Violin Concerto No.5), her brother Tan Peng Chin and neurologist Prof Benjamin Ong.

The SYCO reads like a Who's Who of Chinese orchestra music today, including the composer Phoon Yew Tien, conductors Lum Yan Sin, Yeo Siew Wee and Lee Hoon Piek, recording-meister Goh Aik Yew, high fidelity reviewer Tham Chaik Kong and SCO veteran Sim Boon Yew.

ELIZABETH BASOFF-DARSKAIA

Violin Recital with

JONATHAN SHIN, Piano

Lee Foundation Theatre

Sunday (26 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 28 July 2015 with the title "Violinist and pianist display solid technique".

There are so many incredibly talented young violinists studying in conservatories around the world that it is impossible to count them all. Just witness the Singapore International Violin Competition in January, where margins separating each artist were so fine that the decisions to reward some and eliminate others seemed almost arbitrary. So count oneself lucky to have even heard any of them perform, and the same would apply to young Russian-American violinist Elizabeth Basoff-Darskaia who made her Singapore debut this evening.

Her teachers are a Who's Who of the instrument, including Ruggiero Ricci, Aaron Rosand, Pamela Frank and Boris Kuschnir. Perhaps one of them might have advised on her sequence of programming, because it is murder to open a recital cold with Brahms' demanding Violin Sonata No.3 in D minor (Op.108). Both performers and listeners have yet to fully warm up, and the results could be half-cooked or disappointing.

Thankfully, she had the technique to sustain its four movements with a sweet and somewhat slender tone on the 1745 Carlo Bergonzi violin on loan from the Rin Collection. The faster outer movements fared best while the slow movement came across as prosaic, and the playful scherzo on the staid side. By the time of Saint-Saëns'Introduction & Rondo Capriccioso, she had fully warmed up and pulled out all stops for a virtuoso display.

For her unaccompanied segment, Paganini's Caprice No.19 sounded exposed at its fastest bits, where the running notes were a blur. Much better was the Bach Chaconne in D minor which confidently opened the second half, with a more fulsome tone, perfect intonation and masterly pacing. This was the work she should have begun her recital with.

What followed was a lovely reading of Mozart's Sonata in B flat major (K.454), which displayed sensitivity and utmost sympathy for the Rococo style. Simplicity of form and beauty of lines ruled here. By now, one would have wondered who the pianist in the recital was. Young Singaporean pianist Jonathan Shin was every bit an equal partner in Mozart, Brahms and Saint-Saëns, a solid rock upon which the recital stood. So why was he referred to as just an accompanist and his biography not included?

The recital closed with the Carmen Fantasy by Hungarian violin virtuoso Jenö Hubay, a refreshing departure from the frequently-heard Sarasate and Waxman incarnations. This version was more improvisatory, had more showy cadenzas, and included the Fate motif, Micaela's Air and Toreador Song before romping home with the scintillating Bohemian Dance.

Both performers received the loudest cheers and rhythmic applause. As there was no pre-prepared encore, Basoff-Darskaia emerged from the wing sans violin to play Chopin's Étude in F minor (Op.25 No.2) on the piano flawlessly and with teasing rubato. Further cheers brought out pianist Shin and the finale from the Brahms sonata was reprised. This time it sounded well done, and close to perfection.

A meeting of Russian virtuosos:
Elizabeth Basoff-Darskaia with
former SSO Concertmaster Alexander Souptel.

IDIL BIRET

LP ORIGINALS EDITION

Idil Biret Archive 8.501402 (14 CDs)

****1/2

The Turkish pianist Idil Biret (born 1941) was a child prodigy student of Nadia Boulanger, Alfred Cortot and Wilhelm Kempff, those combined tutelage nurtured an artist of catholic tastes, phenomenal versatility and uncommon technique. This box-set brings together all her LP recordings (on five different labels) dating from 1959 to 1986, including works by Chopin, Brahms and Schumann to the Second Viennese School and the avant-gardeists.

Among the latter is Turkish-American composer Ilhan Mimaroglu's Session, an aleatoric work with pre-recorded taped sounds dedicated to Biret, of which this 1976 recording is the definitive performance and entity. The composer had expressly forbidden any further performances or recordings (even by Biret herself) ever again. Her command of other 20^th century works by Berg, Webern, Boulez, Scriabin, Bartok, Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Miaskovsky has also much to recommend.

Of the mainstream repertoire, Rachmaninov's Corelli Variations and Moments Musicaux, Brahms'Handeland Paganini Variations, and Ravel's Gaspard de la nuit reveal a virtuosity that has been underrated. The best sound is to be found in Liszt's transcriptions of Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique and Beethoven's Fourthand Fifth Symphonies, where her command of orchestral sonorities on a single keyboard have to be heard to be believed.

BRITTEN Piano Concerto

BARBER Piano Concerto

ELIZABETH JOY ROE, Piano

London Symphony / Emil Tabakov

Decca 478 8189 / ****1/2

This is a most logical coupling, the only piano concertos by the most revered 20^th century composers of England and America, who happened to be close contemporaries and good friends. There were many parallels with Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) and Samuel Barber (1910-1981), in terms of their shared love for vocal music, use of dissonance and lyricism in compositions, and alternative lifestyles. Britten's Piano Concerto (1938, revised 1945) was a slick and bold work of a young man, while Barber's Piano Concerto (1960-62) was borne of maturity and experience.

Both have loud and percussive pages but are tempered with passages of songlike wistfulness. While Britten's strong suit is wit and humour, Barber draws on the extremes of violence and nostalgia. The performances by Korean-American pianist Elizabeth Joy Roe, one half of the famous Anderson & Roe piano duo, are elegant, incisive and often insightful, even if the recorded sound possesses a softer edge than some of her rivals. Her pair of encores are well-chosen, contrasting Barber's Nocturne (Hommage to John Field) with Britten's Night Piece (Notturno). This is wonderful programming coupled with playing of trenchant brilliance.

Singaporean virtuoso violinist Siow Lee Chin's autobiography From Clementi To Carnegie was officially launched today (Friday, 31 July 2015) at the Grand Hyatt Hotel.

It was already on sale last week at the Singapore National Youth Orchestra / Singapore Youth Chinese Orchestra concert at Esplanade Concert Hall last week, where she had given a concerto performance. It was also seen on the shelves of Books Kinokuniya over the weekend. This is an inspirational book of sorts, so buy it to find out how one becomes a Singaporean cultural icon!

Siow Lee Chin made her opening speech,
thanking all the guests and people who made
her musical journey a reality.

From girl next door to Miss Va-va-voom!

With the movers and shakers of Singapore's cultural scene:
Esplanade CEO Benson Phua, NAC CEO Cathy Lai,
Yong Siew Toh Conservatory head Bernard Lanskey,
Keppel Corp President Choo Chiau Beng
and humourist Sylvia "Eh, Goondu!" Toh Paik Choo.

With jazz supremo Jeremy Monteiro
& former Singapore Arts Festival boss Goh Ching Lee.

Journalist and Lianhe Zaobao editor Hu Wenyan,
Goh Ching Lee, Lau Wei Yi and SSO violinist Karen Tan.

Singapore's champion sportsmen Ang Peng Siong
and C.Kunalan with their spouses.

Lee Chin's brother Dr Siow Yew Nam
and their mother Mdm Choong Siew Kum.

My little contribution to the book,
and how thrilled I was to find it placed
just below Gary Graffman's tribute!

SG50 CONCERT

Hua Xing Choir Society

Wang Ya-Hui (Conductor)

Victoria Concert Hall

Friday (31 July 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 3 August 2015 with the title "Treats from Taiwan".

Tis the season to be patriotic, and SG50 tribute concerts have come thick and fast, all leading to the great climax of the 50^th National Day on 9 August. This concert organised under the auspices of Hua Xing Choir Society and Boon Lay Choir however had a difference: the leaders and soloists were of Taiwanese extraction or lineage, all of whom have significantly contributed to the music scene of Singapore.

The four participating choirs, which also included the Sing Sheng Choir and Ngee Ann Polytechnic Voices Club, were trained by Taiwan-born singer and vocal teacher Lin Liying. The concert conducted by Wang Ya-Hui opened with the Taiwanese song Yu Ye Hua, sung in the Minnan dialect and Phoon Yew Tien's colourful arrangement of the very popular Ye Lai Xiang (Evening Primrose). The young and mature voices blended pleasingly in this mostly unison number.

The orchestral segment was supported by the young musicians of Kids'Philharmonic, which gave a stirring account of the Furiant from Dvorak's Czech Suite, and then ably supported pianist Albert Lin in Mendelssohn's Rondo Brillant Op.29 by not being distracted by all the virtuosic note-spinning. Both conductor Wang and pianist Lin are Singaporeans whose parents came from Taiwan.

The only concession to pop songs was offered by the Ngee Ann Polytechnic Voices Club, which sang choral versions of Alan Menken's Go The Distance from the Disney animated movie Hercules and Grammy Winner Adele's Skyfall from the James Bond movie of the same title. The youths were led by young conductor Umar Sirhan and accompanied by pianist Noella Lim.

The artsong, operetta and opera selections by Taiwanese tenor Fernando Wang and soprano Jessica Chen were most warmly received. Accompanied by pianist Aloysius Foong, both sang artsongs by Singaporean composer Lee Yuk Chuan and Leong Yoon Pin to begin, warming up for the treats that followed. Wang's hitting the nine high Cs in Donizetti's Ah! Mes Amies (from Daughter Of The Regiment) was remniscent of Pavarotti's heroics, while Chen emoted ever so ardently in Lehar's Meine Lippen, Sie Kussen So Heiss (Giuditta). Both did the waltz together in Lippen Schweigen (The Merry Widow), also by Lehar.

The Kids'Philharmonic played for the whole second half beginning with Phoon Yew Tien's arrangement of a popular Taiwanese song and the rousing Preludefrom Bizet's Carmen, which came off with aplomb. Accompanying singers in opera arias was a lot trickier, especially in Puccini's Signore Ascolta (Turandot) with its short pauses, sung beautifully by soprano Lin Liying. To complete the popular trio of Turandot arias, soprano Chen polished off In Questa Reggia with steely and ice-cold resolve, while tenor Wang's effort with Nessun Dorma brought down the house.

With the serious part over, all the choirs congregated to sing the familiar Jiangsu folksong Molihua, which also happens to appear in Turandot. Two senior citizens then joined the throng as amplified soloists for Wong Kah Chun's glitzy arrangement of the Dick Lee's Home, now sung in Mandarin. Finally as an encore, all the soloists returned for a communal clap-along to the infectious tune of the Taiwanese song Maidens Of Alishan.

If there were a dollar saved for every time Home is being heard this month, the problem of poverty would be instantly eradicated.

BENJAMIN BRITTEN'S

THE TURN OF THE SCREW

New Opera

Singapore

VictoriaTheatre

Sunday (2 August 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 4 August 2015 with the title "New Opera Singapore turns in milestone performance".

For New Opera Singapore's fourth full-length production, the 4-year-old company took on its greatest challenge thus far, the Singapore premiere of Benjamin Britten's 1954 opera The Turn Of The Screw. This is a setting with words by Myfanwy Piper of Henry James' 1898 ghost story of the same title. While this might seem too progressive for Singaporeans' conservative tastes more accustomed to Puccini and Verdi, not to mention box office poison, the chamber opera was ideal for a young and forward-looking company hoping to make its mark.

Only eight singing parts and thirteen instrumentalists were required, and these were expertly marshalled by conductor Chan Wei Shing through its two performances. Britten's music utilised twelve-tone technique and the theme and variations form, which were so sophisticatedly employed as to be almost imperceptible. While the audience will not remember its tunes à la Boheme, it was clearly moved by the singing and acting.

Australian director Stefanos Rassios ensured that each part came across transparently in this gothic-styled suspense-mystery, and sets were kept minimal, with black and white with shades of grey being the only colours on stage. This dichotomy was to differentiate between the forces of innocence and evil (and a certain muddying of the two), that do battle through the course of the opera.

The intriguing story revolves around the care of two orphans, Miles and Flora, by a young governess who encounters the spirits of former caregivers who may be corrupting (or have corrupted) the children. The tension that builds up through its seemingly simple plot gets ratcheted to a fatal end, where “the ceremony of innocence is drowned” (a quote from W.B.Yeats), one in which paedophilia, demon-possession and psychosis could not be ruled out. In short, this was another R-rating that eluded the censors.

The young singers, most already veterans of the New Opera Singapore stable, were well-casted. Qualified lawyer turned soprano Teng Xiang Ting, now studying voice in Manchester, portrayed the conflicted governess with sympathy, one where wide-eyed optimism gets irreversibly transformed into obsession. Opposite her, David Charles Tay sang the spirit of dead valet Peter Quint, whose bright tenor voice and outward charm belied a deeper malevolence.

Sopranos Ashley Chua and Moira Loh sang Miles and Flora respectively, with the former being particularly convincing in conveying boyishness. Supporting well also were sopranos Yujin Kim and Rebecca Li as the ghost of Miss Jessel and housekeeper Mrs Grose. The other singing parts were was provided by tenors Leslie Tay (Driver) and Shaun Lee, whose brief Prologue set the tone for the opera.

An opera with no low vocal roles? That was the peculiar charm of this opera, which had a fairy-like feel to it at the beginning but later grew progressively dark and sinister. Further layers of textures were provided by the vivid orchestral sound, which boasted virtuoso roles from harpist Katryna Tan and pianist Thomas Ang, already well-known as soloists. This coming together of rising local vocal talents, instrumentalists and excellent production values provided for a performance that was far greater than the sum of its parts.

Like Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream, which in 1997 represented a high point in the Singapore Lyric Opera's portfolio, Britten's The Turn Of The Screw by New Opera Singapore represents another milestone for opera in Singapore. Can one hope for more edgy productions to come?

Production photographs by courtesy of New Opera Singapore.

TIMELESS

BRAHMS & BRUCH Violin Concertos

DAVID GARRETT, Violin

Israel Philharmonic / Zubin Mehta

Decca 4701071 / ****1/2

After several years of successfully dabbling in crossover and pop music, the German-American former wunderkind David Garrett has returned to the classical fold with this new recording of Max Bruch's First Violin Concerto and Brahms'Violin Concerto. Some might argue that he never actually left, as he shows utmost respect to these timeless classics by playing as they were written. There are no histrionics, ear-catching gimmicks or untoward gestures, just good solid playing with beauty of tone and just the right quantum of passionate output.

Both concertos share the imprimatur of the great Hungarian violinist Joseph Joachim, who advised the composers on the intricacies of writing idiomatically for the violin. The only departure Garrett takes is in eschewing Joachim's cadenza for the 1^st movement of the Brahms, opting for Fritz Kreisler's less opulent and more acrobatic and contrapuntal version instead. The Israel Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta's direction provides excellent support which makes this coupling a competitive one. The Deluxe Edition of this album includes a bonus 24-minute long DVD feature on “The Making Of Timeless” (in English and German), filmed in Tel Aviv. Graced by Garrett's male-model-like presence, this will no doubt please his legion of fans endlessly.

VISIONS FUGITIVES

Camerata Nordica / Terje Tonnesen

BIS 2126 / *****

One might baulk at the thought of listening through 69 minutes of modern string music uninterrupted, but the variety provided by the Swedish string ensemble Camerata Nordica on this disc is rather special. The two main works are Russian violist-conductor Rudolf Barshai's idiomatic arrangements of Prokofiev's Visions Fugitives and Bartok's Divertimento. A full gamut of string effects colours Prokofiev's 15 miniatures (selected from 20 pieces originally conceived for piano), which are more like preludes but each imbued with a distinct quirky character of its own. Its title comes from a line by Russian poet Konstantin Balmont, which refers to worlds of “fleeting glimpses”.

Bartok's masterpiece is strongly based on folk influences and the string ensemble comes to sound like one large gypsy band, fuelled by the acerbic harmonies and driving rhythms of the Hungarian nationalist composer. The fill-ups are no less interesting and impressive. Hindemith's Five Pieces Op.44 No.4 is neo-Bachian in its play of counterpoint, almost a concerto grosso brought up to date, while Webern's Five Movements Op.5 is an established atonal classic that continues to provide shock value in buckets. The performances, full of cohesion, coherence and incisiveness, make for a revelatory and even enjoyable aural experience.

HENRY WONG DOE Piano Recital

Esplanade Recital Studio

Tuesday (4 August 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 5 August 2015 with the title "Piano notes that sound like tinkling bells".

There are many fine pianists giving concerts out there who are not household names just because they are not named Lang Lang. New Zealander Henry Wong Doe, Juilliard graduate and prizewinner in the Arthur Rubinstein, Busoni and Sydney International Piano Competitions, is one of these. His debut recital in Singapore, which was not widely publicised, should have garnered a bigger audience.

He has an iron-clad technique that easily surmounted the most technically daunting of pieces, and capable of bringing out myriad shades of the piano. Beginning with Beethoven's brief Sonata in F major (Op.54) in two movements, he highlighted its stark contrasts with much purpose and care. The genteel minuet-like opening was upstaged by a procession of marching octaves, and a breathless perpetual motion blazed the way of its second movement without missing a step.

As if to change tact, his breezy account of Liszt's long-breathed Ricordanza (the ninth of 12 Transcendental Etudes) sounded almost improvised, its lyricism and singing tone enveloping the hall with a warm glow. This was the perfect salve for the coruscating energy of Argentine Alberto Ginastera's First Sonata, three of its four movements being fast and brilliant expositions.

Raw power and pummeling brute force were delivered in spades in its opening movement, while the Presto Misterioso second movement ghosted like a chilly winter wind. There was a concession for quietude in the nocturnal slow movement before the finale coasted home with a percussive Bartokian violence which brought out spontaneous applause.

Further indelible impressions were made in the second half with Eve de Castro-Robinson's this liquid drift of light from Landscape Preludes, an anthology of short pieces inspired by New-Zealand geography. Impressionistic in character, its indolent portrayal of languid lapping waters resonated in the high registers of the piano like gently tinkling bells.

More bells came to the fore with Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. From its imposing opening Promenade, Wong's reading stood out as a brisk and no-nonsense one which operated between fortissimo and further decibels more. One wished he could have taken more time to smell the flowers, as The Old Castle sounded unsentimental, while the playful Tuileries was tarred with the same brush as the lumbering ox-cart Bydlo, which served as an early climax of sorts.

The Ballet Of Unhatched Chickswanted for lightness but Goldenberg & Schmuyle (Two Polish Jews) was suitably brutal in its characterisation. When it came to fast and furious, Baba Yaga's Hut swooped down menacingly but at that high speed, some wrong notes were inevitable. However all came to a heady end with the grand strides of The Great Gate of Kiev, with its deafening tintinabulation of pealing carillons.

Wong's sole encore was a balm for the ears, Gareth Farr's The Horizon from Owhiro Bay (from Landscape Preludes) with its wind-swept climes bathed in pentatonic and gamelan-like tones. It made for a colourful conclusion to a flavoursome evening of piano music.

This concert was presented by MW Events Management.

Has there been a bigger concert of Singapore music than the Sing50 Concert held on Friday 7 August 2015 at the National Stadium? Presented by The Straits Times and Business Times as a gift to the nation, a capacity audience was greeted by two and a half hours of Singaporean popular music, featuring hits performed by some of the most iconic local musicians past and present, and some well-heeled guests.

It wasn't Woodstock, but attempts were made to connect Singaporeans with their particular brand and blend of music that ruled the airwaves and stages from the 1950s to the present. This historic concert could be summed in two words: bloody noisy.

A tribute to Malay pop music.

Icons of yesteryear: Malay pop diva Rahimah Rahim
and indie rocker X'Ho (Chris Ho)

Music from the younger generation,
songsters and MICappella.

Jazz singers Melissa Tham & Jacinta
accompanied by Jeremy Monteiro.

Jazz divas Mel T, Ja & Rani Singham.

The ageless Tracy Huang with Feelings.
The audience lights up with their handphone lights.

A medley by the King of Musicals, Dick Lee.

Ravers on stage, whatever that was.

Mandopop star JJ Lin,
who was later paired with Lang Lang.

The "classical" highlight of the evening:
Kelly Tang's Three Movements for
51 pianos and Orchestra.

The infamous Red Steinway was commandeered
by Lang Lang, here partnered by the
Metropolitan Festival Orchestra.

The 2nd movement Elegy was dedicated to the memory of
Founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew
(the Singapore royal family pictured above).

The 50 Lang Lang Steinway baby grands
final get to see some action!

Lang Lang with conductor Chan Tze Law.

Singapore's highest grossing Mando-pop star
Stefanie Sun gets to sing with a full orchestra.
Its not the SSO but the MFO.

A melange of pop songs, remembering
the days of Talentime.

The Grand Finale.

The National Stadium's version of
an indoor fireworks display.

The National Anthem:
Majulah Singapura.

It seemed that every group in Singapore was getting to do its SG50 celebration and bit of history. The Singapore Chinese Orchestra performed a wonderful concert at the Marina Bay Sands Waterfront Promenade on Saturday 8 August 2015 with a programme of local favourites and patriotic music. It closed with a blaze of fireworks, which never fails to please the crowd.

A segment of the waterfront audience.

The opening work was
Xu Chang Jun's rowdy Lion Dance.

The Women Police Pipes & Drums
in Eric Watson's Singamedley.

MICacappella Close Up.

A vigorous performance of
Phang Kok Jun's MICamedley.

Vocal Associates join in for
Law Wai Lun's Ode To Singapore.

No words were needed for the pyrotechnics
display as the band struck up with
Stand Up For Singapore.

HAPPY 50TH NATIONAL DAY!

IPPOLITOV-IVANOV Symphony No.1

Singapore Symphony / CHOO HOEY

Naxos 8.573508 / ****

The name of Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859-1935) survives on the strength of his Procession of the Sardar (from Caucasian Sketches) which occasionally appears in pops programmes. A student of Rimsky-Korsakov and good friend of Tchaikovsky, his career took him to Georgia where he encountered Central Asian folk music (which he incorporated into his music) and later became the Director of the Moscow Conservatory. His First Symphony (1908) bears only faint influences of Tchaikovsky and is more aligned to the symphonies of Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov. Playing for just over 35 minutes, its generally thin material makes for a pleasant if not utterly memorable listen.

This was one of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra's earliest recordings of Western classical music, taped in 1984 and appearing on LP on the Hong Kong Records label. The recorded sound is relatively thin but it received a reasonably good review from Gramophone, which also noted the orchestra's inexperience but youthful enthusiasm. Its couplings, Turkish Sketches and Turkish March, like his Caucasian Sketches, are light and enjoyable. These are the only recordings available of this music, and deserve our attention because of its relevance to the SSO's mission of bridging the cultures of East and West.

JAMES HORNER Pas De Deux

Mari & Hakon Samuelsen, Violin & Cello

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

Mercury Classics 481 1487 / ****

The timing of this release could not have been more ironic. Celebrated American film composer James Horner (of Titanicand Avatar fame) had just perished in June, in an accident while piloting his private plane. Pas De Deux, a double concerto for violin, cello and orchestra marked a return to his classically trained roots. In three movements, it was written for the young Norwegian siblings Mari and Hakon Samuelsen as a concert piece. While suitably showy for performers, the work makes little demands for its intended audience, who will wallow in its blend of minimalism, sentimental film music and easy listening.

Made of sterner stuff is Estonian Arvö Part's cult favourite Fratres (1977) in its version for solo violin, strings and percussion. Its staid harmonies and static rhythms still exude profundity after all these years. From Italy comes Giovanni Sollima's Violoncelles, Vibrez! for two cellos (with Alisa Weilerstein) with contrasting sections that are far more interesting than Ludovico Einaudi's rather anodyne Divenirefor violin and cello. The album's recorded sound is excellent and fanciers of classical crossover should have no worries making its acquaintance.

SCOTTISH FANTASY

Singapore

Symphony Orchestra

Victoria Concert Hall

Friday (14 August 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 17 August 2015 with the title "Music keeps Choo Hoey young".

The SG50 celebrations of the past week have brought sharply into focus the nation's achievements and a reflection of the people in history who made Singapore happen. It was thus appropriate that the first Singapore Symphony Orchestra concert held after the 50^th National Day be conducted by its founding Music Director Choo Hoey, who led the orchestra from 1979 to 1996.

Now in his early eighties, Choo has lost some sprightliness in his step. The walk onto the stage appeared a little more effortful, but on the podium itself, he seemed revitalised. The spark of leading his charges and long-time friends in music-making returned, albeit for two whole hours.

The well-attended one-night-only concert opened unusually with Darius Milhaud's ballet La Creation du Monde (The Creation of the World). Scored for just 17 players, this was modern chamber music of the 1920s that embraced both the old and new worlds. Old because its form was classically conceived, even incorporating the fugue, and new because of that infectious Afro-American strain called jazz and the blues.

The performance bristled with a fervid beat, with solos by Tang Xiao Ping (on saxophone), Ma Yue (clarinet) and Rachel Walker (oboe) standing out. The balance of sound in the reverberant hall was however not favourable to the strings, as both violins, cello and double bass were virtually shut out by the winds, brass, percussion and piano.

The orchestra's might also threatened to overwhelm the soloist in the next piece, Max Bruch's Scottish Fantasy. Thankfully, the young man on centrestage was Taiwanese violinist Tseng Yu-Chien, 1^st Prizewinner of the 1^stSingapore International Violin Competition in January. His annus mirabilis continued with winning 2^nd Prize at the Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition in Moscow. Although not an overtly showy perfomer, his playing was brimming with confidence.

A bright clarion tone, with perfect intonation, lit up his entry in the opening movement, and shone out like a beacon in the 2nd movement when orchestral volume could have got out of hand. The 3rd movement's variations on the Scottish tune I'm Down For Lack Of Johnnie found the best balance of all, and how his violin truly sang. The bellicose finale provided a stirring show of fireworks from all on stage, and the audience cheered and clamoured for an encore. The soft-spoken and thoughtful soul obliged with further purity of tone in the first movement of Bach's unaccompanied Second Sonata.

The second half was The Choo Hoey Show, in the familiar warhorse that is Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. If the listener had expected broad tempos and stolid posturings in the manner of Klemperer or Celibidache, one was to be surprised. Clocking in under 35 minutes, this was no slouch of a performance, nor was there the litheness and light textures that come with modern approaches. Choo demanded a rich, full-bodied sound through its four movements, and he got it.

The iconic 1^st movement was brisk, tautly held together, but it never sounded hectic. The strings were given ample space to breathe in the slow movement, which brought out the work's lyrical best. The lightly traipsing 3^rd movement was given more nuances than one suspected, with virtuosic ensemble playing in its agitated middle section. The expectant lead-up to the grandstanding finale was exciting, only bettered by the actual article itself. The brass - two French horns, two trumpets and three trombones – were in top form, and who would have thought Beethoven giving in its final pages such prominence to the humble piccolo?

The breathless close, brilliantly marshalled, brought out prolonged accolades for the revered maestro. There seemed to be one common thought that ran through the house: Music makes one young again.

YELLOWRIVER!

Singapore

Chinese Orchestra

Singapore Conference Hall

Saturday (15 August 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 17 August 2015 with the title "Yellow River legends live on".

It seems inconceivable that any Chinese or Sinophile today be unaware of the Yellow River Piano Concerto or Yellow River Cantata. Like the geographical Huang He, both works are symbols of Chinese history and national sorrow, which have now transcended to represent Chinese patriotism and pride.

The composer of the Yellow River Cantata, Macau-born Xian Xing Hai (1905-1945), occupies a position in Chinese music not unlike that of Shostakovich or Prokofiev in modern Russian music. In commemorating the 110^th anniversary of his birth, Singaporeans are reminded that he spent ten years of his youth here, and was an alumnus of Yangzhen (Yeung Ching) School. He played in the school band and his musical talent was honed here before returning to China.

Two orchestral works opened the Xian Xing Hai tribute by the Singapore Chinese Orchestra conducted by Yeh Tsung. Phoon Yew Tien's rousing orchestration of Xian's Behind Enemy Lines incorporated its martial strains with the more optimistic Er Yue Li Lai (Second Lunar Month), both clothed in patriotic fervour. Law Wai Lun's A Decade Of Xing Hai In The Lion City was a brief reminiscence of Xian's melodies with the old YangzhenSchool song accompanied by annotated archival photos.

Two soloists from the Shanghai Opera House sang a trio of songs orchestrated by Phang Kok Jun. Baritone Tao Kuo was a commanding presence in Ye Ban Ge Sheng(Phantom Lover), a song about midnight trysts. Soprano Liu Fei's two songs, Second Lunar Monthand Tie Ti Xia De Ge Nu (Showgirl Under The Iron Heel), took on a socialist slant, extolling a fruitful springtime (to produce more patriots) and decrying the trials and tribulations of being a songstress.

The first half concluded with the Yellow River Concerto, composed in 1969 by a committee of six members of Beijing's Central Philharmonic Society by collating the most memorable melodies from Xian's Yellow River Cantata and recast into four movements. A shamelessly virtuosic vehicle, it brought together various technical devices from Romantic piano concertos by Liszt, Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky and Grieg into one orgiastic whole.

Young Chinese pianist Sun Yingdi, winner of the 2005 Liszt International Piano Competition, spared no effort in thundering out its outsized cadenzas, cascading arpeggios and stampeding octaves. But there were tender moments too, with Lim Sin Yeo's bangdi evocatively opening the 3^rdmovement, Wrath Of The Yellow River, and Sun's excellent repeated note technique in simulating a pipa. So was this a nationalistic work or a Communist one? The inclusion of The East Is Redand the Internationale at the finale's apotheosis strongly points to the latter.

Xian's eponymous cantata, composed within six days in 1939 during the Sino-Japanese war, occupied the concert's second half. By now, many of its melodies would have been familiar, but despite its heroic tones, it is a more nuanced work than the concerto. Crosstalk exponent Huang Jia Qiang was the narrator, and his opening gambit, “Have you been to the Yellow River?” set the tone. A combined choir formed by the Shanghai Opera House Chorus and Nanyang Khek Community Guild Choir delivered a message of struggle and ultimate victory against all invaders.

Baritone Tao and soprano Liu sang one movement each, but it was the 5^th movement's animated dialogue between Everymen Zhang and Wang, sung by tenors Xu Xiao Ming and Yu Hao Lei (above) from the choir contributed a folk-like charm to the proceedings. The orchestra provided excellent support through its eight movements, the original context of the overplayed concerto being laid bare. Love or loathe them, the legends of the Yellow River will live on as long as the Chinese walk this planet.

Post concert: SCO Music Director Yeh Tsung
meets with founding SSO Music Director Choo Hoey,
who was also instrumental in founding the SCO in 1997.

PIANO CONCERTO FESTIVAL

ADDO Chamber Orchestra

School of the Arts Concert Hall

Sunday (16 August 2015)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 18 August 2015 with the title "Momentous, but not without hiccups".

The Piano Concerto Festival, a project of The Performing Arts Company, is now into its second year, supported by the newly-formed ADDO Chamber Orchestra conducted by Clarence Tan. This annual event provides a platform for young Singaporean pianists, a godsend as opportunities to perform with an orchestra are very rare. Its first concert showcased contrasting piano concertos by Mozart and Prokofiev.

But first, an unusual prelude took the form of Mozart's concert aria Ch'io Mi Scordi Di Te? (You Ask That I Forget You?) K.505, sung by coloratura soprano Wendy Woon. Her emotive account, filled with pathos, was well supported by the orchestra, then came the substantial obbligato piano part from Leslie Theseira.

It is said that Mozart's piano concertos were inextricably linked to his operas, and here was a curious hybrid as if to prove the point. Theseira's pretty contribution was both ornamental as well as a foil for the singer, and at certain passages he blended as one with the orchestra. It was an excellent palate-cleanser for the proper concertos to come.

Mozart's Piano Concerto No.24 in C minor (K.491) was performed by Choon Hong Xiang, an irregular reading because of rawness of ensemble coupled with the pianist's diffidence. The opening tutti was marred by poor intonation from the woodwinds but it got better. Choon seemed overawed by the occasion, and despite neat and accurate fingerwork, his playing seldom projected beyond the orchestra's domain.

He came into his own in the 1^stmovement cadenza, which he had composed himself, a lost art revived with some ear-catching ideas. Only the second of two minor key piano concertos by Mozart, the work was to evoke high drama and tragedy. This almost came when Hong completely missed his entry cue in the finale, only joining in a few bars later. Fortunately, he and the ensemble kept their wits, and concluded the Theme and Variations movement together without further mishap.

Altogether more confident was Nicholas Ho who tackled Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto with fearless aplomb. Now studying in Indiana with American pianists Edward Auer and Andre Watts, he has matured far beyond the impetuous youth who was previously described in these pages as having an “obsession with speed and volume” and a “surfeit of feral instincts”.

All he did now was to play the notes Prokofiev had written, and the effect was electrifying. The free-wheeling 1^stmovement breezed through fairly easily, but the 2^nd movement's Theme and Variations saw a brief desynchronisation between pianist and orchestra. A full second's rupture occurred in the rambunctious finale, but that was no fault of his. Shrugging off the blip, both parties grappled with the music's high octane content to finish on an intoxicating high.

Always eventful and at times harrowing, the Piano Concerto Festival moves to Victoria Concert Hall on 3 September to survey the first two piano concertos of Tchaikovsky.

The Piano Concerto Festival was presented by The Performing Arts Company in celebration of Singapore's 50 years of independence.

Photographs from BARCLAYS ASIA TROPHY 2015 FINAL

SSO CONCERT: WALTON'S CELLO CONCERTO / Review

FRANCK'S PIANO QUINTET / VCH Chamber Series / Review

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, July 2015)

ORCHESTRE DES CONTINENTS / Review

SSO CONCERT: TRANSFIGURED NIGHT / Review

SYMPHONIC GIFTS / Singapore National Youth Orchestra & Singapore Youth Chinese Orchestra / Review

ELIZABETH BASOFF-DARSKAIA Violin Recital with JONATHAN SHIN (Piano) / Review

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, July 2015)

Photos from Book Launch of FROM CLEMENTI TO CARNEGIE, Autobiography of Singaporean Violinist SIOW LEE CHIN

SG50 CONCERT / Hua Xing Choir Society / Review

BENJAMIN BRITTEN'S THE TURN OF THE SCREW / New Opera Singapore / Review

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, August 2015)

HENRY WONG DOE Piano Recital / Review

Photographs from SING50 CONCERT at the National Stadium

Photographs from SINGAPORE CHINESE ORCHESTRA CONCERT BY THE BAY

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, August 2015)

SSO CONCERT: SCOTTISH FANTASY / Review

YELLOW RIVER! / Singapore Chinese Orchestra / Review

PIANO CONCERTO FESTIVAL / ADDO Chamber Orchestra / Review