February. May. March. April. Jan - Apr Emily Koh & Terrence Wong! p.6 Getting To Know You Ng Pei-Jee & Ng Pei-Sian p.8 ...

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1 MICA (P) No. 126/07/2014 Newsletter of the SSO Community Outreach Department Jan - Apr 2015 upcoming events February Hans Graf with the SSO Sat, 7 Feb 15, 6.30pm March Sarah Chang Live Fri, 6 Mar 15, 6.30pm Open Rehearsal: Ode to Joy (SSO 36th Anniversary Concert) Wed, 11 Mar 15, 7.30pm 10.30pm Lan Shui conductor Paul Lewis piano Open to Friends of the SSO, SSO Subscribers and ticketholders. Ode to Joy (SSO 36th Anniversary Concert) Thu, Fri & Sat, 12, 13 & 14 Mar 15, 6.30pm Music Studio SSO Lunchtime Concert Wed, 18 Mar 15, 12.30pm Free admission Concerts for Children: Adventures in the Magical Kingdom Sat, 21 Mar 15, 11am, 2pm & 4pm Joshua Tan conductor Malloy presenter Each concert lasts one hour. Suitable for ages 4 to 14. Information correct at time of print and is subject to change. Published by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra Classics in the Park: Gardens by the Bay Sun, 22 Mar 15, 6.30pm The Meadow Pre-concert Talk: Eliahu Inbal Conducts Mahler s Ninth Sat, 28 Mar 15, 6.30pm April Midori Sat, 04 Apr 15, 6.30pm Benjamin Grosvenor Plays Lizst Fri & Sat, 10 & 11 Apr 15, 6.30pm Music Studio Tchaikovsky s Violin Concerto Thu & Fri, 16 & 17 Apr 15, 6.30pm Music Studio Post-Concert Symphony Chat: Tchaikovsky s Violin Concerto Fri, 17 Apr 15 Open to members of the concert audience Steven Isserlis Plays Shostakovich Thu, 30 Apr 15, 6.30pm May Classics in the Park: Istana Fri, 01 May 15, 4pm Istana grounds Free admission Out of This World Fri, 08 May 15, 6.30pm Classics in the Park: Botanic Gardens Mothers Day Concert Sun, 10 May 15, 6pm Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage Brahms Second Fri & Sat, 15 & 16 May 15, 6.30pm Music Studio All pre-concert talks are open to the public. For more information, please visit us at or vanessa@sso.org.sg All SSO events are endorsed by the National Arts Council and local schools are eligible for up to 50% claim/subsidy from Totalisator Board Arts Grant. Singapore Symphonia Co Ltd 11 Empress Place, #01-02 Singapore Tel: Fax: corporate@sso.org.sg Printed by Ngai Heng Pte. Ltd. Emily Koh & Terrence Wong! p.6 Getting To Know You Ng Pei-Jee & Ng Pei-Sian p.8

2 Dear Readers, Editor s Note It s the start of a new year again! This year, we bring to you many exciting programmes: Lunchtime Concerts, Concerts for Children and also outdoor concerts at the Botanic Gardens and Gardens by the Bay. Find these dates at our Upcoming Events page, and mark them down because you definitely don t want to miss them! Looking back to last December, Babies Proms has just concluded its twelfth edition and this popular concert has been chosen as our Cover Story! In this concert, the inimitable Uncle Peter introduced the young and old to the orchestra in very interactive ways. We also spoke to twin cellists, Ng Pei-Jee & Pei-Sian about their musical journey under our Getting to Know You section. Take care everyone, and wishing you a great start to the year 2015! Yours Truly, The Editor Contents Cover Story 3 Classipedia 6 Getting To Know You 8 Fun & Games 10 Recent Happenings 12 Ask Auntie Melody 14 Fun Facts 15 Upcoming Events 16 Editorial Team Editor & Coordinator: Vanessa Lee Contributors: Mona Lim Jonathan Fox Senior Manager, Programmes: Kua Li Leng Concerts for Children: Adventures in the Magical Kingdom Sat, 21 Mar am, 2pm & 4pm Tickets available via SISTIC. Gardens by the Bay The King of the Magical Kingdom of Far, Far Away is in town with his Jester who invites the audience to accompany them back home where a Grand Ball is about to take place. The guests begin to arrive and we meet Beauty and the Beast, Robin Hood, The Empress of the Pagodas, Puss in Boots as well as many other familiar cartoon characters. The Ball commences with the Sleeping Beauty Waltz before we all shake off our shoes and strut our stuff to the Shrek Swamp Dance Party! SSO musicians will also bring you favourite melodies from popular Disney cartoons including Lion King, Toy Story and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Joshua Tan, conductor Alasdair Malloy, presenter SSO Babies Proms Into its twelfth edition, all five sessions of this year s SSO Babies Proms were fully sold out! Bustling with children from as young as less than a year old to parents and grandparents, Babies Proms proved to be a major hit with everyone once again! Members of the audience arrived early to catch the pre-concert activities held outside the concert hall. This included the wildly popular sticker tattoo station that saw long queues, and a preconcert contest, Spot the Difference. There were also instrument demonstrations by SSO musicians. Percussionist Lim Meng Keh played melodies on the Glockenspiel and also let the younger audiences try their hand at the other percussion instruments such as the triangle and the maracas. Our Principal Harpist, Gulnara Mashurova, touched on the history of the harp, and elaborated on the harp s different coloured strings, and also demonstrated how notes change with each press of one of the seven pedals at the foot of the harp. Sun, 22 Mar pm The Meadow, Gardens by the Bay Jason Lai, conductor RhapSSOdy 2 RhapSSOdy 3

3 Settling into the hall after the pre-concert activities, the crowd cheered loudly as the delightful Uncle Peter entered the stage. He announced this year s concert to be a Moving Concert, a concert that involves moving to the music played by the SSO! Cover Story The concert started with Uncle Peter introducing the four sections of the orchestra who were wearing different coloured shirts: woodwinds in green, brass in blue, strings in yellow and percussion in red. Each section played an excerpt from the fourth movement of Tchaikovsky s Symphony No. 4. Uncle Peter then asked all the sections to play in unison, creating a full, grand orchestral sound which awed the audience! Building on the element of moving, the audiences swayed their arms like trees in the wind to Mascagni s Intermezzo from Cavelleria rusticana, marched on the spot to Strauss Radetsky March, and jumped along to the beat of Uncle Peter s Jumping Song. The hall was filled with energy as everyone was invited to jump on the spot with their arms in the air and even on one leg! Uncle Peter also played two moving games which invoked much laughter from the audience. In the game Simon Says, the audience had to follow a range of movements to an excerpt from Massenet s Le Cid Ballet Suite, such as making circles with their hands and alternating arms in the air. Another favourite game was to clap correctly at the right time of Townsend s Cheerful Cha Cha. There were triple claps, loud claps and softer claps with two and one fingers! After the first practice round, the orchestra played the piece even faster the second time round, exciting everyone as they tried their best to clap not only at the right time, but also at the right volume. Perhaps everyone s favourite part of the section was when four young conductors two girls and two boys were invited on stage to conduct Glinka s Overture to Russlan and Ludmilla. Some moved the baton really fast and slow, and one even stopped moving the baton completely. There were many loud cheers and laughter from the audience as the orchestra attempted to keep in time with the child conductor, playing extremely fast, slow or holding the note when the baton was not moving! Uncle Peter then invited forty children on stage to stand next to their favourite instruments to have a closer look at the SSO musicians as they performed the Can Can from Offenbach s Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld and the encore piece, Anderson s Sleigh Ride. The concerts ended on a lively note as children moved and danced along to the music, thrilled to be on stage together with Uncle Peter and all the SSO musicians. Over the years at the Babies Proms, Uncle Peter and the SSO have nurtured an informal and carefree atmosphere for parents and young children to appreciate classical music whilst having a good time. It is a joy to see the smiles on everyone s faces during these concerts, and it has truly become a concert that parents and their little ones look forward to every year! RhapSSOdy 4 RhapSSOdy 5

4 EmILY KOH & TERRENCE WONG! Mona: Good day, everyone! We have two very special guests today and they are Emily and Terrence! Have you met them yet? They are Singaporean...wait, young Singaporean composers and would love for their voices and music to be heard! So, Emily, would you like to share more about yourself first? How did you get your start in music? Emily: When I was young, my parents sent me for many extra-curricular classes, such as piano lessons, calligraphy class, ballet and swimming. However, the piano was never quite my instrument. In fact, I hated practising! Fortunately, my mother would sit with me while practising and encourage me to keep trying. When I was in Dunman High School, I chose to play the double bass in my school s Chinese orchestra. The double bass was an instrument that truly resonated with me, and I consider the double bass my primary instrument. When I was in junior college, I started composing more for the double bass, but it was not until my freshman year at Yong Siew Toh when I started taking composition more seriously. Other than composing and performing, I also enjoy cooking and eating (typical Singaporean, right?). I write restaurant reviews and share recipes on my food blog (emylogues.wordpress.com). I also have a small garden where I grow herbs that I use in my kitchen. I also enjoy backpacking around the world, and meeting other travellers along the way. Terrence: I come from a completely nonmusical family that includes my extended family as well! My mother sent me for both music and art enrichment classes when I was very young, but I ended up crying every time I entered the art room or had to finish colouring a picture I remember hating that the most! However, my mother believed (and still believes) that one will not flourish if he By Mona Lim is forced to do something that he hates, and so she pulled me out of art class. Who knows what might have happened if I had stayed on in art class? I ve just graduated with a Bachelor of Music from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts- Royal College of Music and I had a fantastic time at the Academy! Right now I m so busy that I hardly have time to indulge in anything that is not music-related. However, when I have time, I enjoy reading science-fiction novels not the space-battle kind like Star Wars or Star Trek, but the more conceptuallyprovoking kind such as the Foundation series by Issac Asimov. I also enjoy running, mostly around my neighbourhood in Sembawang. Mona: Tell us more about what life is like for you both now. How are Boston and Singapore treating you so far, Emily & Terrence? Emily: Boston is awesome! The arts and music scene is vibrant, and I am thrilled to be able to hear concerts almost every night. The audiences here are open-minded and educated, and are more ready and confident in offering criticism. Although I live in a city, I am also a short drive away from nature, and during the summer months, my husband and I enjoy going camping on the weekends. The Maine coast is beautiful! If there is one thing I could change about Boston, it would be to eradicate the long, frigid and brutal winters; it is too cold for me. I ve been away for more than five years now, and I always miss my family, friends and food back home. Terrence: I was born and raised in Singapore, and I think it will be my home for life. I feel that life here is not bad at all apart from the country achieving the foundations of Maslow s hierarchy of needs, we also have a flourishing arts scene to boot! I only think that the weather is too hot and humid most of the time! I m grateful for the air-conditioning we have in many places. Mona: Are the both of you working on any new compositions these days? Terrence: I m currently working on a ten minute absolute (non-programmatic) piece called One. The number one could symbolise many things. For example, this is my first commission by an orchestra, and philosophically, the number one signifies the beginning of something, anything there cannot be anything more without starting with one. Conversely, when we count down to zero, the moment where one is called out is the most exciting (and sometimes, nerve-wracking) moment before whatever is supposed to happen, happens. However, the existence of the number one, and all the other numbers that follow, cannot exist without time; my piece attempts to portray the inseparable relationship between the passage of time, beginnings and endings. Emily: I m always working on new works, and have a few lined up in the coming year. I m writing a sextet co-commissioned by the San Francisco based Left Coast Chamber Ensemble and the De Young Museum (in San Francisco). As part of the commission, I am to take inspiration from another art work at the De Young Museum Cornelia Parker s Anti-Mass This is process is very interesting to me because I have to interpret another work of art, and assimilate elements of it in my work. There are several similarities between my ideas on one s auditory perception of spatial music and Parker s use of temporal and physical space, and I plan to highlight these similarities in my work. Other works for the season include a sinfonietta for the Boston-based [sound icon] and a duo for cello and piano for David Russell and Geoffrey Burleson. Mona: Finally before we end this interview, do you have any parting words to share with our readers? Emily: To me, music is powerful and emotional, but more importantly, it allows me to be free. I cannot imagine my life without CLASSIPEDIA music. This is why I am a musician, and not a pathologist, painter or chef (all dream jobs I had when I was growing up.) My surroundings and the people in my life inspire me and I am starting to understand my place and purpose in the world. Through music, I want to educate, inspire and encourage the next generation to find this same freedom that I experienced for themselves, and to be liberated from the cast of the rigid, coordinated and austere world we live in. Terrence: I strongly believe that the hardest objective in life to achieve is to be yourself that s the best person you can ever try to be. Once that realisation sets in, we will stop wasting time trying to be like others. I don t mean that we shouldn t strive for the qualities that someone we admire has, but that we need to stop trying to become who we are not, and with that, we will all find our own path in life. At the moment, I believe that my path lies in finding my own compositional voice, one that allows me to express myself with the greatest efficiency. Ms Mona Lim is a music consultant, educator and composer. She also manages and develops talents and writes curriculums for music education. Emily Koh Terrence Wong RhapSSOdy 6 RhapSSOdy 7

5 Ng Pei-Jee & Ng Pei-Sian Cello getting to know you Hi Pei-Jee & Pei-Sian, our readers are really keen to get to know the both of you better! So tell us, who is older, and how do people tell you apart? PJ: I m the older twin by about two minutes, and even though we do look very similar for fraternal twins we have definite differences. For instance, I have two dimples and PS has only one. PS: PJ is slightly taller than me and bigger too. I think he took most of the nutrition whilst in the womb! Do you have any funny stories about how others have mixed the both of you up? Have either of you pretended to be the other twin? PJ: I ve never ever thought of pretending to be my twin for a prank - I m a terrible actor so people would definitely know something was up. There are plenty of times when I ve visited the YST Conservatory where people have mistaken me for PS. There have been some truly uncomfortable moments for his colleagues too I think. PS: Why would I ever want to pretend to be my twin brother? Gross! Could you share with us how you both started your journey with the cello? PJ: We were meant to follow in our older brother s footsteps and learn the violin but the local class was full so we ended up in the cello class. In September last year, both of you performed at the BBC Proms together! What was it like, and what was the most memorable part of the experience? PJ: It was fantastic! Joining his cello section was truly special, they are a great bunch of musicians and to tour with them to London where I live made the experience that much more fun. PS: It was wonderful to have my brother join the cello section. We already have a brilliant section but it was an honour to have such an awesome cellist like Pei-Jee to help us out and give such strong support from the back. What is it like performing and practising the cello together? Is it any different from playing with other musicians? PJ: When we were kids we used to practise in the same room. It was noisy I can tell you! PS: We were very competitive (and still are) so we d always try to outdo each other! I guess it can be considered positive rivalry and a very good motivation to practise. What is your typical weekend like when you are not practising or performing? PJ: I live near a beautiful canal leading to the Thames River so if the weather is good I ll go for a jog along that or else something boring like laundry. PS: Singapore really is a food paradise so I always enjoy meeting up with friends and looking for great places to eat and drink. Now here s a random question! If you could be someone else for one day, who would you choose and why? PJ: I would love to be a violinist for a day, the change in perspective, being able to stand whilst playing and the different repertoire would be fun. PS: I would enjoy being a conductor so I could be in total control over the musical interpretation. Also, it would be fun for a change to be the person responsible of making the musicians sweat and stress out and not the other way round! For all our young aspiring cellist readers, do you have any tips or advice about how to make good music? PJ: The best musicians learn from each other so I would encourage young cellists to join a youth orchestra, play quartets and trios and share the love of making music with others. PS: Listen to a lot of recordings when you are young and read books! Fun FacTs: Favourite Music: PJ: Elgar Violin Concerto PS: Bach Cello Suites Favourite Composer: PJ: Johannes Brahms PS: John Williams Favourite Holiday Destination: PJ: Singapore! PS: London Favourite Food: PJ: Roast duck PS: Pi Dan Roast Pork Porridge Favourite Hangout: PJ: Cafe TPT in Chinatown, London PS: East Coast Park Beach Catch Pei-Jee and Pei-Sian IN KALEVI AHO s Concerto for Two Cellos & Orchestra! A Dangerous Liaison Fri, 16 Jan 15, 7.30pm RhapSSOdy 8 RhapSSOdy 9

6 Decipher the Codes There are eight words that have been written in code below. Can you figure them out? Use the manual on the next page to help you out! 1. ft2 g qvsqhn - This composer was born in Vienna. 2. seffggv - This is a woodwind instrument. 3. tqbself - These instruments only exists in pairs. 4. sqq-2g aqv - He composed the Eroica Symphony. 5. f - EttE- g - This Italian word means detached. 6. t g vtqh- g - This type of music usually has one solo instrument and is accompanied by an orchestra 7. - H g bsg vq - This is a brass instrument. Manual Answer to be revealed in the next issue! E = A s = B t = C e = D q = E l = F n = G 2 = H x = I s = J F = K L = L b = M v = N g = O u = P 0 = Q H = R f = S - = T t = U a = V 1 = W, = X Q = Y h = Z fun & GAMES 8. f Qbu2g vq - This is a musical work that usually contains four movements. RhapSSOdy 10 Here are the answers to last issue s Instrument Families! STRINGS Double Bass Cello Violin WOODWIND Bassoon Clarinet Oboe BRASS French Horn Trombone Tuba PERCUSSION Glockenspiel Timpani Xylophone RhapSSOdy 11

7 Recent Happenings 13 & 14 September 1 November Concerts for Children: Roald Dahl s Little Red Riding Hood: Open Rehearsal Thomas Zehetmair & Ruth Killius Following a successful run of Symphonic Sorcery The Music of Harry Potter in 2012, Dandi Productions and the SSO performed together once again in Roald Dahl s Little Red Riding Hood. Conducted by Maestro Joshua Tan in the Victoria Concert Hall, this programme marked the first Children s Concert by the SSO to be performed at the newly refurbished VCH. The concerts started on a high, energetic note with Fucik s Entrance of the Gladiators as actors Phil Fulton and Braden Griffiths entered the hall through the crowd, greeting and waving to our audiences animatedly. Marcy Lannan entered the stage and threw the audience a twist: she did not wish to be Little Red Riding Hood anymore. She did not want the huntsman to save her from the wolf. Acting to the original score of Little Red Riding Hood written by Paul Patterson, this production showcased the talents of the three actors as they took on five roles: the Narrator, the Wolf, the Huntsman, Little Red (as she was endearingly known in the script) and Grandma. This classic children s fairy tale was given a fresh makeover as Little Red became the heroine of the story. Instead of waiting to be saved by the huntsman in the original script, Little Red surprised many when she whipped out her catapult to defeat the wolf at the end! This quirky rendition of Little Red Riding Hood won the hearts of many, as shown by the long queue of both adults and children alike to meet the three actors after the concert! On the morning of 1 November, SSO held its first Open Rehearsal of the season, featuring husband and wife, Thomas Zehetmair and Ruth Killius. This rehearsal was open to the public and the audiences had the opportunity to get a closer look at the inner workings of the SSO. Performing Mozart s Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola, Thomas demonstrated to the audience how he could conduct the orchestra and play the solo violin part at the same time. Alongside Ruth who was playing the solo viola, Thomas used his violin bow as a baton and conducted the orchestra with small and gentle movements during sections where he was not playing the violin. It was truly amazing to see how attentive the orchestra was in following each small movement to ensure the pacing of the music was in sync with the conductor. Including also an educational element to the Open Rehearsal, Thomas shared with the audience tips about concert etiquette when attending an orchestral performance. Addressing the topic on when to give applause, he guided the audience present to applaud only after all movements of a work have been performed. Showing the rare sight of musicians and conductor dressed not in their black formal coat tails but in their day clothing, the open rehearsal was a unique experience for many as they witnessed first-hand how the orchestra shapes the works to be performed for the concert later in the evening. RhapSSOdy 12 RhapSSOdy 13

8 Do you have any burning questions about music? Auntie Melody is here to help! If your question is featured, you will win a surprise gift! Orchestral Percussion Fun Facts! By Jonathan Fox In my fifteen years as Principal Percussionist of the SSO, I ve pretty much seen everything and played on anything. Since the percussion section is miles from the audience and often caged up behind sound shields, it s only natural that you might not have much insight into what we do back there. Here s a quick laundry list Dear Auntie Melody, Can I learn an instrument if I don t know how to read notes? Li Min Dear Li Min, Don t worry, learning an instrument is definitely possible even if you do not have any knowledge of music theory or if you cannot read notes. Learning the basics of an instrument also encompasses the basics of note-reading such as recognizing notes and matching them to the correct finger position on the instrument, the length of each note as well as rhythms. After you are more comfortable with the basics, you can move up one level and learn to piece different notes together to play simple songs and also scales. With more practice, you will get the hang of both reading the notes and playing the instrument as you progress! your questions to vanessa@sso.org.sg or snail mail them to: SSO Community Outreach Department, 11 Empress Place #01-02,, Singapore Don t forget to include your name, birth date, identification number, address and contact number! Dear Auntie Melody, Why are there steps on the stage? Why do some musicians play on these steps? Regina Dear Regina, These steps on the stage are called risers. They are not used for all concerts and are dependent on the preference of the conductor, or the work that is being performed. If the brasses or woodwinds in that particular work has parts that need to be emphasized, the risers will help to elevate these players seated at the back and direct their sound past the players in front towards the audiences. It can also prevent the sound of the instruments to be aimed directly into the ears of the musicians in front (brasses can be quite loud especially when they are playing in fortississimo (fff)!). What s more, these risers also help the audience to be able to see the players at the back as they may be blocked by the players in front. Winners will be notified by phone or post *All questions are subject to editing for clarity. Percussionists are jacks-of-all-trades. The percussionist s battery includes everything but the kitchen sink and actually includes that, too, on occasion (just ask fans of John Cage). Percussionists speak softly but carry a big stick. We can make loud noises with the best of em (such as multiple bass drums played together fortissimo), but you may be surprised to know that we can also make some of the most delicate, understated sounds in the orchestra, too (such as vibraphone keys gently vibrated with double bass bows). Percussionists are located in the cheap seats. That s not because we re naughty (well, not always). It s primarily because we re loud (again, not always). Percussionists have lots of tools in their box. For a typical symphony, a timpanist or percussionist may use 5-10 different pairs of sticks and mallets of different weight and sound. We get from one sticky situation into another in a flash. Percussionists can carry a tune. Orchestral percussion is more than clashing cymbals keyboard instruments and timpani each can carry a melody. In fact, even the aforementioned cymbals can sound melodic (have a listen to Mussorgsky s Night on Bald Mountain). Percussionists count on others. Don t assume that we re daydreaming when we re seated mid-concert, seemingly just twiddling our thumbs We re actually counting the beats until our next entrance. Unless you can hear snoring. Percussionists are back-of-the-orchestra soloists. The guest artist standing in front of the orchestra is not the only soloist of the evening. Every note the percussionist plays is one-to-apart, which makes drummers soloists, too. It makes all that rest-counting worth it! Percussionists exercise a lot. Look closely at the percussion section, and you ll probably see the players running from instrument to instrument. Often, one player may have several large instruments to play, so the rehearsals can be as much about choreography as they are about music-making. I wonder why I don t weigh less, considering all of my dancing between instruments. Percussionists are fun-loving people. Give us a wave we just might have the time to wave back while we re counting our rests! RhapSSOdy 14 RhapSSOdy 15