Sat 3 June 2017 at 8.30 pm Sun 4 June 2017 at 3.00 pm

Transcription

1 CONCERT PROGRAMME 2016/17 SEASON

2 The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) gave its inaugural performance at Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS (DFP) on 17 August The MPO today comprises musicians from 24 countries, including 7 from Malaysia, a remarkable example of harmony among different cultures and nationalities. A host of internationally-acclaimed musicians has worked with the MPO, including Lorin Maazel, Sir Neville Marriner, Yehudi Menuhin, Joshua Bell, Harry Connick Jr., José Carreras, Andrea Bocelli and Branford Marsalis, many of whom have praised the MPO for its fine musical qualities and vitality. With each new season, the MPO continues to present a varied programme of orchestral music drawn from over three centuries, as well as the crowd-pleasing concert series. Its versatility transcends genres, from classical masterpieces to film music, pop, jazz, contemporary and commissioned works. The MPO regularly performs at major cities of Malaysia. Internationally, it has showcased its virtuosity to audiences in Singapore (1999, 2001 and 2005), Korea (2001), Australia (2004), China (2006), Taiwan (2007), Japan (2001 and 2009) and Vietnam (2013). Its Education and Outreach Programme, ENCOUNTER, reaches beyond the concert platform to develop musical awareness, appreciation and skills through dedicated activities that include instrumental lessons, workshops and school concerts. ENCOUNTER also presents memorable events in such diverse venues as orphanages, hospitals, rehabilitation centres and community centres. The MPO s commitment to furthering musical interest in the nation has been the creation of the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (MPYO). It gave its inaugural concert at DFP on 25 August 2007, followed by a tour in Peninsular Malaysia. It has performed in Sabah and Sarawak (2008), Singapore (2009), Brisbane, Australia (2012), Kedah (2013) and Johore Bahru (2014). As it celebrates its 18th anniversary in 2016, the MPO remains steadfast in its mission to share the depth, power and beauty of great music. The MPO s main benefactor is PETRONAS and its patron is Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah Haji Mohd Ali.

3 Sat 3 June 2017 at 8.30 pm Sun 4 June 2017 at 3.00 pm Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra Harish Shankar, conductor Janet Lee, soprano Samantha de Lune, alto Izen Kong, tenor Peter Ong, tenor Chi Hoe Mak, bass PROGRAMME The Sound of Music: Overture 6 mins Oklahoma!: Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin' 3 mins The Sound Of Music: The Hills are Alive 3 mins Cinderella: Ten Minutes Ago 3 mins The Sound of Music: Sixteen Going on Seventeen 3 mins Carousel: If I Loved You 11 mins INTERVAL 20 mins Oklahoma!: Overture 4 mins South Pacific: There is Nothin Like a Dame 4 mins South Pacific: My Girl Back Home 3 mins South Pacific: I'm Gonna Wash that Man Right Outa My Hair 4 mins The King & I: Getting to Know You 5 mins Flower Drum Song: I Enjoy Being a Girl 3 mins South Pacific: Some Enchanted Evening 3 mins South Pacific: Younger than Springtime 3 mins Allegro: The Gentleman is a Dope 3 mins The King & I: I Have Dreamed 4 mins Oklahoma!: People Will Say We're in Love 4 mins South Pacific: This Nearly Was Mine 3 mins The Sound of Music: Climb Ev'ry Mountain 2 mins All songs are composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein. All details are correct at time of printing. Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS reserves the right to vary without notice the artists and/or repertoire as necessary. Copyright 2017 by Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS (Co. No X). All rights reserved. No part of this programme may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright owners.

4 HARISH SHANKAR conductor Hailing from Malaysia, Harish Shankar enjoys a growing presence on the international stage. He is a prize winner at the 6th International Jorma Panula Conducting Competition and his conducting engagements have taken him as far as South America and Australasia. To date, Shankar s career involves engagements with the Jena Philharmonics, Leipzig Symphony Orchestra, Staatsphilharmonie Braunschweig, Orquesta Sinfónica de Trujillo, North Czech Philharmonic, Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra, Vaasa City Orchestra, Jyväskylä Symphony Orchestra and Manchester Camerata. His debut with the Hallé Orchestra received high critical acclaim. With an active voice in the media, he has been featured in Classical Music Magazine and interviewed on BBC Radio 3. Shankar is a pianist by training, having received initial piano lessons at the age of six with Penny Kam. He continued his studies with Loo Bang Hean before being accepted into the class of the noted pianist Professor Konstanze Eickhorst at the Conservatoire of Lübeck. He went on to study conducting with Eiji Oue and was subsequently invited to Peru to lead the orchestra of the country s El Sistema project. This award-winning social project aims to bring children from all walks of life together with music. During his tenure with El Sistema Peru, he was able to conduct a number of regular and cross-over projects with an aim to engage a growing classical music scene in the country. Shankar completed his Master s degree in Conducting at the prestigious conservatoire of Weimar, Germany, under the tutelage of Professor Gunter Kahlert. He has also received valuable mentorship from Sir Mark Elder, Clark Rundell and Mark Heron. Masterclasses with Paavo Järvi, Nicolás Pasquet, Leonid Grin and Mark Stringer round up his studies. He has served as assistant conductor to a number of renowned artists including Sir Andrew Davis, Eckehard Stier, Juanjo Mena and Vasily Petrenko. Currently Resident Conductor of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Shankar will take up the post of first Kapellmeister at the opera house in Stralsund, Germany, next season.

5 Janet Lee soprano Hailed as the Shanghai Jazz Queen of Malaysia, Janet Lee is a consummate cabaret performer with a unique repertoire. She specialises in delicate and lyrical midcentury Popular Mandarin Music, combined with the old-school romanticism of American songbook show tunes. In 2012, she conceptualised and presented The Shanghai Jazz Songbook Tour series. In 2013, she performed at the 7 th Kota Kinabalu Jazz Festival. Since 2014, Lee has spearheaded The Shanghai Sisters who perform a trilingual repertoire of Old Shanghai, Grand Malaya and Romantic Hollywood, working closely with renowned Malaysian jazz ensemble WVC. Her debut album, Restless Heart was released in 2015 with concerts at Damansara Performing Arts Centre. Her second album, Cinnabar Rouge, was released this year. As a stage actor, Lee has worked with Dama Orchestra, PAN Productions, KLPAC, Actors Studio Theatre, Saidah Rastam, Nick Choo and KL Lyric Opera. She received the Trinity College of London s Outstanding Achiever s Award and a Distinction in the Trinity College of London s Performer s Certificate exams. Samantha de Lune alto At 24, Samantha de Lune has an extensive portfolio ranging across public appearances, private and corporate events, radio and TV commercials, short films and more. Having been alluded to have a voice of an extremely rare earthy quality accompanied by a flare for storytelling through song, her striking confidence and poise is evidently far beyond her years, with repertoire covering English, Hokkien, Cantonese and Italian. Hailing from Klang, de Lune started playing the organ at 5 and the piano at 7. Her first realization of her true calling was not until 19, when as a college piano major, she decided to take the plunge of switching her major to vocals. After obtaining her Honours degree in Professional Music from the University of Wolverhampton, she has shared stages and theaters with an assemblage of artists including Stephen Rahman Hughes, Sean Ghazi, Michael Parks Masterson, Tim Wilson, Greg Spence, Koh Mr Saxman, John Thomas and Genervie Kam. She currently performs predominantly with the Michael Veerapen Trio and is working on her debut album.

6 Izen Kong tenor Kong Jie Wei (Izen) started singing at 6. His vocal and musical talents were recognized when he was 13. He completed his Grade 8 ABRSM piano practical examination in In 2014, he passed his Advanced Certificate (AC) TRINITY vocal examination and received distinctions in both certificates. He received Outstanding Award for Advanced Certificate from Trinity. In 2016, he won third prize at Singapore Lyric Opera's ASEAN Vocal Competition. Stage work includes Dama Orchestra s The Legends and Larger Than Life. He played Kit Kat Klub s Herman in Pan Productions staging of Cabaret in In 2016, he performed in a self-produced recital, Twenty-One 21, at Theatre Lounge Café, and sang in Aladdin A Musical Comedy Reloaded by Enfiniti Academy. His golden moment in the show was performing Michael Jackson s Thriller. He was also invited to be part of the ensemble of Cinnabar Rouge. He is an accomplished vocal coach in classical singing and musical theatre. He has worked as a piano teacher and choir instructor. Peter Ong tenor Peter Ong is equally adept on stage in operas, recitals, and musical theatre. He has appeared in productions and concerts at prestigious venues in Asia and Australia. Having performed with all the major opera companies in the region, Ong is well regarded as a versatile musical theatre performer and recitalist, who has been featured at the Singapore Lieder Festival in works such as Schubert s Die Schöne Müllerin and Schumann s Dichterliebe. Opera roles include Pong in Turandot, Remendado in Carmen, Goro in Madama Butterfly, King Kasper in Amahl & The Night Visitors, and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni. Original musical theatre roles include Dennis in D.I.Y., Solomon in M! The Opera, The Big Bad Wolf in Always In Wonderland?, Jarod in The Edge, and The White Stallion and King Kumara in Xuan Zang - The Musical. Repertory musical theatre roles include The Emcee in Cabaret, The Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, Max Bialystok in The Producers, Franklin Shepard in Merrily We Roll Along, Jamie Wellerstein in The Last Five Years, The Baker in Into The Woods, Horton The Elephant in Seussical - The Broadway Musical, Edmond in A Singaporean in Paris, and Bobby in Company.

7 CHI HOE MAK bass Winner of a 2015 Boh Cameronian Arts Award, awardwinning Malaysian bass baritone and choral conductor Chi Hoe Mak enjoys a varied career in opera, concert, recital and consort work. International engagements have taken him all around the world including China, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore and the UK. A graduate of the Birmingham Conservatoire in the UK where he studied voice and choral conducting, he is a recipient of numerous prizes and awards, including being named one of Birmingham s New Generation Artists in Recent notable work in Malaysia have included Speaker of the Temple (Mozart's The Magic Flute), Colline (La Boheme), Dulcamara (L elisir d amore), Zuniga (Carmen), Raja Narai (Tajul Tajuddin s Puteri Saadong, a world premiere), Handel s Messiah and Mozart s C Minor Mass, among others. Recent solo recitals of Schumann s Dichterliebe and Schubert s Wintereisse in the UK and Indonesia were warmly received. He is currently a Artist at Kuala Lumpur City Opera (KLCO) where he is also Resident Chorus Master of the KLCO Opera Chorus. PROGRAMME NOTES The musical partnership of composer Richard Rodgers ( ) and lyricistdramatist Oscar Hammerstein II ( ) revolutionised the world of musical theatre. Their 11 hugely popular musicals continue to stand the test of time all over the world. Recent stage revivals of the duo s popular works from the 1940s and 1950s have been a huge hit with new audiences. In total, Rodgers and Hammerstein's works have garnered a total of 34 Tony Awards, 15 Academy Awards and two Grammy Awards. The duo s first musical partnership began with Oklahoma!, based on the 1931 play Green Grow the Lilacs by Lynn Riggs. Premiered on Broadway, New York City, in 1943, it is perhaps the first musical to feature a song and dance segment to propel the story forward, instead of being mere visual decoration. With fresh story-telling elements, the production arguably changed the way musicals are presented. Adapted into a hit film in 1955, Oklahoma! tells the story about two farm girls, Laurey and Ado Annie. Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin sets the stage for an exciting journey ahead for the lovebirds. Bright, tuneful and optimistic, it is sung by the lead male character Curly as he sets off to woo Laurey. People Will Say We re in Love is the song both sing to remind each other to be discreet about their affairs. Despite knowing how much they fancy each other, the two are still non-committal about their true feelings until much later (in the song reprise).

8 1945's Carousel, the second collaboration from Rodgers and Hammerstein, is a tale of love and self-redemption. Based on Hungarian novelist Ferenc Molnar s 1909 play Liliom, it tells the story of a carousel barker named Billy and a millworker Julie who later becomes his wife. If I Loved You is the duet number performed by the two characters as they refuse to acknowledge their feelings for one another. The writing duo s third stage collaboration, Allegro (1947), followed the success of their first and only musical written specifically for film, State Fair (1945). The lesser-known Allegro is a sombre tale of morality in which a young physician finds himself drawn into the bright lights of the material world. The Gentleman is a Dope is sung by his nurse Emily, who sees him for the man that he really is. Premiered on Broadway in 1949, the popular musical South Pacific is a story that deals with serious themes including racial prejudice and social acceptance. It was adapted into a hit movie in 1958 and later released as a TV movie in Naïve Southern belle Nellie, who is stationed in a South Pacific island during the World War II, strikes a courtship with a rich plantation owner Emile. The song I m Gonna Wash that Man Right Outa My Hair describes her desire to end the affair with Emile, whom she has only known briefly. The newly arrived US marine officer, Lt. Cable, meanwhile, is in love with a native woman and declares his love in the song Younger than Springtime. When the narrow-minded Nellie learns that Emile was once married to a Polynesian woman, she begins to have second thoughts about their future. Emile sings the popular love song Some Enchanted Evening to convince Nellie that what they have is indeed special. But Nellie s prejudices are so deep-seated in her Southern upbringing, hence she leaves him. In This Nearly Was Mine, Emile looks back on his broken dreams. My Girl Back Home was originally cut from the stage version and was included in the film. In the song, Lt. Cable tells Nellie about the life he left behind; a blue-eyed kid, I liked her a lot.

9 The King & I marks Rodgers and Hammerstein's fifth stage musical collaboration. Premiered on Broadway in 1951, it is based on the 1944 book Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon. The story is adapted from the memoir of Anna Leonowens, the widowed British governess who served as a tutor to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the 1860s. I Have Dreamed is a love duet performed by a slave Tup Tim and her lover Lun Tha as they prepare to flee the palace and begin a new life together. The 1957 production Cinderella was the only work from Rodgers and Hammerstein written for TV. Starring Julie Andrews in the title role, it was a huge hit with more than 100 million viewers. In 1997, a remake of the TV musical featured popular R&B singer Brandy as Cinderella and Whitney Houston as the fairy godmother. Ten Minutes Ago is a duet number to describe the moment Cinderella and Prince Charming fall in love. Flower Drum Song (1958) is the eighth musical by the duo. Based on CY Yee s 1957 novel of the same name, it explores the issues of immigration, traditional values and cultural assimilation from the perspective of a Chinese-American man, Wang Ta. I Enjoy Being a Girl is performed by Linda Low as she prepares for a date night with Wang Ta. The highly-acclaimed The Sound of Music is the last musical by the duo. Hammerstein died of cancer nine months after its 1959 Broadway premiere. The 1965 film version starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer won five Academy Awards including Best Picture. Inspired by the true story of Maria von Trapp, the musical opens with the young novice singing the title song as she embarks on a journey to become a nun in Salzburg. She is later sent to work as a governess for Captain von Trapp s seven children. Sixteen Going on Seventeen is a duet performed by von Trapp s eldest daughter Liesl and her boyfriend, Rolf. The empowering Climb Ev ry Mountain is sung by Mother Abbess as she gives words of encouragement to Maria to follow her heart. The MPO's 'The Best of Rodgers & Hammerstein' concerts breathe new life to the show tunes by presenting them in a new context.

10 MALAYSIAN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA RESIDENT CONDUCTOR Harish Shankar Naohisa Furusawa FIRST VIOLIN Co-Concertmaster Peter Daniš Ming Goh Zhenzhen Liang Runa Baagöe Maho Daniš Miroslav Daniš Evgeny Kaplan Martijn Noomen Sherwin Thia Marcel Andriesii Tan Ka Ming Petia Atanasova *Pal Jasz SECOND VIOLIN *Barbora Kolářová Assistant Luisa Hyams Catalina Alvarez Chia-Nan Hung Anastasia Kiseleva Stefan Kocsis Ling Yunzhi Ionut Mazareanu Yanbo Zhao Ai Jin Robert Kopelman VIOLA Gábor Mokány Fumiko Dobrinov Ong Lin Kern Carol Pendlebury Sun Yuan Thian Aiwen Fan Ran *Emil Csonka *Brandon Chui CELLO Csaba Körös Assistant Steven Retallick Gerald Davis Julie Dessureault Laurentiu Gherman Elizabeth Tan Suyin Sejla Simon Mátyás Major DOUBLE BASS Wolfgang Steike Joseph Pruessner Raffael Bietenhader Jun-Hee Chae Naohisa Furusawa John Kennedy Foo Yin Hong Andreas Dehner FLUTE Hristo Dobrinov Yukako Yamamoto Sub- Rachel Jenkyns PICCOLO Sonia Croucher OBOE Simon Emes Sub- Niels Dittmann COR ANGLAIS *Mike Austin CLARINET Gonzalo Esteban *David Dias da Silva Sub- Matthew Larsen BASS CLARINET Chris Bosco BASSOON Alexandar Lenkov *Muzsi Levente Sub- Orsolya Juhasz CONTRABASSOON Vladimir Stoyanov HORN Grzegorz Curyla James Schumacher Sub-s Laurence Davies *Marnie Sebire Assistant Sim Chee Ghee TRUMPET William Theis Sub- *Jeffrey Missal Assistant John Bourque TROMBONE *Fernando Borja Sub- *Marques Young BASS TROMBONE *Samuel Armstrong TUBA Brett Stemple TIMPANI Matthew Thomas PERCUSSION Matthew Prendergast Sub-s Matthew Kantorski *Edouard Beyens HARP Tan Keng Hong CORPORATE SUITE CLUB MEMBER PIANO/Celeste *Akiko Daniš GUITAR *Az Samad Note: Sectional string players are listed alphabetically and rotate within their sections. *Extra musician.

11 Dewan Filharmonik PETRONAS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Nor Raina Yeong Abdullah CEO S OFFICE Hanis Abdul Halim BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT At Ziafrizani Chek Pa Nurartikah Ilyas Kartini Ratna Sari Ahmat Adam MARKETING Yazmin Lim Abdullah Hisham Abdul Jalil Munshi Ariff Farah Diyana Ismail Noor Sarul Intan Salim Muhammad Shahrir Aizat CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT Asmahan Abdullah Jalwati Mohd Noor Music TALENT DEVELOPMENT & MANAGEMENT Soraya Mansor PLANNING, FINANCE & IT Mohd Hakimi Mohd Rosli Norhisham Abd Rahman Siti Nur Illyani Ahmad Fadzillah Nurfharah Farhana Hashimi PROCUREMENT & CONTRACT Logiswary Raman Norhaszilawati Zainudin HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT & ADMINISTRATION Sharhida Saad Muknoazlida Mukhadzim Zatil Ismah Azmi Nor Afidah Nordin Nik Nurul Nadia Nik Abdullah TECHNICAL OPERATIONS Firoz Khan Mohd Zamir Mohd Isa Yasheera Ishak Shahrul Rizal M Ali Dayan Erwan Maharal Zolkarnain Sarman Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Nor Raina Yeong Abdullah general manager Timothy Tsukamoto gm's office Timmy Ong ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT Amy Yu Mei Ling Tham Ying Hui ARTISTIC ADMINISTRATION Khor Chin Yang MUSIC LIBRARY Sharon Francis Lihan Ong Li-Huey EDUCATION & OUTREACH Shafrin Sabri Shireen Jasin Mokhtar MALAYSIAN PHILHARMONIC YOUTH ORCHESTRA Ahmad Muriz Che Rose Fadilah Kamal Francis

12 Box Office: Ground Floor, Tower 2, PETRONAS Twin Towers Kuala Lumpur City Centre Kuala Lumpur Telephone: Online Tickets & Info: mpo.com.my malaysianphilharmonicorchestra DEWAN FILHARMONIK PETRONAS X MALAYSIAN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA H