SSO 2021/22 season opens with live and online concerts showcasing Singapore’s musical stars

SSO 2021/22 season opens with live and online concerts showcasing Singapore’s musical stars

SSO 2021/22 season opens with live and online concerts showcasing Singapore’s musical stars

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Wed, 07 Jul 2021

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Local talents take the limelight for SSO National Day Concert (Online) and President's Young Performers Concert in August

Singapore, 07 July 2021 — Concert halls are set to reopen their doors for Singapore Symphony Orchestra's musicians to take centrestage. As our nation sees COVID-19 restrictions ease gradually, SSO presents the opportunity to immerse oneself in the wonders of both live and online music with its upcoming July to September programmes.

Featuring a myriad of performances, SSO's July to September programme highlights include two online concerts featuring South Korean violinist Bomsori Kim and the ever-popular SSO National Day Concert, and several live concerts including SSO's President's Young Performers Concert; Love, Carmen and Mozart featuring Chief Conductor Hans Graf and violinist Ye-Eun Choi; a collaboration with local group More Than Music; and SSO's veteran Principal Flute Jin Ta’s performance and sharing of his life.

To maximise audience capacity, pre-event testing is required for all concerts. Details will be shared with ticketholders.

JULY 2021

Continuing to demonstrate its commitment to creating memorable shared experiences with music, SSO invites audience to join the online concert of Bomsori Kim Plays Mozart on Fri, 23 July, where the South Korean violinist plays Mozart’s First Violin Concerto. This exclusive recording was filmed at the Esplanade Concert Hall on 17 April 2021. This exceptional concert also features SSO Chief Conductor Hans Graf conducting the world premiere of the 1942 Eighth Symphony by Danish-born composer Paul von Klenau (1883 – 1946).

On 20 & 21 July, the story of love, loneliness, and longing will be captured in the live performance of VCHpresents Chamber: More Than Music, More Than Love. SSO violist Dandan Wang and Principal Cellist Ng Pei-Sian collaborate with the founders of the More Than Music chamber series, Loh Jun Hong and Abigail Sin, to bring together Bach's sweet musings and the stormy passion of Brahms, with Jonathan Shin's musical take on Haruki Murakami’s short story “On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning”.

SSO will also host its Lunchtime Concert on 13 & 14 July, which will be filmed for a delayed broadcast on the SSO Facebook page (www.facebook.com/singaporesymphony) on Thursday 22 July, 12.30pm.

AUGUST 2021

SSO kicks off August to a different beat with VCHpresents Organ: Pipe Up! Pedal to the Metal taking place on Sunday, 1 August. In this ear-opening recital, Pipe Up! series organist Isaac Lee is joined by percussionists of the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, treating audience to a selection of contemporary pieces for solo organ, percussion, and a mix of both.

Showcasing Singapore's finest young musical talents, SSO’s annual President's Young Performers Concert is set to take place on 5 & 6 August. Award-winning local talents — harpist Charmaine Teo and pianist Pualina Lim will enthrall the audience with Debussy’s Danses sacrée et profane for harp and strings, and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat major, K.271, respectively.

As the nation comes together to celebrate Singapore's 56th birthday, SSO invites both casual concertgoers and classical music enthusiasts to join the orchestra for the online edition of SSO’s National Day Concert on 13 August. Like previous years, the concert will feature new works by Singapore's growing league of talented composers - seven pieces commissioned by the SSO will be presented in this concert, including the world premieres of Syafiqah ‘Adha Sallehin’s Dengan Semangat Yang Baru (“In a New Spirit”) and Luciola singapura by Koh Cheng Jin. Expect to also hear classic favourites such as Dick Lee's Home and two new medleys of National Day staples, including the Sing Singapore Medley crowdfunded by the public. As always, our national anthem, Zubir Said's Majulah Singapura majestically concludes the programme in an arrangement by local composition doyen Ho Chee Kong. The SSO National Day Concert will be presented digitally, premiering online on SISTIC Live on 13 Aug, 8pm.

This National Day, the SSO marks the 20th anniversary of the popular NDP song, Where I Belong, with a brand new rendition for vocalists and orchestra, arranged by local young composer Avik Chari. Following the success of the SSO’s Count On Me, Singapore music video last year, the new music video of this 2001 classic will see the SSO collaborate with its original singer/songwriter, Singapore’s one and only Tanya Chua. Joining her will be violin star Chloe Chua, rising vocalists Syakirah Noble and Umar Sirhan, and members of the Singapore Symphony Youth Choir. SSO’s Where I Belong will be released online on SSO’s Facebook page on 1 Aug 2021.

August will also see Singaporean saxophone extraordinaire Samuel Phua jiving together with the orchestra for a Night of The Saxophone on 19 & 20 August as well as guest Korean violinist Ye-Eun Choi’s date with the SSO in Love, Carmen and Mozart on 27 & 28 August.

SEPTEMBER 2021

The month starts off with VCHpresents Chamber: By Romantic Hand, which takes place on the weekend of 3 & 4 September. SSO’s musicians will explore the musical souls of the great Romantic composers Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Brahms.

The following weekend, on 10 & 11 September, sees the next installment of its VCHpresents Intimate Moments series: 乐享时光: On the Air with Jin Ta. Jin Ta, veteran Principal Flute of the SSO will perform his own work, Tone Poem for Flute and Piano, alongside music by Telemann, Dubois, Boehm, and Beethoven. During this heart-to-heart encounter, the audience will be given a glimpse into the ups and downs of the musician’s life as Jin Ta shares his story through music.

SSO Lunchtime Concert (Jul 2021)
Season 2021/22 • Free Concerts

SSO Lunchtime Concert (Jul 2021)

Singapore Symphony String Quartet / Cindy Lee, violin / Nikolai Koval, violin / Dandan Wang, viola / Chan Wei Shing, cello

Tue / 13 Jul 21 / 12.30pm

Wed / 14 Jul 21 / 12.30pm

Victoria Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Information on exemptions can be found here. The free PET appointment at the venue can be booked via this link and your appointment will be confirmed via email.

Take a break from your daily grind and enjoy music live at the Victoria Concert Hall – the Singapore Symphony serenades you with a delightful programme of easy-listening classics and familiar tunes of home.

For those who cannot make it in person, join us instead on Thursday 22 July, 12.30pm online on the SSO’s Facebook page for a video premiere of the concert.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony String Quartet / Cindy Lee, violin / Nikolai Koval, violin / Dandan Wang, viola / Chan Wei Shing, cello

Programme

Nocturne

Alexander Borodin (Borodin)

Canon

Johann Pachelbel (Pachelbel)

Libertango

Astor Piazzolla (Piazzolla)

Home for String Quartet

Dick Lee

Three Folk Dances – Rasa Sayang, Bengawan Solo, Di Tanjong Katong

Kelly Tang

Bunga Sayang for String Quartet

Dick Lee
More Than Music, More Than Love
Season 2021/22 • VCHpresents: Chamber

More Than Music, More Than Love

Loh Jun Hong, violin / Dandan Wang, viola / Ng Pei-Sian, cello (The HEAD Foundation Chair) / Abigail Sin, pianist / Timothy Wan, narrator

Tue / 20 Jul 21 / 7.30pm

Wed / 21 Jul 21 / 7.30pm

Victoria Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Complimentary PET at designated clinics is required for ticket holders who are not exempted. Information on exemptions and list of clinics can be found here.

One beautiful April morning, on a narrow side street in Tokyo’s fashionable Harajuku neighbourhood, I walked past the 100% perfect girl.

So begins a story of love, told from the sweet musings of Bach to the stormy passion of Brahms, framing the centrepiece: Jonathan Shin’s musical reflections on Murakami’s brief tale of perfect love so close, yet so far. Founders of the More Than Music chamber series, Loh Jun Hong and Abigail Sin, join SSO violist Dandan Wang and cellist Ng Pei-Sian in this musical momento of loneliness and longing.

Featuring

Loh Jun Hong, violin / Dandan Wang, viola / Ng Pei-Sian, cello (The HEAD Foundation Chair) / Abigail Sin, pianist / Timothy Wan, narrator

Programme

Aria from Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 (arranged for String Trio)

Johann Sebastian Bach (J.S. Bach)

After Haruki Murakami’s short story “On Seeing The 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning”

Jonathan Shin

Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60

Johannes Brahms (Brahms)
Bomsori Kim Plays Mozart (Online)
Season 2021/22

Bomsori Kim Plays Mozart (Online)

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Bomsori Kim, violin

Fri / 23 Jul 21 / 8.00pm

SISTIC Live [Online]

South Korea’s “sound of spring” arrived back in April when our first international guest artist since the pandemic began, Bomsori Kim, breathed life and glitter into Mozart’s youthful First Violin Concerto. Directed by SSO Chief Conductor Hans Graf, this concert also featured the Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s world premiere of the uplifting 1942 Eighth Symphony by Danish-born composer Paul von Klenau (1883 – 1946).

If you couldn’t catch the concert live before, now’s your chance to watch this performance online, recorded live at the Esplanade on 17 Apr 2021. For a limited time only!

FORMAT: SISTIC Live stream on 23 Jul 2021. Concert begins at 8pm with countdown lobby open at 7.30pm. Viewable until 22 Aug 2021, 8pm.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Bomsori Kim, violin

Programme

Symphony No. 8 “In Olden Style” (World Premiere)

Paul von Klenau

Violin Concerto No. 1 in B-flat major, K.207

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Mozart)

Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, D.485

Franz Schubert (Schubert)
[Cancelled] Pipe Up! Pedal to the Metal
Season 2021/22 • VCHpresents: Organ

[Cancelled] Pipe Up! Pedal to the Metal

Isaac Lee, organ / Chloe Miranda, percussion / Kevin Tan, percussion

Sun / 01 Aug 21 / 2.00pm

Sun / 01 Aug 21 / 5.00pm

Victoria Concert Hall

As one of the artists for the concert is indisposed, and is therefore unable to perform, we regret to inform you that this concert will be cancelled. A full refund will be arranged.

Pipe Up! series organist Isaac Lee is drumming up a different beat this time as he’s joined by percussionists of the Singapore National Youth Orchestra in this eye-opening recital of contemporary pieces for solo organ, percussion or both together.

Featuring

Isaac Lee, organ / Chloe Miranda, percussion / Kevin Tan, percussion

Programme

Mozart Changes

GÁRDONYI

Miroir

WAMMES

Toccata on All You Need Is Love

AYRES

Losa

SEJOURNE

2 + 1

TREVINO

Fanfare for the Common Man

COPLAND

Incantations for Organ and Percussion

ROGG
President’s Young Performers Concert 2021
Season 2021/22

President’s Young Performers Concert 2021

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Joshua Tan, conductor / Charmaine Teo, harp

Thu / 05 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Fri / 06 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Esplanade Concert Hall

Complimentary onsite Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Information on exemptions and booking of your preferred time slot can be found here.

Our annual showcase of Singapore’s finest young musical talents returns this year with award-winning, rising star, harpist Charmaine Teo, Masters graduate of the New England Conservatory, Boston.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Joshua Tan, conductor / Charmaine Teo, harp

Programme

Variations on a Theme by Tchaikovsky, Op. 35a

Anton Arensky (Arensky)

Danses sacrée et profane for harp and strings

Claude Debussy (Debussy)

Serenade for Strings, Op. 48

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Tchaikovsky)
SSO National Day Concert (Online)
Season 2021/22

SSO National Day Concert (Online)

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Joshua Tan, conductor / Kailin Yong, violin / , master of ceremonies / Janis Wong, sign language interpreter

Sun / 29 Aug 21 / 3.00pm

SISTIC Live [Online]

In view of the tightened safe management measures under Phase 2 (Heightened Alert), this concert will be postponed to premiere on 29 Aug, 3pm. It will be available for viewing until 28 Sep, 3pm.

Beloved classics stand together with new works by Singapore’s growing league of talented composers. Join your national orchestra together in music and song for the annual SSO National Day Concert – hear for the first time a new medley of National Day classics made possible by your support!

The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is heartened by the support given to the following compositions:

  • Dengan Semangat Yang Baru (“In A New Spirit”) - Supported by PSA Corporation Limited
  • Luciola singapura - Supported by DBS
  • Raising The Life - Supported by OSIM, part of V3 Group
  • A Little Trip Down Memory Lane - Supported by On Cheong Jewellery
  • Home - Supported by Marina Bay Sands
  • Sing Singapore Medley - Made possible by the people of Singapore. Please consider making a donation on giving.sg to show your support.

We are also grateful to V3 Group and UOB for their support of the whole concert.

FORMAT: SISTIC Live stream on 29 Aug 2021. Concert begins at 3pm with countdown lobby open at 2.30pm. Viewable until 28 Sep 2021, 3pm.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Joshua Tan, conductor / Kailin Yong, violin / , master of ceremonies / Janis Wong, sign language interpreter

Programme

Dengan Semangat Yang Baru (“In A New Spirit” - World Premiere*)

Syafiqah ‘Adha Sallehin

Folk Games

Jonathan Shin

Luciola singapura

Cheng Jin Koh (Koh Cheng Jin)

Raising the Life for solo violin and orchestra

Kailin Yong

A Little Trip Down Memory Lane

Jessica Tam

Home

Dick Lee

Sing Singapore Medley

Dr Tony Makarome

Majulah Singapura

Zubir Said
Night of the Saxophone
Season 2021/22 • Subscription Concert

Night of the Saxophone

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Samuel Phua, alto saxophone

Thu / 19 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Fri / 20 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Victoria Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Information on exemptions and booking of your preferred pre-event test time slot can be found here.

Young Singaporean saxophone extraordinaire Samuel Phua stars in Glazunov’s evocative Saxophone Concerto, a 1934 masterwork that has since become a staple of the instrument’s repertoire. SSO Chief Conductor Hans Graf directs this tuneful evening of modern and Mozartian inspiration.

3 Aug 2021: Please note change in programme - Mozart's A Musical Joke will be performed instead of No. 29/21 as previously announced.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Samuel Phua, alto saxophone

Programme

Serenata notturna, K.239

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Mozart)

Alto Saxophone Concerto in E-flat major, Op. 109

Alexander Glazunov (Glazunov)

A Musical Joke, K.522

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Mozart)
Love, Carmen and Mozart
Season 2021/22 • Subscription Concert

Love, Carmen and Mozart

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Ye-Eun Choi, violin

Fri / 27 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Sat / 28 Aug 21 / 7.30pm

Esplanade Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Information on complimentary onsite testing and exemptions can be found here.

The unforgettable allure of Bizet’s music for Carmen received a modern refresh in the 1967 arrangement for strings and a generous dose of percussion by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin, making an attractive match to the refined grace of Mozart’s Fifth Violin Concerto. Korean violinist Ye-Eun Choi, protégé of Anne-Sophie Mutter who called her “among the most talented of violinists” joins the SSO and Chief Conductor Hans Graf in this richly melodic programme.

Featuring

Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Hans Graf, Chief Conductor / Ye-Eun Choi, violin

Programme

Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K.219

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Mozart)

Carmen Suite

Bizet/Shchedrin (Bizet/Shchedrin)
By Romantic Hand
Season 2021/22 • VCHpresents: Chamber

By Romantic Hand

Jin Ta, flute / Li Xin, clarinet / Christoph Wichert, bassoon / Jin Li, violin / Zhao Tian, violin / Gu Bing Jie, viola / Guo Hao, cello / , violin³ / Ng Pei-Sian, cello³ / Abigail Sin, piano³

Fri / 03 Sep 21 / 7.30pm

Sat / 04 Sep 21 / 7.30pm

Victoria Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for this concert for those who are not exempted. Information on exemptions can be found here. As the situation remains fluid, ticket holders will be contacted nearer to concert date with further information on your complimentary PET, where necessary.

By passion, by artistry, by lyric genius - Beethoven, Mendelssohn and Brahms are the epitome of the Romantic musical soul. Let the musicians of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra take you, by figurative hand and heart, into their musical world via three pieces each in a different chamber combination.

Featuring

Jin Ta, flute / Li Xin, clarinet / Christoph Wichert, bassoon / Jin Li, violin / Zhao Tian, violin / Gu Bing Jie, viola / Guo Hao, cello / , violin³ / Ng Pei-Sian, cello³ / Abigail Sin, piano³

Programme

Variations on “Là ci darem la mano” from Mozart’s Don Giovanni ¹

Ludwig van Beethoven (Beethoven)

String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 13 ²

Felix Mendelssohn (Mendelssohn)

Piano Trio No. 3 in C minor, Op. 101 ³

Johannes Brahms (Brahms)
Intimate Moments 乐享时光: On the Air with Jin Ta
Season 2021/22 • VCHpresents: Intimate Moments

Intimate Moments 乐享时光: On the Air with Jin Ta

Jin Ta, flute / Li Xin, clarinet / Christoph Wichert, bassoon / Liu Jia, piano / Woo Mun Ngan, presenter

Fri / 10 Sep 21 / 7.30pm

Sat / 11 Sep 21 / 7.30pm

Victoria Concert Hall

Pre-Event Testing (PET) is required for those who are not exempted. For more details on exemptions, list of MOH-approved clinics for PET, and reimbursement for cost of PET, please visit here.

This programme features conversations in Mandarin only.

Jin Ta, veteran Principal Flute of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and an impressive composer/arranger in his own right, is our next artist in the limelight. Come and meet him in this next instalment of our Intimate Moments series, where he will perform as well as talk about his life and music.

Featuring

Jin Ta, flute / Li Xin, clarinet / Christoph Wichert, bassoon / Liu Jia, piano / Woo Mun Ngan, presenter

Programme

Fantasia No. 1 in A major, for Solo Flute

Georg Philipp Telemann (Telemann)

Petite Suite for Flute and Bassoon

Dubois

Grand Polonaise Op. 16 for Flute and Piano

Boehm

Trio, Op. 87 for Flute, Clarinet and Bassoon

Ludwig van Beethoven (Beethoven)

Rice - Tone Poem for Flute and Piano

Ta Jin (Jin Ta)

ABOUT THE SINGAPORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Founded in 1979, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is Singapore’s flagship orchestra, touching lives through classical music and providing the heartbeat of the cultural scene. In addition to its subscription series concerts, the SSO is also known for its outdoor and community appearances. The orchestra also presents intimate chamber performances in the SSO Chamber Series and SSO Organ Series, the annual Singapore International Piano Festival (SIPF) and the biennial National Piano and Violin Competition (NPVC) at the Victoria Concert Hall, Home of the SSO. The SSO is part of the Singapore Symphony Group, which also manages the Singapore Symphony Choruses, and the Singapore National Youth Orchestra. The Group’s vision is to be a leading arts organization that engages, inspires and reflects Singapore through musical excellence. Our mission is to create memorable shared experiences with music. Through the SSO and its affiliated performing groups, we spread the love for music, nurture talent and enrich our diverse communities.

The Singapore Symphony Orchestra was nominated and clinched third place in the prestigious Gramophone Orchestra of the Year Award 2021. In 2022, BBC Music Magazine named the SSO as one of the 21 best orchestras in the world.

Visit Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s website and find out more.
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