Singapore, 13 June 2016 (Monday) – Singapore Youth Chinese Orchestra (SYCO) will present its annual concert – Exuberance of Youth on 16 July 2016 (Saturday), 8pm at SCO Concert Hall. SYCO members will showcase their skills and music virtuosity under the baton of music director Quek Ling Kiong.
The concert will commence with Kuan Nai-chung’s percussion concerto The Sun. This energetic piece will be performed by SYCO percussion members Lim Rei and Nicholas Teo Jorquan, showcasing the vibrancy of youth. Wang I-Yu’s Impressions on Bei Guan will be a Singapore premiere piece in this concert. This piece was inspired by the Bei Guan music that can be heard in the streets and alleys during the festivals in the composer’s hometown. The composer dedicated this piece to his grandfather, a musician who was passionate about Bei Guan music and to everyone in the world who prays to receive happiness.
Audience can also enjoy the rendition of Gao Yang’s, Zhang Shi Gong and Tang Fu’s sheng concerto Princess Wencheng which will be performed by SYCO sheng principal member Zhou Zixuan. Three movements will be performed: First movements: The Spectacular Great Tang, The Beauty of Princess, Second movement: Zang Marriage Proposal Troupe, Farewell Chang’an and Fourth movement: Wedding Ceremony, Harmonious Han-Zang Dynasty. This piece portrays the marriage of Princess Wencheng from the Tang Dynasty to King Songtsen Gampo. Their marriage promotes the economic development and relationships between the Han and Zang. This made a significant contribution to China’s past effort in becoming a united country consisting of multiple tribes.
Renowned Chinese composer Liu Wen Jin’s erhu concerto The Brave Spirits of the Snow Mountains will be performed by SYCO erhu member Low Likie. This is a single-movement erhu concerto that consists of four segments – The Journey, Snow Mountain, The Comrades and Red Sky at Dawn. The Journey is portrayed by bells accompanying the marching rhythm of the Red Army. Snow Mountain portrays the thought, friendship, wisdom and sacrifices of the army while surviving in the harsh environment. The Comrades portray the warm theme of sending off the Red Army to war, the deep longing and affection felt by the soldiers for their home. Red Sky at Dawn showcases the brilliance of Jiangxi folk tunes while describing the victory of the Red Army’s Long March, capturing the moment the Red Army reached northern Shaanxi’s solemn, and the bright prospects of the revolution in China.
Fung Chuntung’s Theme and Variations on a Hainanese Folk Song is based on a Hainanese folk song “Zhe Gu Ti”, which was one of the selected pieces from SCO’s Composer Workshop held in March 2016. The orchestra will also perform Law Wai Lun’s Prince Sang Nila Utama and Singa which was inspired by the legend of Singapura. Incorporating various Nanyang music elements and musical narration, it tells of the founding of Singapore. From the appearance of the lion, the arrival of the mighty fleet of ships led by Sang Nila Utama to the storm at sea and the eventual founding of the Empire of Singapura.
Biography
SYCO is a group of highly talented musicians between the ages of 11 to 26, under the National Project of Excellence (NPOE) recognised by the Ministry of Education. With more than 90 members, SYCO aims to nurture aspiring young musicians and groom them to be the future pillars of Singapore’s Chinese music industry. From January 2016, Quek Ling Kiong is the Music Director for SYCO with Maestro Tsung Yeh as its advisor and Moses Gay as its conductor. SYCO is managed by SCO under the purview of the National Arts Council and supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.
Lim Rei – Percussion
Lim Rei joined SYCO in 2012 and is the percussion principal since 2015. She regularly performs with the Orchestra of the Music Makers, Singapore Wind Symphony Percussion Ensemble, Windstars Ensemble, with fellow students at the Temple of Fine Arts, and served as percussion principal for Raffles Alumni Chinese Orchestra.
Nicholas Teo Jorquan – Percussion
Nicholas Teo Jorquan joined Christ Church Secondary School’s Chinese Orchestra which sparked his keen interest in percussion. He is also the percussion section leader. He joined Singapore Polytechnic’s Chinese Orchestra and was appointed as the President and played his first concerto Fishermen’s Triumphant in 2013. In 2015, he joined SYCO and was appointed the percussion associate principal. He has also represented Singapore with local sheng ensemble, Resonance (合笙) in Vietnam and Hong Kong.
Zhou Zixuan – Sheng
Zhou Zixuan started learning the sheng at the age of 13 and was awarded distinction in his Grade 8 NUS-CFA Sheng grading exam. He then joined SYCO in 2014 and was subsequently appointed principal player in 2015. In 2014, Zixuan also participated in the biennial National Chinese Music Competition Sheng Youth category and emerged as champion.
Low Likie – Erhu
Low Likie started learning erhu at the age of 9 and was under the tutelage of SCO erhu associate principal, Ling Hock Siang. At the age of 13, Likie became the youngest and the only Singaporean who was awarded the scholarship to attend the foreign students erhu masterclass at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music in 2012. She had the opportunity to receive masterclasses and one-to-one supervision by renowned erhu masters such as Wang Yongde, late-Min Hui Fen and George Gao, to enhance her performance skills. Likie also won an “Outstanding Performance Award” at the 2012 Shanghai Conservatory of Music foreign students Erhu Competition. In 2013, she joined SYCO, and also obtained a distinction grade for the erhu performance diploma examination. In 2016, she was selected for the International Baccalaureate Career-Related Program, a pre-tertiary programme that focuses intensively on artistic development.
Conductor: Quek Ling Kiong Percussion: Lim Rei Percussion: Nicholas Teo
Sheng: Zhou Zixuan Erhu: Low Likie
Concert details:
SYCO Annual Concert – Exuberance of Youth
Date: 16 July 2016 (Saturday)
Time: 8pm
Venue: SCO Concert Hall
Ticket prices (before SISTIC fees): $30, $20
Tickets from SISTIC
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