NIKOLAI KAPUSTIN Chamber Works / Thomas Ang and Friends / Review

NIKOLAI KAPUSTIN Chamber Works

Thomas Ang and Friends

The Chamber @ The Arts House

Sunday (29 July 2012) 

This review as published in The Straits Times on 31 July 2012 with the title "Friends explore new chamber repertoire".

Ukrainian composer Nikolai Kapustin (born 1937) is no longer a stranger in concert programmes these days, following ardent championing over the years by pianists like Nikolai Petrov, Marc-André Hamelin and Steven Osborne. Even in Singapore, Albert Lin and Nicholas Loh have performed his jazz-infused virtuosic piano pieces to much acclaim.

His chamber music, however, still represents terra incognito. So credit is due to young pianist Thomas Ang, recipient of the Hamish Dyer Musical Scholarship, for unearthing more than two hours of positive rarities for concert performance. All five works on the programme received Singapore premieres, and despite the highly approachable idiom, it was not always easy listening.

Kapustin’s music is more sophisticated and complex than that of Gershwin or Friedrich Gulda, just to name two pianist-composers who successfully “crossed-over” the classical and jazz divide. His themes are substantial, often subject to dense polyphony and counterpoint. The works are always rigorously schooled and scored note-for-note.  

This invigorating concert opened with a four-hand-arrangement of the 4-movement Sinfonietta (1986) performed by Ang and Stephanie Lew. Like Prokofiev's Classical Symphony, it was Haydn updated but in its piano guise, sounded like a Rachmaninov suite jazzed up in big band colours. The duo clearly enjoyed their whole-hearted dig despite the avalanche of notes.       

Less successful was the balance in the Violin Sonata (1992), where Ang’s violin part struggled to be heard above Lew’s busy figurations. The pizzicatos in the slow movement however piqued memories of the Blues movement from Ravel’s Violin Sonata, except that this entire work was the blues itself. The Flute Sonata (2004) had a far better airing, in part because Ang is more confident as a pianist, his crisp playing and acute sense of rhythm scoring plusses on the keyboard.

Flautist Daniel Bonaventure Lim, equally nimble and agile, projected very well throughout. Joined by cellist Chan Si Han, the Trio for Flute, Cello and Piano (1998) received the evening’s best performance. Like a genuine combo, the music leapt out from its black and white pages, headily emanating from the most hardcore and smoky of jazz nightclubs. The leisurely slow movement just launched itself attaca (without pause) into the most unbuttoned of finales.

The final work was the First String Quartet (1998), where Ang returned to lead on first violin. Deprived of the piano, the music was less frenetic but no less vibrant. Here the folksy sound of Slavic quartets met headlong with bluegrass and country traditions. The quartet overcame intonation issues and rhythmic hazards in the central movements before erupting in a frantic fugal finale.  

Despite every note being unfamiliar, the attendance and applause for this concert was more than encouraging. Ang, who commences musical studies in London this year, and his partners are urged to carry on exploring new repertoire.

All the performers (from L): Stephanie Lew (piano), Lum Jian Yang (viola), Margaret Teng (violin), Chan Si Han (cello), Thomas Ang (piano and violin) and Daniel Bonaventure Lim (flute).

1ST SOUTHEAST ASIAN STEINWAY YOUTH PIANO COMPETITION FINALS

1^ST SOUTHEAST ASIAN STEINWAY

YOUTH PIANO COMPETITION FINALS

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory Concert Hall

Saturday (28 July 2012)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 30 July 2012 with the title "Young virtuosos playing to win".

How do you bring together the best young piano talent in Southeast Asia under one roof in celebration of the world’s most recognisable piano brand? Steinway Piano and sponsor Bank Julius Baer’s solution was to get each of the countries to organise a nation-wide competition and then invite the winners to compete in Singapore, with the overall champion getting the chance to perform in the grand Steinway Festival in Hamburg.

Like football World Cup qualifiers, it was not going to be the fairest of fights. After all, how could tiny states like Brunei or Singapore compete with the populous might of Indonesia or Vietnam? With Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos not involved, the geopolitics was also skewed to include Taiwan and South Korea, both nations with highly established Western classical musical traditions. China and Japan already have their winners booked to Germany and were thus excluded here.

The competition proper and adjudication had taken place in the day, and the Gala Concert just showcased nine finalists playing a representative piece each. Thankfully not everything on display was virtuoso fodder, but it gave fair indication who the winner was going to be.

Liszt was played by three pianists. Lorenzo Medel (16 years) of Philippines gave a loose and light interpretation of the Sixth Hungarian Rhapsody, barely taxed by the fearsome right hand octaves that closed the work. Thailand’s Gun Chaikittiwatana (15) also relished in a flurry of notes, fluid and scintillating within the watery realm of Au bord d’une source.

However it was Hsieh Wei Ting (16, Taiwan) whose self-assurance and seemingly effortless note-perfection in La Campanella which truly stood out. Hers was the one reading that could stand tall in any international concours around the globe.

Chopin also fared well. South Korea’s Ha Gyu Tae (15) lent gravity and solemnity to the C Minor Nocturne (Op.48 No.1), even if the climax lacked certain tension. This made the reading of the B Major Nocturne (Op.62 No.1) by the diminutive Jennifer Chrysantha (10, Indonesia) all the more astonishing. Her luscious tonal colour and instinctive grasp of legato and rubato were uncanny for one this young.  

Vietnam’s Nguyen Le Binh Anh (15) played a soulful Rachmaninov, whose Elegie (Op.3 No.1) was shaded with great sympathy and Romantic ardour. As a matter of contrast, the prestidigitation of Khachaturian’s Toccata was nailed with accuracy and proficiency by Singaporean See Ning Hui (16). Malaysian Audrey Siew (16) coaxed a silky sonority from Debussy’s Reflets dans l’eau, never mind the missed notes. In this company, the choice of Chiam Shian Li (13, Brunei) to play Jon Schmidt’s All Of Me seemed less appropriate, but she got the jazzy feeling just right.  

The judging was based on a full 15-20 minute programme, and so the deserving First Prize Winner Hsieh was obliged to perform an encore immediately after she was metaphorically crowned. Her stylishly lilting performance of Granados’s Los Requiebros (Flatteries), full of Spanish flourishes, was arguably even better than the Liszt. Unlike most football referees, the three-person jury from USA, China and Hong Kong got its decision spot on.

Some Photos from the 1st Southeast Asian Steinway Piano Competition Finals

Large poster of the Competition finals.

A Miss Universe moment when Hsieh Wei Ting (Taiwan) is named winner of the Southeast Asian Steinway Youth Piano Competition. (Photo: Wayne Loh)

The nine finalists (from L): Ha Gyu Tae, Gun Chaikittiwatana, Lorenzo Medel, Nguyen  Le Binh Anh, Jennifer Chrysanta, Audrey Siew, Hsieh Wei Ting (seated), See Ning Hui and Chiam Shian Li. (Photo: Wayne Loh)

Jennifer Chrysantha and her friends.

NAFA piano pedagogue Fang Yuan, Professor Eleanor Wong (Competition judge from Hong Kong) and Professor Cham Tao Soon (Pianophile).

Professor Thomas Hecht (Yong Siew Toh Conservatory) with his former student Abigail Sin, Young Steinway Artist.

  

Li Chu Ren, Prof and Mrs Albert Tiu, Benjamin Loh, Julie Tan and Chia Sin Teck (from L to R).

Boris Kraljevic with Kseniia Vokhmianina and Mrs Vokhmianina.

CAPRICCIO / Singapore Chinese Orchestra / Review

  

CAPRICCIO

Singapore Chinese Orchestra

SCO Concert Hall

Friday (27 July 2012)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 30 July 2012 with the title "Night of classical rapture".

The concept of the Chinese orchestra owes greatly to the model set by Western symphony orchestras from the 19^th century. The notion of four orchestral sections and occidental compositional forms has transformed the genre of Chinese instrumental music from its humbler folk origins to the more complex music that is heard in concert halls today.

This concert, conducted by the Singapore Chinese Orchestra’s first Music Director Hu Bing Xu, was a timely reminder of that fact. It even conformed to the age-old forma of overture, concerto, symphony and encore that has delighted concert-goers over the ages. Beginning with Feng Xiao Quan’s Soaring Chinese Music, its slow introduction followed by an invigorating Allegro served its function like a Rossinian overture.

This was contrasted by Fang Xiao Ming’s Cantonese serenade Morning Blossoms and Evening Moon, highlighting the gaohu’s lingering legato, which was the palate cleanser before the two concertos. The first concertante work was Cheng Da Zhao’s Four Movements of Shanbei, which showcased the breathtaking virtuosity of Singaporean dizi exponent Lim Sin Yeo (below).

The sinuous flute melody of Xin Tian You, a Shanxi highland air full of longing and yearning, unfolded with Coplandesque breadth, leading to the animated Village Opera, where the dizi imitated the vocal inflexions of its comedic stage protagonists. Its slow movement The Past was a Bartokian Adagio, haunting and atmospheric, with the dance-like finale building up to a Lisztian climax. The glorious reprise of Xin Tian You to round up was a reliving of the cyclical form.  

The second concerto was Wang Yue Ming’s Fantasia of the Western Regions with excellent alto erhu solist Zhu Lin (above) centrestage. It dwelled on Central Asian melodies, the sort Borodin, Balakirev and Ippolitov-Ivanov were so fond of, except that this folk-inspired rhapsody was conceived in Beijing rather than Moscow.

To close the concert were two movements from Zhao Ji Ping’s Ode of Peace, a symphony in memory of the victims of the 1937 Nanjing massacre. No prizes for guessing which Russian composer inspired the funereal passacaglia-like Sorrows of the River and the equally brooding but defiant finale. Shostakovich, no less.

As if that was not enough, the orchestra performed in between the concertos Sim Boon Yew’s arrangement of the Malay joget favourite Suriram, an entertaining ten minutes in the theme and variations form. The sole encore did not need any disguising, just Mascagni’s sublime Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana with huqins doing the honours.  

INTERNATIONAL INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE WRONG FLAG / History repeats itself in Britain

It came close to an international incident at the 2012 Olympic Games at Edinburgh when the North Korean women's football team was introduced but the South Korean flag was inadvertently displayed beside images of the players. This led to a walkout by the North Korean team in protest until the right flag was found. International sensitivities came to a head because the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North) is still technically at war with its neighbours the Republic of Korea (South). Incidentally, the North Koreans, spurred on by righteous indignation,  beat Colombia 2-0.    

A similar incident took place at the 2006 Leeds International Piano Competition but in reverse. Some person (presumably not Dame Fanny Waterman) had the swell idea of displaying the national flags of all the pianists below their names in the programme book. This resulted in all eight South Korean pianists having a North Korean flag accompany them throughout the entire competition (see above). Spurred on by righteous indignation and musical inspiration, three South Koreans made the semi-finals, with Sunwook Kim and Sunghoon Kim winning the 1st and 5th prizes respectively. An audience member later remarked to me, "I did not know they had such a great musical conservatory in Pyongyang!"

This was not the first incident involving the Leeds International Piano Competition. In 1984, the Chinese jury member Ding Shande (composer of the Great March Symphony) threatened to quit the competition when the Taiwanese flag (Republic of China, above left) was displayed instead of the Chinese one (People's Republic of China,  above right). 

So its back to Geography, Geo-Politics, History and International Relations 101 classes for the Brits! 

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, July 2012)

FANTASIA

YUJA WANG, Piano

Deutsche Grammophon 479 0052 / *****

It’s been ages since Deutsche Grammophon devoted an entire new disc to piano encores. This privilege falls on the brilliant fingers of Chinese sensation Yuja Wang, who treats this as a concept album and fashion statement. Perhaps only her stylist knows why she is being clad in a flouncy red gown and sprouting black feathery wings from her back.

Her keyboard flight of fantasy in centred around two longish encores. Victor Staub’s transcription of Dukas’s The Sorceror’s Apprentice is virtually unknown, but is highly effective with Wang’s razor-keen reflexes. Horowitz’s conception of the Liszt transcription of Saint-Saëns’s Danse Macabre is much recorded, and Wang’s version is as thrilling as Horowitz’s own. The plausible links between both these pieces are Mickey Mouse cartoons and a surfeit of technical diablerie.

The other encores are grouped loosely as Rachmaninov Études-tableaux, Scriabin miniatures (Préludes, an Étude and Poem) and assorted delights. The best of the latter contrasts flowing lines (Gluck-Sgambati Melody from Orpheus) with rhythmic exuberance (Albeniz’s Triana) and more piled-on virtuosity (Horowitz Carmen Variations and Strauss-Cziffra Tritsch-Tratsch Polka) with her own added flourishes. Whichever way one likes it, this anthology is a winner.

GOTTSCHALK Complete Solo Piano Music

PHILIP MARTIN, Piano

Hyperion 44451/8 (8 CDs) / ****1/2

The first truly-American composer and piano virtuoso is widely acknowledged to be one Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869), a Creole born in New Orleans, who studied and began his performing career in Europe. His large body of piano music, while consisting of a variable potpourri of Romantic excess and sentimentality, is important because of the adoption of Ibero-Latin, Afro-American and Caribbean styles and beats, which would go on to influence later generations of composers as diverse as Joplin, Lecuona, Milhaud, Villa-Lobos and Granados. The shorter dance pieces like The Banjo, Bamboula, Pasquinade, Manchega, Le Bananier and Souvenirs D’Andalousie, full of infectious rhythms and syncopations, are must-listens for his quintessential spirit and idioms.

The influence of Chopin may be discerned in swooning salon numbers as the posthumous Ballades, while the vulgar side of Liszt is all-pervasive in several opera transcriptions and meretricious variations on melodies like Carnival Of Venice and Home, Sweet Home. The worst potboilers are reserved for various fantasies on national anthems, among them Brazil, Portugal and the USA. The one that takes the cake is Union, a cacophonous jumble that mixes up Yankee Doodle, Hail Columbia and Star-Spangled Banner in a flag-waving musical train wreck. Despite all this, the 109 separate pieces in this collection are lovingly performed by British pianist Philip Martin, who revels in its languorous lyricism, scintillating fireworks and outward humour, warts and all.

EXHIBITION OF PICTURES / MIYUKI WASHIMIYA Piano Recital / Review

EXHIBITION OF PICTURES

MIYUKI WASHIMIYA, Piano

Esplanade Recital Studio

Saturday (21 July 2012)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 23 July 2012 with the title "Vivid brushstrokes on the piano".

The title of the concert said it all, forwarding the idea that pictures or visual images could be eloquently expressed by way of sound bites and aural impressions. There were 25 separate pieces in this solo recital by Japanese pianist Miyuki Washimiya, now a regular visitor to Singapore, invited to perform in a series of concerts by the Kris Foundation.

Yet there was a thematic cohesion in the manner these were presented, in groups of three before culminating in Mussorgsky’s eponymous masterpiece, Pictures at an Exhibition. The recital opened with three Debussy Preludes, displaying Washimiya’s crystalline bell-like clarity amid a slew of shimmering textures.

The Japanese have a way with the French aesthete that is uncanny, whether swirling to the tarantella rhythm of The Hills of Anacapri, summoning the waves beneath The Engulfed Cathedral or simulating the quirky jives of Afro-American Minstrels. In these her pedalling was exemplary, fully exploiting the reverberant acoustics of the recital studio without ever sounding harsh.

In the three popular Liszt pieces, full-blooded Romantic emotions were held in check, so the ardour of Liebesträume No.3 and Consolation No.3 did not overflow as some might have liked. A few dropped notes resulted in La Campanella in being a little cautious, but the tintinnabulation of her trills was genuinely exciting as she rallied to a thunderous close.

The best performances came in the two Preludes and Etude by Ukrainian jazzman Nikolai Kapustin. Washimiya’s infectious sense of rhythm, incisive and unerring, coupled with note perfection at dizzying speeds swept the board. Where did she learn to play the jazzy blues like that?

The Mussorgsky Pictures were treated to an honest-to-goodness account rather than an out-and-out grandstanding one. Scrupulous to detail and the score, there was no need to shock and awe as each of Viktor Hartmann’s portraits steadily came to life. There was a troubadour’s lovesick yearning in The Old Castle, delicate traipsing in the Ballet of Unhatched Chicks, stark irony in the Two Russian Jews, all vividly characterised. Even the fiendish repeated notes of Limoges Marketplace held no terrors for her assured fingers. 

When the clangourous bells of The Great Gate of Kiev had finally silenced, encores were demanded. Washimiya offered two further gems: Kapustin’s Eleventh Prelude and Debussy’s most famous prelude, Girl with the Flaxen Hair. If one did not already get the drift, her message writ large was “small is beautiful”.

DONIZETTII'S L'ELISIR D'AMORE / New Opera Singapore / Review

DONIZETTI’S L’ELISIR D’AMORE

New Opera Singapore

SIA Theatre, LaSalle College of the Arts

Friday (20 July 2012)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 23 July 2012 with the title "Startling debut for New Opera".

Opera lovers in Singapore must be pinching themselves. For the first time, there seems to be a semblance of an opera season here. Within the next six weeks, three different operas produced by Singapore’s three opera companies would have run their course. The first, Gaetano Donizetti’s bel canto opera L’elisir d’amore (The Elixir of Love), received its local premiere under the auspices of the newest group, New Opera Singapore founded by Korean soprano and vocal pedagogue Jeong Ae Ree.

Anyone expecting something like a slicked-up high school musical from the year-old outfit will be pleasantly surprised. It was much, much better than that, extending from the professionalism displayed by all involved despite operating on a shoestring budget. Sung entirely in the original Italian, the provincial setting of sophisticated lass falling for Simpleton Sam was updated to a corporate world of mergers and acquisitions in the 20^th century.

The original story from 1832 was silly enough, and its modern equivalent directed by television veteran Goh Ming Siu was to be no less good-humoured. The unforgettable character of charlatan Dulcamara, peddler of potions, received a most outlandish outing from Korean bass Yun Seong Woo (above). He dressed and swanked for the best part like a dope-dealer cum pimp, one so slick that he was actually likeable.

The stage however belonged to soprano Teng Xiang Ting, whose coquettish turned soft-hearted Adina shone radiantly in all her arias, duets and ensemble work. Her pristine voice, powerful yet supple, was one to get totally tipsy with Bordeaux for. Equally comfortable with seamless lines and coloratura turns, it is all the more remarkable that this law graduate in her maiden prima donna role received her vocal schooling completely in Singapore.

Opposite her, Johorean tenor Kee Loi Seng was a hopeful but totally sympathetic janitor Nemorino, his trademark yellow boots had Phua Chu Kang written all over. He too, rose to the occasion and received deserved cheers for his big aria Una furtiva lagrima. Baritone Jeremy Koh and soprano Victoria Lee competently supported as failed suitor Belcore and Adina sidekick Gianetta. All singers including the small but vibrant chorus were amplified to overcome the dry and unflattering acoustics of this venue.

 

Some areas where improvements may be effected: while the absence of backdrops (other than projections) and props was understandable, the threadbare orchestra conducted by Chan Wei Shing could be further boosted for a richer accompaniment. These are however minor quibbles, for as far as musical values went, New Opera Singapore has notched the first of hopefully many further artistic triumphs.

New Opera Singapore director Jeong Ae Ree (extreme left) with patron Mrs Goh Choo Leng (2nd from left) and her entourage of opera lovers.

Winners of Sydney International Piano Competition 2012 Named

After a gruelling round of piano concertos, the winners of the 2012 Sydney International Piano Competition have been named. The roll of honour is as follows:

1st Prize: Avan Yu (Canada)

2nd Prize: Nikolay Khozyainov (Russia)

3rd Prize: Dmitry Onishchenko (Ukraine)

4th Prize: Mikhail Berestnev (Russia)

5th Prize: Hao Zhu (China)

6th Prize: Tanya Gabrielian (USA)

History repeats itself with yet another winner who is either Chinese or Russian. In this year's case, the winner Avan Yu is a Canadian-Chinese, a repeat of the 1981 competition when the 1st prize was awarded to Chia Chou of Canada. I must admit that 24-year-old Avan flew under my radar for much of the proceedings, so I'll have to listen to his performances again and perhaps buy the competition CDs when they come out later this year.  

You can listen to every note played during the entire competition here:

http://www.abc.net.au/classic/sipca/sessions/

CD Reviews (The Straits Times, July 2012)

IVES Violin Sonatas

HILARY HAHN, Violin

VALENTINA LISITSA, Piano

Deutsche Grammophon 477 9435 / ****1/2

Charles Ives (1874-1954) was the most original of the pioneering American composers. While others were imitating European Romantic traditions, he experimented with atonality in a parallel universe alongside the Second Viennese School. Even Schoenberg was in awe of his achievements, remarkable for one who was an insurance broker by profession. His four Violin Sonatas, composed between 1910 and 1920, are prickly little masterpieces that explore polytonality and polyrhythms (the violin and piano often play at cross purposes and independently of each other) besides using popular American tunes.

The Third Sonata, at 23 minutes, is the most substantial. The brief Fourth Sonata, entitled Children’s Day At The Camp Meeting, is however the most popular. Songs sung at Sunday School and revival meetings are relived, notably Jesus Loves Me. The link between Ives’s sonatas and symphonies is found in the First Sonata, which quotes Watchman, Tell Us Of The Night, a major theme of the Fourth Symphony. The central movement of the Second Sonata is a joyous barn dance with Turkey In The Straw and Sailor’s Hornpipe mixed up with bluegrass fiddling. American violinist Hilary Hahn and Ukrainian pianist Valentina Lisitsa give close to definitive performances which should bring these uncommon works new friends.

GRIEG String Quartet No.1/ Holberg Suite

Australian Chamber Orchestra

RICHARD TOGNETTI

BIS SACD-1877 / ****1/2

The music of Norwegian nationalist Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), strongly influenced by the folk traditions and dances of his homeland, lends well to treatment on the strings. His From Holberg’s Time, better known as the Holberg Suite, originally conceived for piano, is very popular in its string orchestra form. The Australian Chamber Orchestra gives a very spirited and rhythmically incisive account of its five movements, based on baroque dances, that is equal to the best. Also well-known are the Two Elegiac Melodies – The Wounded Heart and Last Spring – which sound poignant with the right mix of melancholy and nostalgia.

The big work here is leader-violinist Richard Tognetti’s arrangement of Grieg’s First String Quartet in G minor, an underrated piece that contains some of his best music. The first and fourth movements are linked by a motto theme which rings familiar because it also appears in the finale of the famous Piano Concerto. This is a stirring account that fully exploits massed string sonorities, thus surpassing the original conception. As an encore, Tognetti’s solo violin is heard to heartrending effect in Erotikk, a short but beautiful Lyric Piece, transcribed from Grieg’s sets of piano miniatures. String lovers should not miss this.

A Tourist at Home: Views from the Marina Bay Sands

The spacious and long foyer of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. So that's what it looks like under those three pillars.

You could say I am one of those Singaporeans who never bothers to go near those attractions or sights where tourists to Singapore invariably hang around. That is until one of my overseas friends turns up and literally drags me to these spots, singing their praises about how Singapore has changed in such a short space of time, and for the better too. So many thanks to the Voss family from Illinois who paid for a one-night luxurious overnight stay at the Marina Bay Sands so they can soak in what sexy new Singapore has to offer. And they also had the luxury of being able to invite their Singaporean friends to come enjoy the view. And that's exactly what my son and I did this early evening... 

A view looking westwards, capturing part of the MBS rooftop pool and much of Keppel Harbour, once the world's busiest container port.

Marina Bay and the skyscrapers of Shenton Way, Singapore's banking and commercial centre. 

Panorama of Marina Bay and the Civic Centre of Singapore.

On the left,  a clear view of Fullerton Hotel (former GPO Building) and the infamous Merlion (presently under wraps). On the right, Esplanade Theatres on the Bay and the buildings around the Padang.

A view that captures two of Singapore's premier performance venues, Victoria Concert Hall  on the left and Esplanade Theatres by the Bay on the right.

A closer look at the roof of the ArtScience Museum, presently exhibiting props from the Harry Potter movies. 

Probably the best overall view of Singapore looking all the way up north to Malaysia.

Looking eastwards, the buildings of Marina Square, the Floating Stage, the Singapore Flyer and Kallang River. Building is now taking place at Kallang to construct the new Sports Hub.

Panorama of the Kallang River Basin, Tanjong Rhu and the Marina Barrage.

This is where Marina Bay meets the sea (Straits of Singapore).

View of Singapore's latest tourist attraction - the Gardens by the Bay, with its two impressive looking Conservatories.

Finally, a panorama of the far South of Singapore island, with a view of Indonesia's Riau Islands (Bintan and Batam).