COMPASSION / Singapore International Festival of Arts / Review

SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL 

FESTIVAL OF ARTS 2021

 

THE CONSOLER

Take 5

The Arts House

Wednesday (19 May 2021)

 

GHOSTS OF YESTERYEAR

Morse Percussion

Esplanade Concert Hall

Thursday (20 May 2021)

 

ALONE TOGETHER

Li Churen, Yang Shuxiang & Leslie Tan

The Arts House

Saturday (22 May 2021)

An edited version of this review was published in The Straits Times on 26 May 2021

 

Compassion is the series of eight chamber concerts in this year’s Singapore International Festival of Arts, specially curated to reflect on the Covid pandemic and its tragic toll. Over the past year, the nation had gone into partial lockdown, lives and livelihoods were lost, but ways of coping were found and an indomitable spirit prevailed.

 

Four concerts involving voice and wind instruments had been cancelled, but the remaining recitals still had cogent stories and messages to convey. The Consoler provided an hour of 20^th century piano quintet music, forged from the trials of two world wars.

 

The Russian Dmitri Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet was conceived under a pall of Stalinist totalitarianism, hence its seemingly traditional forms were coloured by a tragicomic personal voice. Frenchman Charles Koechlin’s Piano Quintet composed in the wake of First World War carnage and the Spanish influenza pandemic gave the impression of sunshine breaking through a sea of dense clouds.

 

Take 5, comprising pianist Lim Yan, violinists Foo Say Ming and Lim Shue Churn, violist Janice Tsai (replacing Chan Yoong Han) and cellist Chan Wei Shing, wrung out every bit of pathos possible from both works. While Shostakovich’s faux congeniality posed an illusion of hope, it was Koechlin’s humanity which yielded true consolation.

 

The four young musicians of Morse Percussion - Derek Koh, Joachim Lim, Julia Tan and Cheong Kah Yiong – had a field day in two works by American composers. David T. Little’s Haunt of Last Nightfall memorialised the 1981 massacre of innocents during the El Salvador civil war. Pitched (marimbas and metallophones) and unpitched (drums) percussion with the aid of electronics painted a harrowing scenario which traversed from serenity to violence, climaxing with the simulation of gunshots and machine-gun fire.

 

By contrast, four movements from Philip Glass’ Aguas De Amazonia (Waters of the Amazon), adapted for percussion from piano pieces, provided soothing balm to the ears. The novel use of slung cow-bells, crotales, wine bottles, water-filled glasses and bowls conjured an ethereal and other-worldly sonority and feel, suggesting that a reconciliation with Mother Nature be the best salve for the world’s ills.   

Trio of Li Churen, Yang Shuxiang and Leslie Tan
at the Poland Constitution Day concert.

 

Alone Together saw solos, duos and a trio from the newly formed trio of pianist Li Churen, violinist Yang Shuxiang and cellist Leslie Tan. The music of Poland prominently in various degrees of carthasis works by Penderecki, Wieniawski and Panufnik. Li’s original solo compositions included improvisations on Schumann, Mozart and Chopin and were strong on nostalgia. 

The concert’s most poignant moments came in the Intermezzo from Francis Poulenc’s Sonata For Violin and Piano, composed in memory of the poet Federico Garcia Lorca, murdered during the Spanish Civil War. The trio’s encore, Piazzolla’s melancolic slow tango Oblivion, showed that music - in all its infinite variety - had the power to heal. 

A SONG FOR LOUIS / Louis Soliano & Friends / Review

SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL 

FESTIVAL OF ARTS 2021:

A SONG FOR LOUIS

Louis Soliano & Friends

Victoria Theatre

Friday (14 May 2021)

An edited version of this review was published in The Straits Times on 19 May 2021 with the title "Soliano shines in starry tribute".

 

This latest edition of the Singapore Festival of Arts (SIFA) was a time for reflection and contemplation as the nation emerged from the pandemic crisis. However, this all changed with the announcement of a new lockdown arising from increased number of Covid cases detected.

 

The pair of tribute concerts organised for local jazz legend and Cultural Medallion recipient Louis Soliano were affected by new event restrictions imposed. The original audience size of 150 had to be reduced to 100 for each show, which was a pity but small blessings given that both would have been cancelled if held two days later.

 

An air of expectancy hung over the proceedings as socially-distanced patrons took to their seats. There was no mingling, but greetings were cheerily exchanged over rows and aisles. Warm applause erupted when the performers emerged behind a screen illuminating the 79-year-old maestro’s lifetime landmarks playing Wes Montgomery’s West Coast Blues. Soliano was born to migrant musicians and made his name performing drums in hotel lounge bands, and playing for American GIs during the Vietnam War. A storied career ensued before the Cultural Medallion in 2018 became his crowning achievement.

 

His collaborating performers read like a Who’s Who in Singapore’s jazz scene. Vocalist Joanna Dong was the chirpy host, styling Gershwin’s S’Wonderful before ushering in Malay pop icon Rahimah Rahim’s deeply felt rendition of P.Ramli’s Getaran Jiwa. On a video sent from Australia, Don Gomes accompanied himself on piano in Cole Porter’s Just One Of Those Things.

 

The irrepressible Richard Jackson gave a masterclass in scat-singing and ad-libbing in Chick Corea’s Spain, partnered by an equally free-wheeling flautist Rit Xu,, but where was Louis? Forty minutes into the show and midway through Paul Desmond’s Take 5, the diminutive figure of Soliano sashayed onstage to join Jackson in the improvisation.

 

The physical disparity between the two was obvious, but the wizened veteran commanded the stage with a rich and low bass-like voice that belied outward appearances. Size does matter, it seemed. Now making himself comfortable on a drum-set partnered by pianist Jeremy Monteiro and bassist Tony Makarome, the trio polished off Jules Styne’s Just In Time. Speaking about time, the 50 minutes in which Soliano appeared passed much faster that the 40 minutes that came before. Call this relativity, but this listener defers to that elusive factor called star quality.

 

With fellow drummers Bobby Singh (doubling on tabla), Jimmy Lee and Tama Goh, the quartet of percussionists had whale of a jam before the entire crew returned for Duke Ellington’s Caravan. Harry Warren’s mash-up of  The More I See Of You and There Will Never Be Another You saw the more reflective side of Louis the vocalist. He had to close on an upbeat high, and so Charles Strouse’s A Lot Of Livin’ To Do did the trick.

 

As an encore, Louis with Monteiro and guitarist Andrew Lim ended the evening with Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust, and this was amply rewarded with a well-earned standing ovation.      

MOZART IN MAJOR / Singapore Symphony Orchestra / Review

MOZART IN MAJOR

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Esplanade Concert Hall

Saturday 15 May 2021

This review was first published in Bachtrack on 17 May 2021 with the title "Major Mozart with Hungarian Guests at the Singapore Symphony".

Singapore has gone into Covid pandemic lockdown again, no thanks to an increasing number of newly diagnosed cases within the community. The pair of contrasted Mozart programmes by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra with guest conductor Gábor Káli and pianist Dénes Várjon, both Hungarians, were fortunately completed just before the suspension of orchestral concerts.

 

The first concert (7 May) covered only works in minor key, while the second programme (14 & 15 May) was devoted to major key compositions. While the rarity of minor key works (just two each of 41 symphonies and 27 piano concertos) make for more interesting Mozart, many of his major key works are hardly ever heard in concert. Such was his Cassation in G major, which received its first performance in Singapore.

 

This seven-part work could easily be called a Serenade or Divertimento, its short movements being slight, light-hearted, easy on the ears while not being particularly memorable. The entertainment of the Prince-Archbishop’s Salzburg court was probably uppermost in the 13-year-old Mozart’s mind, who trotted out as a series of march-like sequences and foursquare dances. Standing out, however, was the fifth movement, an Andante in G minor where a hint of pathos and spark of inspiration may be discerned. The finale also had surprises, with several false endings revealing tongue firmly lodged in cheek. Under Káli’s direction, strings boosted by two French horns and two oboes made the music sound better than it was.

 

Far better known is Piano Concerto No.12 in A major, which saw a sparkling reading from Dénes Várjon. Crisp articulation and limpid textures characterised his approach, allowing the music to freely breathe and “flow like oil”, to borrow a favourite description of Mozart’s. The orchestral partnership was sensitive throughout and at no point threatened to overshadow the soloist. Cadenzas were by Mozart, well-proportioned and totally in sync with all that had come before.

 

Interestingly, the central slow movement reprised a theme from the first movement, now sounding elegant and reverential, in marked contrast with the earlier liveliness. Good humour reigned in the finale’s rondo, which brought a smile whenever the second subject was raised. This curiously resembled a Chinese ditty sung by young pre-school children in Singapore. A total coincidence, no doubt. Várjon’s well-chosen encore, Bártok’s Three Hungarian Folksongs from Csik, was illuminated with the same clarity and incisive vividness.

  

A rare outing for Symphony No.34 in C major closed the evening. For every performance of the great C major symphony (No.41, or Jupiter), there should be at least one of this minor masterpiece. Its weaknesses, however, lay in just having three movements and lasting about 20 minutes, but Káli and his charges roared life into it as a matter of life and death. The martial-sounding first movement, aided by two trumpets and timpani, had the outsized pomp to mark the most momentous of occasions. Mellow strings, led by concertmaster Kong Zhao Hui, provided the symphony’s salve in its central slow movement but the high spirits returned for the finale’s Allegro vivace, now with the focus of attention on Rachel Walker and Carolyn Hollier’s pair of chattering oboes. This was the kind of performance which made one ponder, “Why don’t we hear enough of this?”  

 

Star Rating: *****

CANDLELIGHT CONCERTS: CHOPIN'S BEST WORKS / Li Churen, Piano / Review

CANDLELIGHT CONCERT:

CHOPIN’S BEST WORKS

Li Churen, Piano

Victoria Concert Hall

Friday (7 May 2021)

 

Whatever one might think of Fever’s Candlelight concerts, with its gimmicky placements of hundreds of smokeless electronic candles in concert venues, it has at least got the choice of performers right. The Vivaldi Four Seasons concerts engaged the more-than-acceptable Vocalise Quartet with a quite excellent Jocelyn Ng playing the violin solos. The bar was further raised with pianist Li Churen helming their Chopin recitals, unimaginatively called Chopin’s Best Works. Corny title aside, this Yong Siew Toh Conservatory alumnus with further degrees from Yale and Cambridge gave a best account possible for an hour of Chopin’s piano music.

 

Were these really Chopin’s best works? One might argue that moot point, but there was little denying the selections were fair representations of each genre of piano pieces which Chopin indulged in. There was one each of the nocturnes, waltzes, scherzos, impromptus, études, préludes and polonaises, but no mazurkas, ballades, rondos or sonata movements, but that is already a lot to pack in within 60 minutes.

    

To open with the Nocturne in E flat major (Op.9 No.2) was a no-brainer. Is there a more evocative work than this to convey the romance and mystique of night? Surrounded by candles, Li’s reading was one of tonal lustre and warmth, aided by judicious rubato and mastery of ornamentations. After a short address, the salon charms of Waltz in C sharp minor (Op.64 No.2, companion to the notorious “Minute” Waltz) was followed by a sequence in E major.  

Scherzo No.4 (Op.54) was an unexpected choice, the trickiest and most elusive of the four Scherzi, but Li nailed it with a combination of nimble fingers and mercurial wit. The popular “Tristesse” Étude in E major (Op.10 No.3) evinced tenderness before the little caprice of its central section gave way to a thunderous cascade in the thorniest and technically most difficult passage of all (completely avoided by the likes of Richard Clayderman). I am sorry even to bring up Clayderman, but Li totally showed that charlatan up, and everyone should know who is the real pianist.  

 

The next two works were enharmonically related: Fantasie-Impromptu in C sharp minor (Op.66) and Prélude in D flat major (Op.28 No.15). Digital brilliance alternating with pure lyricism reigned in the former while the latter reminded this listener less of falling raindrops but rather the gentle and constant flickering of candlelight. Little had I expected this outcome, but the visual element provided by the evening’s setting cannot be underestimated. The formal Chopin programme closed with Andante Spianato & Grande Polonaise Brillante (Op.22), the longest work on show. The nocturne-like introduction was beautifully voiced, later giving way to the vigorous dance of Polish nobility, coruscating from start to finish.

 

It was a great way to end, and Churen’s encore, an original work called Llama’s Land – beginning with a gentle waltz but gradually building up into a lively fantasy – showed her to be an excellent composer as well. Some years ago, I referred to her in a review as the “epitome of poise and polish”. Now let me now add “passion” to that list of superlatives.

 

Li Churen will perform at the Singapore International Piano Festival on Friday 4 June at Victoria Concert Hall, playing the music of Schumann, Ravel, George Crumb and an original composition inspired by J.S.Bach. Be sure not to miss it.    

http://www.sso.org.sg/sipf 

The National Gallery (Old Supreme Court)
looks great by "candlelight" too.

POLAND MAY 3RD CONSTITUTION DAY CONCERT / Review

POLAND MAY 3RD 

CONSTITUTION DAY CONCERT

Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre

Tuesday 4 May 2021

 

Imagine the feeling of surprise and pleasure to be invited by the Embassy of Poland in Singapore to attend an evening of Polish chamber music performed by Singaporean musicians. I had honestly never quite realised the close relationship between our city-state and the Eastern European powerhouse. For example, I did not know that Poland had donated ten thousand chicken eggs to the residents of Sembawang during last year’s Covid lockdown, nor was I aware of Singapore’s investments in the Baltic sea port of Gdansk. Thanks to HE Ambassador Magdalena Bogdziewicz and Alvin Tan, Singapore's minister-of-state for Culture, Youth, Information, Trade and Industry, in their respective speeches, I am that little bit wiser.       

 

Before the actual concert, Li Churen performed
on piano the national anthems of Singapore and Poland.

The concert was performed by a newly formed local trio of violinist Yang Shuxiang, cellist Leslie Tan and pianist Li Churen, all of whom have affiliation with the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music. Yang and Li are fairly recent graduates while the veteran Tan, founding member of the T’ang Quartet, is part of the faculty. Despite their age gaps spanning almost three decades, the threesome displayed rather good chemistry together, but more later.

 

The evening began with Chopin’s solo music, with Li performing the Waltz in C sharp minor (Op.64 No.2), displaying insouciance and rubato to equal measure, before letting rip in the Fantaisie-Impromptu (Op.66), dizzying fingers alternating with pure poetry in its lyrical centre. The solo segment was completed with the Andante Spianato & Grande Polonaise Brilliante (Op.22). The showstopper was given its due, with a nocturne-like introduction leading up to a fiery show of digital virtuosity. Churen has been engaged to perform in Fever’s Chopin By Candlelight recitals and this year’s Singapore International Piano Festival. The organisers really know their pianists.

 

Wieniawski’s Legende was given a passionate reading by violinist Yang and Li, opening with calm but smouldering disquiet before erupting into a full-throated rhapsody. Shuxiang is well-known for the wide breadth of his string tone, but his largesse did not come to fruition in the hall’s dryish and somewhat unflattering acoustics.

 

Leslie Tan’s instrument was cast in better light for two varied movements from Krzysztof Penderecki’s Suite for  Solo Cello. This is a largely tonal work, quite different from the recently departed composer’s  notorious Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima, but still retaining a spiky dissonance and acerbic quality. The Aria was more of a lament while the Scherzo taxed his limits of agility to the full. It was not easy listening but rewarding nonetheless for the emotional depth on display.

 

All three performers were united for the early Piano Trio (Op.1) by Sir Andrzej Panufnik (1914-1991) in three short movements. This was a student work, dating from 1934, when his personal musical voice had not fully formed. Eminently tonal and late Romantic in idiom, the first movement were redolent of Debussy or Ravel but not so impressionist. There was melodic interest in the central movement, albeit all-too-brief before heralding lively finale’s ostinato beat. Elements of Polish folk music come into play, and one is reminded of Szymanowski’s compositions influenced by his sojourns in the Tatra Mountains. This must certainly be the Singapore premiere of this very engaging work, and the trio members worked well together to make it spark.

 

You can hear it again when the Yang-Tan-Li trio perform a similar programme at the Singapore International Festival of Arts on 22 May at The Arts House.                     

MAHLER 4 LIVE! / Orchestra of the Music Makers / Review

MAHLER 4 LIVE!

Orchestra of the Music Makers

Esplanade Concert Hall

An edited version of this review was published in The Straits Times on 5 May 2021 with the title "A message of hope for an uncertain time".

 

It has been several years time since audiences in Singapore witnessed a performance of a Gustav Mahler symphony, the last being Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s rendition of the Second Symphony led by Shui Lan in January 2019. The Covid pandemic and circuit breaker has not helped, given the Austrian composer’s propensity for celestial lengths and large orchestras. But trust the Orchestra of Music Makers (OMM), Mahler specialist among local ensembles, to wangle three performances of his Fourth Symphony this weekend.

 

The Fourth is Mahler’s shortest and most lightly orchestrated symphony but does one really care? This is still Mahler, and any performance represented pandemic gold. And what about social distancing measures that limited groups to a maximum of 30 onstage performers? Not a problem, since German conductor Klaus Simon’s 2007 chamber arrangement of the symphony just required 23 players led by young  conductor Seow Yibin to accomplish.   

 

It was with these constraints that this mini-miracle transpired, much in the 1920s Viennese spirit of Arnold Schoenberg’s Society for Private Musical Performances, which undertook chamber readings of large orchestral works in intimate settings. Simon’s economical orchestration unusually included the accordion (played by Syafiqah ‘Adha Sallehin) and piano (Michael Huang) to support a small group of strings, winds (one person to a part) and two percussionists. Instead of being overawed, these forces worked like a charm.

 

Tinkling of sleigh bells opened the symphony with feathery lightness, and smooth strings later took over in establishing the first movement’s thematic and melodic interest. It was to conductor Seow’s credit that the pacing did not lag, and there were pivotal moments which piqued the ears, such as Miao Kaiwen’s clarinet solo which quoted the funereal trumpet call of Mahler’s next symphony, the tumultuous Fifth.

 

It was concertmaster Zhao Tian who starred in the second movement by alternating between two violins. One was tuned a tone higher to suggest “Death playing the fiddle”, thus provided an unnerving and somewhat macabre vibe to a seemingly innocuous Scherzo. The slow movement was the symphony’s heart, characterised by an ebb and flow of emotion that was truly moving. Again, it was the strings that did the heavy tugging.

 

The icing on the cake came when soprano Teng Xiang Ting, dressed in a blood red gown, emerged onstage to sing the finale’s strophic song Das Himmlischer Leben (The Heavenly Life). Its words, from Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Youth’s Magic Horn) by Arnim and Brentano, paint a child’s innocent vision of paradise. Her German was idiomatic and the depth of feeling engendered real and unforced, providing a blissful close to the symphony’s mere 55 minutes.

    

There were two rather apt vocal encores, first the satirical and comedic song Lob Des Hohen Verstandes (Praise Of Lofty Intellect), another Mahler setting on Wunderhorn songs, also quoted in his Fifth Symphony. Next, Richard Strauss’ Morgen! (Tomorrow!), revealed pure beauty in both concertmaster Zhao’s solo violin introduction and Teng’s entreaties. Its words, “Tomorrow the sun will shine again... and the stillness of happiness will sink upon us,” provide comfort and hope for an uncertain future.