THE SINGAPORE EXPERIENCE: Impressions of the National Piano and Violin Competition 2009 by BRYCE MORRISON

Bryce Morrison with a

rather familiar brand name.

The world-renowned music critic and authority on piano performance BRYCE MORRISON was in Singapore last December as one of the judges at the National Piano & Violin Competition 2009. Here are his impressions on his musical visit to the “Lion City”.

Your last visit to Singapore was over 15 years ago. How has Singapore changed since then?

I could hardly recognise anything. Everything in Singapore changes with a rapidity that is a testament to a people of astonishing energy and discipline.

You have judged in over 50 international piano competitions in the United Kingdom and worldwide. Do you ever tire of this activity?

The answer is no. The minute you hear genuine quality or calibre (and sometimes you have to wait a long time for that minute!) it is like the sun coming out; a moment of musical and poetic revelation.

With young prize-winning pianists of NPVC 2009.

The National Piano & Violin Competition in Singapore featured a record 215 pianists heard in the space of one week. Pianists were grouped under 4 categories: Junior, Intermediate, Senior and Artist. In which of these did you see the most potential?

Great potential and more than potential in all four categories. Naturally, the standard varied, indeed dipped and soared wildly, but the challenge of listening to such an array of talent was rarely less than stimulating, ofton moving and sometimes deeply satisfying.

Li Zhen takes a bow

after her winning Liszt Piano Concerto No.1

Were there any performances that particularly touched you?

Many, but I should like to single out Amanda Lee Yun Yee (Junior category). Her performance of Chopin's F minor Waltz in particular showed a freshness and instinct for poetry astonishing in so young a pianist. Also Li Zhen (Artist category, above) whose expressive beauty in Brahms Fantasy Pieces (Op.116) was as remarkable as her unfaltering confidence, accuracy and glitter in her first prize winning Liszt First Piano Concerto. Her performance of the Second Intermezzo from the Brahms was the highlight of the entire competition for me. Special mention, too, for Shaun Choo Yung Sheng for his enviably stylish and brilliant performance of Chopin's 24 Préludes (Op.28). There were, of course, many other instances of major talent, but these performances left an indelible impression that has stayed with me long after the event.

Asian pianists have been accused of being “all fingers, no tradition and no soul”. Was this the case here in Singapore?

There are indeed many examples of this sort of limitation. But as I have pointed out above, there are always exceptions to such a crude generalisation. True, I found instances of 'forced feeding' the result of over-ambitious and sometimes perverse teaching, but the general impression in Singapore was awe-inspiring.

The piano jury: Bryce Morrison,

Rae de Lisle and Logan Skelton (from L)

What was your relationship with the other judges like? Were there any battle royales between the three of you?

I was blessed to have such sympathetic jury colleagues. Even in moments of rare disagreement the terms of the disagreement were always understandable (Never was there, "You think that is great, and I think it is awful.") As on all these occasions I feared sudden dissent, only to find ourselves in such harmony, accord and once more on the level. There were no battle royals; very disappointing!

Literally conducting a masterclass.

What do you look for in young pianists in your masterclasses? What are the most important messages you like them to take home? What can be done to help young Asian pianists go beyond merely mastering the notes?

A secure technical foundation that allows them freedom to express themselves. As Rudolf Serkin(a great if hardly natural pianist) once said, "You can never have enough technique." I also look for - to put it simply- a sheer joy in music making, a natural love rather than fear of the concert platform expressed in an imaginative, daring and individual artistry. This is something very different to imitation or the parrot-like repetition of a teacher's ideas.

What are your suggestions to improve the running and standard of this competition?

It was a hectic and intense two weeks, sometimes too intensive to make for realistic and accurate listening. I think you could cut down the numbers by having a preliminary round before the competition commences in earnest.

Pianomaniacs in Malacca

at the ruins of St Paul's Church.

Amid the busyness, did you get to do any sightseeing?

As much as time allowed - Singapore Zoo, Sentosa and Malacca (above). So much to think about, the entire experience often humbling and enriching.

NATIONAL PIANO / VIOLIN COMPETITION 2009 Grand Finals / Review

NATIONAL PIANO & VIOLIN COMPETITION 2009
Grand Finals
Victoria Concert Hall
Sunday (13 December 2009)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 15 December 2009.

This year’s edition of the National Piano & Violin Competition drew a record number of entries: 215 for piano and 106 for violin. Thankfully quality rose in equal measure with quantity, and often surpassed it. The grand finals featured the best in the Artist categories, and a 4-hour-long concert with six concertos (three each for violin and piano) partnered by the indefatigable Singapore Festival Orchestra conducted by Chan Tze Law ensued.

Winners of the NPVC Artist category:

Li Zhen & Zhao Meng Chan (from L)

Photo: The Straits Times

Two artists emerged head and shoulders above the rest. Violinist Zhao Meng Chan (China), from the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, had the most natural way with Sibelius’ ruggedly hewn Violin Concerto in D minor. He ran the full gamut of emotions, cutting through swathes of orchestral sound with a searing intensity that went beyond superficial brilliance. His brand of dare-devilry, coupled with an unusual charisma, suggests he is ready to walk onto any world platform.

Zhao was the undisputed first prizewinner, edging out Wendy Toh (Singapore), whose version of the same concerto was well-disciplined, textbook-perfect and ultimately safe. Her exercise in good taste had to be content with third place, trailing behind Du Shuaili (China), whose free-spirited, wild and wayward stabs at Dvorak’s folksy Violin Concerto in A minor threatened to derail the proceedings on more than a few occasions.

On the piano, Shaun Choo (Singapore, left), who studies in Salzburg, cut the most elegant and aristocratic figure. His Rachmaninov Second Piano Concerto was a wonder in self-restraint and control, erupting into full-blown passion and unabated poetry right when the music demanded it. His expansive vistas in the slow movement which spoke of love and regret, contrasted with of the febrile excitement of outer movements, was easily the evening’s revelation.

Choo’s relegation to third place will be a cause celebré for time to come, but that should not diminish the achievements of Maria Immaculata Setiadi (Indonesia) and Li Zhen (China), both Conservatory students, who finished second and first respectively. Both punched way above their weight in Liszt’s fearsome concertos, exulting in salvoes of octaves while delicately filling in the pretty bits. It was Li in the First Piano Concerto in E flat major who packed in the tauter and more exciting performance than Setiadi, who was slightly less immaculate in the Second Concerto in A major.

Controversy is the stuff of musical competitions worldwide. However winners and also-rans can always remind themselves that true artistry is not a horse race, but a lifelong quest.

AZARIAH TAN wins 1st Prize in National Piano Competition (Senior Category)

Azariah Tan Peng Chay has been awarded 1st prize in the Senior category of the Singapore National Piano Competition 2009. A student of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, 18-year-old Azariah was diagnosed to have progressive sensorineural hearing loss since early childhood and uses hearing aids while performing.

His showings in the competition were marked by intensely musical performances of Chopin's Scherzo No.2 in B flat minor (Op.31), Beethoven's Sonata in B flat major (Op.22), two Scarlatti sonatas, Rachmaninov's Prélude in E flat major (Op.23 No.6) and Liszt's Rigoletto Paraphrase. What was remarkable: his ability to vary tonal colour and shades within a single phrase, and always making the music sing.

In the finals held on Friday (11 December), the clarity displayed in the Rigoletto quartet - melody in the left hand so evenly balanced with filigree on the right hand - was simply amazing. In the first movement of Chopin's First Piano Concerto (accompanied on second piano by his teacher Albert Tiu), he played as if his life depended on it. There were no superficial or glib statements (so often heard in competitions of this sort), only the live-for-the-moment kind of musicianship which stands out like a beacon through expanses of darkness.

If there were a local version of Japanese Nobuyuki Tsujii's win at the 2009 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, this is it! Azariah's talent is a miracle of God, a story of courage against all odds and adversity beyond comparison.

SINGAPORE NATIONAL PIANO / VIOLIN COMPETITION 2009

The National Piano & Violin Competition 2009 has begun, with the quarter, semi-final rounds held at Yong Siew Toh Conservatory (piano) and Esplanade Recital Studio (violin). The National Arts Council reports a record number of entries, 321 in total, including 215 for piano and 106 for violin. A sign that serious music-making by young people in Singapore is progressing at a more than rudely healthy pace.

The Steinway Grand at the

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory.

The Piano Artist Competition already looks like a mini-international piano competition. There are a record 42 participants, including Singaporeans and names from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, China, Taiwan, Korea and Ukraine!

Masterclasses by the members of the jury will take place at the Young Musicians Society (Waterloo Street) on Saturday (12 December 2009). Jurors include: Rae de Lisle, Bryce Morrison & Logan Skelton (piano), Kam Ning, Dong-Suk Kang & Walter Verdehr (violin).

The Grand, Grand Finals on Sunday (13 December 2009) afternoon is going to be a marathon music-making session, likely to last some six hours (!!!) from 2 pm to 8 pm at Victoria Concert Hall. It will include six concerto performances (3 violin concertos & 3 piano concertos) with the Singapore Festival Orchestra conducted by Chan Tze Law, and solo performances from the winners of the junior, intermediate and senior categories for both piano & violin. Shades of Beethoven's Vienna 1808 super-concert!

Reviews of the grand finals and piano competition sessions will be posted later. In the meanwhile, enjoy the music! All tickets available at SISTIC.