HISTORY IN OUR MIDST: VICTORIA MEMORIAL HALL & VICTORIA THEATRE HISTORY GALLERY

If you happen to have ten minutes or so to spare (that's enough time within an intermission in any concert), take a look at the small but rather splendid History Gallery of Victoria Memorial Hall and Victoria Theatre. Located on the third floor of Victoria Concert Hall and easily accessible by lift, the gallery is not easy to miss.

In a space once occupied by music studios, a history of the twin performing spaces that is Victoria Memorial Hall and Victoria Theatre is lovingly recounted. There are brief write-ups and historical photos with annotations as well as a collection of memorabilia - old programmes, posters and leaflets which reveal a wealth of performance history that took place within those walls.

Polish artist Feliks Topolski's mural
Calvacade of the Commonwealth (1951)
has been returned to UK post-independence.

The Old Vic is deeply entwined with history from British colonial years, Second World War, Singapore's independence to the present state of the performing arts here. I took some time between halves of Braddell Heights Symphony Orchestra's 40th anniversary concert to pay a closer look to how VCH / VT came to be, and the historical forces and persons who helped make that happen.

One of Singapore's true musical pioneers,
Goh Soon Tioe (1911-1982)

Groups that livened Singapore's musical scene,
Goh Soon Tioe String Orchestra 
& Paul Abisheganaden's
Singapore Chamber Ensemble.

A multi-cultural Arts Festival held
months before Singapore's first general election
and commencement of internal self-governance.

Victoria Memorial Hall had a major renovation, completed in 1980, after which it was renamed Victoria Concert Hall and became the home of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Another round of major renovations took place in 2010-2014 to become the spanking new concert venue it is today.

The Old Vic in 1980, post-renovation.
Notice the now-expunged lift shaft behind
the clock tower and sealed-up posterior entrance.

SSO's founding fathers:
Goh Keng Swee and Choo Hoey

Autographed Yo-Yo Ma Gala Concert
with SSO from 1999.

Even young saxophonist Samuel Phua
has become part of VCH history.

Entrance to the history gallery is free of charge and is open during all concert evenings. 

VICTORIA CONCERT HALL 

& VICTORIA THEATRE

11 Empress Place #01-02

Singapore 179558

(Just take the lift to the 

3rd floor and turn right)

   

This Victoria Concert Hall & Victoria Theatre
souvenir paper-weight from the 2014
re-opening now sits on the desk of my office.

BRIDGES ACROSS THE SEA: SJ60 GALA CONCERT / Review

 

BRIDGES ACROSS THE SEA:

SJ60 GALA CONCERT

Lee Foundation Theatre,

Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

Monday (24 August 2026)

This review was published in The Straits Times on 27 August 2026 with the title "Young string talent shine in Japan-Singapore Youth Music Exchange gala concert".

Over four days of workshops, rehearsals and intense practice, 43 young string students from Singapore and Japan bonded in the Japan-Singapore Youth Music Exchange Programme. The Gala Concert, celebrating 60 years of friendship between two nations, was an enjoyable showcase of string music from Singapore, Japan and beyond.

Photo: Yong Junyi

Most of the works were conducted by programme director Yunosuke Yamamoto, former principal cellist of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, beginning with the Allegro first movement from Yasushi Akutagawa’s Triptyque for string orchestra. In this dramatic and mildly dissonant music, the players displayed much cohesion and togetherness, not least in the unison passages.

The ensemble turned capable accompanist for the two outer fast movements from J.S.Bach’s Concerto in D minor (BWV.1052). This work exists in versions for both violin and keyboard as soloists. Singaporean violinist Gabriel Lee, member of Red Dot Baroque, gave an accomplished reading of the first movement, while pianist Kyoko Koyama who fluently accounted for the finale seemed to shun the limelight by having the piano placed on the orchestra’s far left.

Photo: Yong Junyi

Singaporean conductor Tan Wee-Hsin, former Singapore Symphony Orchestra violist, led in the next two works. It seemed scarcely credible for an ensemble of such briefly acquainted players to gel so well in Edward Elgar’s familiar Serenade for Strings.

They created a rich and homogeneous sonority, aided by close to excellent intonation, with the Larghetto slow movement being particularly lush. The refinement and restraint displayed showed that the students had been well mentored by the exchange faculty, senior members who also performed in their ranks.

Composer Chen Zhangyi gets the plaudits.

Young Artist Award recipient Chen Zhangyi’s Istana Woodneuk received a performance in its all-string version, minus the percussion. Cellist Stanley Ngai and violinist Zanna Phua starred as Sultan Ibrahim and his Scottish Sultana Helen respectively in a romance whose parts were delightfully intertwined amid scoring of Malay rhythms and opulent string textures.

From L to R: Yoichi Yamashita,
Rebecca Oh, Nagane Mei & Dora Yang Rui
Photo: Yong Junyi

Next was a chance for eight violin soloists to strut their stuff in two movements from Antonio Vivaldi’s popular Concerto for four violins in B minor (RV.580). The audience was clearly entranced by the appearance of players with such great disparity of heights. Size mattered little in any case, as even the littlest among them - Dora Yong Rui, Esther Lim and Zhangming Xu - acquitted themselves very well.

From L to R: Takase Yusuke, Esther Lim,
Zhangming Xu & Saitoh Chika
Photo: Yong Junyi

The evening closed with arrangements of Japanese and local folksongs, including the earthy and vigorous fishing song Saitarabushi (arranged by Yamamoto) and Jinkli Sayang (arranged by Sulwyn Lok), the latter mashing up Jinkli Nona and Raya Sayang to ticklish effect.

Photo: Yong Junyi

The encore was Yamamoto’s lovely arrangement of the well-known Japanese song Lullaby of The Silk Tree (ねむの木のの子守歌, Nemunoki no Komoriuta), composed by his mother Masami in 1966. This touching setting of words by Empress Michiko was just the right balm to send everyone home with lightness in their hearts.

Photo: Yong Junyi

RANDOM HEARTLAND EATS: MEI LING MARKET & FOOD CENTRE

Mei Ling Market and Food Centre is located in the Queenstown housing development satellite town, not far away from the Margaret Avenue district. This is a popular and well-loved eating place which we have ignored far too long simply because it's not near enough to travel to as Commonwealth Crescent or Margaret Drive. 

That's just plain lazy on our part. Rediscovering it on a Sunday lunchtime saw it quite busy with many of its tables occupied. Clearly, it has been thriving in our absence. Interestingly, this is one market that has two chicken rice stalls named Sin Kee. We're just confused which is which, except we know the OG Sin Kee from Margaret Drive is gone, with the stall at Block 6 Holland Close being its spiritual successor.

Apparently, every Sin Kee chicken rice
stall has the adjective Famous appended,
much like Swee Kee chicken rice.

This is the $5 portion of chicken rice.

One Sin Kee had a long queue, and the other called Xin Ji Famous Chicken Rice (with Chinese characters for its name) was quiet. We skipped the lines and went for the latter. Run by a pleasant PRC Chinese lady, this Sin Kee was actually rather good. Just look at the photos, and we had absolutely no leftovers. One possible future Suka Makan project is to sample all the Sin Kees that exist in the Queenstown area.

Boiled cabbage side dish at $3

Dumpling soup at $5.50

MEI LING MARKET & FOOD CENTRE

Block 159 Mei Chin Road

Singapore 140159

PIANOMANIA'S 6 MILLIONTH VIEW!

As of sometime early this morning, Pianomania received its six millionth view! I am beside myself as the five millionth read took place earlier this month. Which means that more than 1.4 million views took place within the month of August alone. This is really nerdy, but I do take a count of what is being read.

Interestingly, posts on food have received more views than musical posts, and as I posted about more makan places in Singapore, the view count went up accordingly. Posts on art exhibitions have also been well received. However, this remains a musical blog, and all the concerts I have attended will be documented here, as well as the reviews published by The Straits Times (or not). 

Thank you for reading and sharing in my passions. More to follow! And here's a promise: I won't post anymore about Pianomania views until I've hit 10 million (which might be later this year or next).

SUKA MAKAN: KOON BAK KUT TEH & LAU SAN PRAWN NOODLE @ CHEONG CHIN NAM ROAD

Cheong Chin Nam Road is a stretch of shophouses, 95% occupied by restaurants, that runs parallel to Upper Bukit Timah Road just after the entrance to Beauty World MRT station. It occupies the landmark used to be called 7th Mile (or Chik Kor in Hokkien), which included the now-demolished Beauty World Market. There is a bewildering choice of restaurants, serving a wide range of cuisines. We settled for this outlet as it has two of our favourite hawker dishes, bak kut teh (meat bone tea soup) and prawn noodles.

One shop, two franchises

This place combines two franchises, Koon Bak Kut Teh and Lao San Prawn Noodles. The former has long existed on its own and has a deservedly good reputation. I had never heard of the latter, no big loss. Online Google reviews reported a horrendously rude PRC staff, but thankfully no such person fitting that description served us. She probably got the boot, so good riddance. 

The piping hot soup is refillable
whenever you run out.

Side dishes: pork belly & tau pok

Prawn mee pok with pork ribs
has just one small measly prawn!
The fish cake also has holes.

The bak kut teh soup was hot and peppery, with the pork slipping off the bone, how it should be. The prawn mee was a joke, only one small prawn sliced into two. The soup was just too salty. Lesson to learn for future visits: skip Lao San and stick with Koon.

Some history about Beauty World
and the Cheong family (no relation).

KOON BAK KUT TEH

& LAO SAN PRAWN NOODLE

10 Cheong Chin Nam Road

Singapore 599735

Koon Bak Kut Teh, Singapore - Bukit Timah - Restaurant Reviews, Phone Number & Photos - Tripadvisor