EVERYBODY LOVES A SOIREE: TAMPINES EDITION

It was not actually a soiree but a lunch, in the company of Lianhe Zaobao music journalist and recent Yong Siew Toh Conservatory graduate in Music Leadership Zhang Heyang and his guests. These included young composer Lim Kang Ning, Vinna Er of the Kris Foundation, and a pair of fiddlers called Brett Yang and Eddy Chen.

They may be the YouTube sensation TwoSet Violin, but they are as regular as regular blokes go, exactly in real life as they are on video. The fact that our host Heyang was at one time the Concertmaster of the National University of Singapore Symphony Orchestra (NUSSO) helped. He served up a feast of penne arrabiata, fried beehoon, fish head curry, har cheong kai, hae chor, washed down by some grog, bubble tea, and a tiramisu to end it all.

After that the music started, and here is the visual evidence (and without the sound).

TwoSet trying out
Heyang's violin.

Eddy plays Haydn's Serenade,
which is actually by Roman Hofstetter.

A segment of Mozart's
Sinfonia Concertante for violin & viola.

Schubert's Standchen with Brett.

Two violinists and one violin
in Shostakovich's Waltz No.2.

Laughing at TwoZhang's attempt
at Braga's Angel's Serenade.
After which we attempted the local
premiere of Lim Kang Ning's Colour Bar,
which was no joke.

A wefie before hitting the road!

STRAITS SERENADE / Singapore Symphony Orchestra Fundraising Gala Dinner

It's been ages since I was last invited to a Singapore Symphony Orchestra fundraising gala dinner. All thanks to musical philanthropist and serial Patron of The Arts award winner Kris Tan, I made a long-awaited appearance on Saturday 26 April 2025 at the grand ballroom of the Ritz Carlton. 

Having had to miss an all-Ravel piano recital which took place at the same time, this had to be something special. And it was. You don't often get to have dinner with celebrities like TwoSet Violin, Brett Yang and Eddie Chen. And they are as amusing in person as they are on YouTube. Over 1.4 million dollars was raised for the SSO this evening. And here are the incriminating photos. 

Cultural diplomacy at work.
TwoSet Violin meet with the Chinese ambassador
to Singapore. China promises not to invade Taiwan.

Lianhe Zaobao journalist Zhang Heyang
has a pic taken with TwoSet Violin.

And here's our table 29.

Main course: Fish or Beef?

Hobnobbing with more celebs:
Cellist Ng Pei-Sian, Ambassador Kishore Mahbubani,
Dr Geh Min, Geoffrey Yu & conductor Dedric Wong.

Kris Tan makes a bid for the expensive booze,
while TwoSet Violin ponder how much of
their budget they can afford to blow.

And the music started, with Associate Conductor
Rodolfo Barraez conducting the SSO.

Lau Wen Rong performed the finale
of Haydn's Trumpet Concerto.

TwoKong Violin:
Concertmaster Kong Zhaohui and his son
Kong Xianlong, who performed Nigel Hess.

The Singapore Symphony Children's Choir
sang Dick Lee's Home.

They also performed Why We Sing.

The dessert, complete with
an edible chocolate Merlion.

Here's a final photo with
Ong Shu Chen (Mrs David Loke), TwoSet Violin,
Kris Tan and Olga Isserlis (Steven's cousin).