Singapore Chinese Orchestra to Perform in Kuala Lumpur for First Time

The Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) has confirmed that it will perform in Kuala Lumpur for the first time, as part of the Titian Budaya Singapore cultural season in Kuala Lumpur which celebrates 50 years of Singapore-Malaysia bilateral ties.

Conducted by SCO Music Director Tsung Yeh, the Bridging Cultures concert will be held at 20:30 on 8 December 2015 at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas.

Featuring the winner of the first season of Singapore Idol Taufik Batisah, jazz pianist Jeremy Monteiro, Tok Dalang Eyo Hock Seng and wayang kulit group Kumpulan Sri Campuran, and tabla performer Jatinder Singh Bedi, the concert will present SCO’s unique Nanyang music and East-meets-West cross cultural programme to the audience in Malaysia.

Those in Singapore will get to watch a preview of the concert - Cross Cultural Extravaganza, at 20:00 on 28 November 2015 at the SCO Concert Hall.

The concert starts with Malaysian composer Simon Kong Su Leong’s award winning piece Izpirazione II – Rambutan which won the 2nd prize at the Singapore International Competition for Chinese Orchestral Competition (SICCOC) in 2006.

Well-known tabla performer, Jatinder Singh Bedi, will perform local composer and 1st prize winner of SICCOC 2006, Eric Watson’s Dialogue for Solo Tabla and Chinese Orchestra. Tabla is a percussion instrument that originated from India and plays a significant role in Hindustani classical and traditional music. With an added Indian music element to the concert, it reflects the diverse culture in Singapore and Malaysia.

Recipient of Singapore’s Cultural Medallion and well-known jazz pianist Jeremy Monteiro will perform with jazz drummer Tama Goh and SCO double bassist (jazz bassist) Frankie Lee in the rendition of Kelly Tang’s Montage: Three Movements for Jazz Piano & Chinese Orchestra. The blend of Chinese orchestral music with western jazz is one of the SCO’s unique East-meets-West style of music.

Known as the doyen of Singapore theatre, playwright Kuo Pao Kun has written more than 20 scripts during his career, where some has been translated to other languages and performed worldwide. Kuo Pao Kun was awarded the Cultural Medallion for his contribution to the Singapore’s theatre in 1990 and his renowned work The Silly Girl & The Funny Old Tree will be featured in this concert.

With music accompaniment composed and adapted by SICCOC 2006’s 3rd prize winner, Malaysian composer Yii Kah Hoe, Malaysia’s only Chinese ethnicity Tok Dalang Eyo Hock Seng and wayang kulit group, Kumpulan Sri Campuran, will world premiere this play in a wayang kulit and orchestra format. Two selected SCO musicians will perform with the Kumpulan Sri Campuran.

Pop idol, Taufik Batisah, will debut with SCO and sing songs of P. Ramlee in the finale of this concert. P. Ramlee was well-known in the Singapore and Malaysia film industry in the 1960s and 1970s and he was regarded as an icon of Malay entertainment in Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. Taufik Batisah will sing P. Ramlee’s famous works including Getaran Jiwa, Senjakala and Bila Mama Pakai Celana, which has been rearranged into a medley by composer Eric Watson.