LAN SHUI Music Director
subscription concert
SCHEHERAZADE • KARI KRIIKKU 20 January 2018 Esplanade Concert Hall Performing Home of the SSO
Sponsored by
Lim Yau, conductor Kari Kriikku, clarinet
Empowering lives. Nurturing communities.
We believe in building a sustainable future with the community – wherever we operate. In more than 30 countries, we reach out and give back through lending a hand to the needy and under-privileged, promoting education, caring for the environment as well as cultivating appreciation of the arts. We make it a part of our business to lay the foundation for a brighter future, one upon which successive generations will thrive.
Keppel Corporation Limited 1 HarbourFront Avenue #18-01 Keppel Bay Tower Singapore 098632 I www.kepcorp.com
20 Jan 2018, Sat
SCHEHERAZADE • KARI KRIIKKU Singapore Symphony Orchestra Lim Yau, conductor
NIKOLAI Scheherazade, Op. 35 42’00 RIMSKY-KORSAKOV 1. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship 2. The Tale of the Kalendar Prince 3. The Young Prince and the Princess 4. Festival at Baghdad; The Sea; The Ship Goes to Pieces on a Rock Surmounted by a Bronze Warrior; Conclusion Intermission 20’00
KIMMO HAKOLA
Clarinet Concerto (Singapore Premiere) 40’00
1. 2. 3. 4.
Introduzione: Allegretto pomposo – Allegro con fuoco – Cadenza – Allegretto maestoso Hidden Songs: Adagio amoroso – Adagietto amoroso – Adagio amoroso – Andante amoroso Allegro farara Khasene: Andante; rubato – Allegro
Kari Kriikku, clarinet
Kari Kriikku will sign autographs in the stalls foyer after the concert.
Concert duration: 2 hrs Go green. Digital programme booklets are available on www.sso.org.sg. Scan the QR code in the foyer to view a copy.
S ing a p or e S y mp hon y Or c he s t r a ‘A fine display of orchestral bravado for the SSO and Shui’ The Guardian
Since its founding in 1979, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) has been Singapore’s flagship orchestra, touching lives through classical music and providing the heartbeat of the cultural scene in the cosmopolitan city-state. In addition to its subscription series concerts, the orchestra is well-loved for its outdoor and community appearances, and its significant role educating the young people of Singapore. The SSO has also earned an international reputation for its orchestral virtuosity, having garnered sterling reviews for its overseas tours and many successful recordings. The SSO makes its performing home at the 1,800-seat state-of-the-art Esplanade Concert Hall. More intimate works and all outreach and community performances take place at the
673-seat Victoria Concert Hall, the home of the SSO. The orchestra performs 100 concerts a year, and its versatile repertoire spans alltime favourites and orchestral masterpieces to exciting cutting-edge premieres. Bridging the musical traditions of East and West, Singaporean and Asian musicians and composers are regularly showcased in the concert season. This has been a core of the SSO’s programming philosophy from the very beginning under Choo Hoey, who was Music Director from 1979 to 1996. Since Lan Shui assumed the position of Music Director in 1997, the SSO has performed in Europe, Asia and the United States. In May 2016 the SSO was invited to perform at the Dresden Music Festival and the Prague Spring International Music Festival. This successful five‑city tour of
Germany and Prague also included the SSO’s return to the Berlin Philharmonie after six years. In 2014 the SSO’s debut at the 120th BBC Proms in London received critical acclaim in the major UK newspapers The Guardian and Telegraph. The SSO has also performed in China on multiple occasions. Notable SSO releases under BIS include a Rachmaninov series, a “Seascapes” album, two Debussy discs “La Mer” and “Jeux”, and the first-ever cycle of Tcherepnin’s piano concertos and symphonies. The SSO has also collaborated with such great artists as Lorin Maazel, Charles Dutoit, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Neeme Järvi, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Diana Damrau, Lang Lang, Yo-Yo Ma, Janine Jansen, Leonidas Kavakos and Gil Shaham.
L IM YA U conductor
Lim Yau’s status as Singapore’s preeminent conductor is underpinned by a distinguished and enduring career. As Associate Conductor in the pioneering years of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, he has popularised the orchestra concert through the Familiar Favourites series and outreach concert series from 2001 to 2011 as its Resident Conductor. Soloists he has collaborated with include Sumi Jo, MarcAndré Hamelin, Steven Osbourne, Dmitri Makhtin, Isabelle Moretti and Simon Preston, among others. As Music Director of Singapore Lyric Opera (1997-2001), he conducted many new productions, from Britten’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream to the world premiere of Leong Yoon Pin’s Bunga Mawa. He had also made frequent appearances with the Singapore Dance Theatre, in particular Prokofiev’s Cinderella and Stravinsky’s Les Noces. In 2012, he conducted the acclaimed Anton Juan’s production of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly at the Cultural Centre of the Philippines. During Lim Yau’s long association with the Singapore Symphony Chorus (1980-2017), choral concerts have become a highly anticipated feature in the SSO concert seasons. Going beyond standard repertory, the Chorus has distinguished itself with Singapore premieres of masterpieces like Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast, Hindemith’s Requiem, Britten’s War Requiem, James Macmillan’s Seven Last Words from the Cross, and Arvo Pärt’s Te Deum. In addition, The Philharmonic Chamber Choir Singapore (TPCC) which he founded in 1994 is Singapore’s flagship chamber choir. TPCC was awarded First Prize in the 19th Béla Bartók International Choir Competition, Debrecen, Hungary, and has had the distinction of having performed alongside the Tokyo Philharmonic Chorus, the oldest professional choir in Asia, at Tokyo Opera City. On the international front Lim Yau has guest conducted orchestras in Europe and Asia. As Principal Guest Conductor (1993-1997) of the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, he has recorded under the Marco Polo and Naxos labels.
Lim Yau’s unwavering commitment to pushing boundaries of concert presentations has manifested in various pioneering projects with The Philharmonic Orchestra (TPO), Singapore, which he founded in 1998. These include several symphony cycles such as those by Schumann, Sibelius and Beethoven (with which TPO presented for the second time in 2017 for its 15th anniversary celebrations). Upcoming highlights include an all Takemitsu production with The Arts Fission Company, following their successful collaboration in 2013 with Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring — A People’s Stravinsky. Lim Yau graduated from the Royal College of Music and Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and had the privilege of working under mentors like Sergiu Celibidache and Franco Ferrara. For his sterling contribution to music in Singapore, Lim Yau was awarded the Cultural Medallion in 1990, and was conferred the Lifetime Achievement Award by COMPASS in 2011. Lim Yau is currently Dean and Director of Orchestra and Chorus at NAFA School of Music.
K a r i K r iikku clarinet
A champion of contemporary music, Kari Kriikku has more recently looked to an intimate-sized ensemble for new additions to his repertoire. With Quattour Diotima, he premiered Kaija Saariaho’s Figura at the 2016 Venice Biennale Festival and 2017 Présence Festival, Paris. In 2017/18 he performs Michel van der Aa’s Hysterisis with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Tung-Chieh Chuang. Written for small ensemble and electronics, he has premiered this work with the Lapland Chamber Orchestra under John Storgårds and the Amsterdam Sinfonietta in Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw Hall, with a subsequent recording. The 2017/18 season will also see Kriikku with the MDR Leipzig Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Slovenia Philharmonic of Llubljana, Loepolinum Orchestra of Wroclaw’s National Forum of Music and Tampere Philharmonic. He will work under the batons of Kazuki Yamada, John Storgårds, Joseph Swensen, Clemens Schuldt, Olari Elts amongst others. Kaija Saariaho’s D’OM LE VRAI SENS received its premiere with the Finnish Radio Symphony and Sakari Oramo, and Kriikku most recently performed the work with the New York Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen, as well as the Swedish Radio Symphony and Susanna Mälki. Other highlights include performances of Kimmo Hakola’s colourful concerto with Semyon Bychkov, and Magnus Lindberg’s concerto premiered at London’s 2007 BBC Proms with BBC Symphony and Bychkov. Kriikku has recorded all these works for Ondine including Jukka Tiensuu’s Missa with the Helsinki Philharmonic and John Storgårds. Lindberg’s Clarinet Concerto recording was nominated in the 2006 Gramophone Awards and the new Saariaho work with Finnish Radio Symphony and Sakari Oramo won the Jury’s Award at the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2013. Kari Kriikku’s musical inventiveness and fresh attitude towards traditional performances not only as a soloist and commissioner of new music, but also as Artistic Director of Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, were recognised in 2009 when he received the prestigious Nordic Council Music Prize.
Cambridge IGCSE and International A Level programmes for students aged 12 to 18 Our curriculum is focused on applied learning in STEM and the Humanities to develop your child into a Curious Learner, Community Builder and Creative Leader. Find out more at www.simacademy.edu.sg
www.simacademy.edu.sg
SSO MU SICIAN S Lan Shui Music Director joshua tan Associate Conductor jason lai Associate Conductor andrew litton Principal Guest Conductor Choo Hoey Conductor Emeritus Eudenice Palaruan Choral Director
FIRST VIOLIN Igor Yuzefovich° Concertmaster, The GK Goh Chair Lynnette Seah Co-Concertmaster Kong Zhao Hui* Associate Concertmaster Chan Yoong-Han Fixed Chair Cao Can* Chen Da Wei Duan Yu Ling Foo Say Ming Gu Wen Li Jin Li Cindy Lee Sui Jing Jing Karen Tan William Tan Wei Zhe SECOND VIOLIN Michael Loh Associate Principal Hai-Won Kwok Fixed Chair Nikolai Koval*
Lee Shi Mei^ Long Xiang^ Chikako Sasaki* Margit Saur Shao Tao Tao Lillian Wang Wu Man Yun* Xu Jue Yi* Ye Lin* Yeo Teow Meng Yin Shu Zhan* Zhang Si Jing* VIOLA Zhang Manchin Principal Guan Qi Associate Principal Gu Bing Jie* Fixed Chair Marietta Ku Luo Biao Julia Park Shui Bing Tan Wee-Hsin Janice Tsai Wei Jun-Ting^ Yang Shi Li Yeo Jan Wea^ CELLO Ng Pei-Sian Principal Yu Jing Associate Principal Guo Hao Fixed Chair Chan Wei Shing Song Woon Teng Wang Yan Wang Zihao* Wu Dai Dai Zhao Yu Er DOUBLE BASS Guennadi Mouzyka Principal Yang Zheng Yi Associate Principal Karen Yeo Fixed Chair Olga Alexandrova Ma Li Ming^ Jacek Mirucki Wang Xu
FLUTE Jin Ta Principal Evgueni Brokmiller Associate Principal Roberto Alvarez Miao Shanshan PICCOLO Roberto Alvarez Assistant Principal
Marc-Antoine Robillard Associate Principal Mindy Chang^ Kartik Alan Jairamin TRUMPET Jon Paul Dante Principal David Smith Associate Principal Lau Wen Rong Sergey Tyuteykin
OBOE Rachel Walker Principal Pan Yun Associate Principal Carolyn Hollier Elaine Yeo
TROMBONE
COR ANGLAIS
BASS TROMBONE
Elaine Yeo Associate Principal
Wang Wei Assistant Principal
CLARINET
TUBA
Ma Yue Principal Li Xin Associate Principal Liu Yoko Tang Xiao Ping
Hidehiro Fujita Principal
BASS CLARINET Tang Xiao Ping Assistant Principal
Allen Meek Principal Damian Patti Associate Principal Samuel Armstrong
TIMPANI Christian Schiøler Principal Jonathan Fox Associate Principal PERCUSSION
Tamotsu Fujita^ Principal Liu Chang Associate Principal Christoph Wichert Zhao Ying Xue
Jonathan Fox Principal Mark Suter Associate Principal Derek Koh^ Lim Meng Keh Mizuki Morimoto^ Zhu Zheng Yi
CONTRA BASSOON
HARP
Zhao Ying Xue Assistant Principal
Gulnara Mashurova Principal
BASSOON
HORN Han Chang Chou Principal Gao Jian Associate Principal Jamie Hersch Associate Principal
*With deep appreciation to the Rin Collection for their generous loan of string instruments. °Igor Yuzefovich plays an instrument generously loaned by Mr & Mrs G K Goh ^Musician on temporary contract Musicians listed alphabetically by family name rotate their seats on a per programme basis.
u p comi n g con c ert s
26 JANUARY 2018
Fri | 7.30pm Esplanade Concert Hall SUBSCRIPTION CONCERT
SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE WALTON Viola Concerto BERLIOZ Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 Kazushi Ono, conductor Zhang Manchin, viola
3 FEBRUARY 2018
Sat | 7.30pm Esplanade Concert Hall SUBSCRIPTION CONCERT
SHOSTAKOVICH CELLO CONCERTO NARONG PRANGCHAROEN Phenomenon SHOSTAKOVICH Cello Concerto No. 2 in G major, Op. 126 DVORÁK Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60 Carlos Kalmar, conductor Jan Vogler, cello
A S ta nding Ovat ion to our Donor s a nd Sp on s or s PATRON SPONSOR
Tote Board Group (Tote Board, Singapore Pools & Singapore Turf Club) $900,000 and above
Temasek Foundation Nurtures CLG Ltd Mr and Mrs Goh Yew Lin $100,000 and above
Christopher Ho & Rosy Ho Anonymous Far East Organization Lee Foundation Singapore Interchem Pte Ltd $50,000 and above
Singapore Press Holdings Limited John Swire & Sons (S.E. Asia) Pte Ltd Kingsmen Exhibits Pte Ltd Anonymous Anonymous Aquilus Pte Ltd G K Goh Holdings Limited NSL Ltd
$20,000 and above Holywell Foundation Limited Keppel Care Foundation Kris Foundation Mr and Mrs Goh Geok Khim Joseph Grimberg Eugene Lai Chin Look Ms Paige Parker and Mr Jim Rogers Stephen Riady Group of Foundations Clarinda Tjia-Dharmadi Martin United Overseas Bank Limited UPP Holdings Limited
Mr and Mrs Wong Ngit Liong Mr and Mrs Tan Vern Han Ho Ching Lee Theng Kiat Christina Ong Petrochemical Corporation of Singapore Pte Ltd Pontiac Land Group Saga Tree Capital Advisors Pte Ltd Tan Chin Tuan Foundation Geoffrey Wong & Ai Ai Wong Yong Ying-I
$10,000 and above Irene Tedja Dr and Mrs Thomas Zuellig Foundation Prince Albert II of Monaco Allen & Gledhill LLP Santa Lucia Asset Management Pte Ltd Credit Suisse AG, Singapore ABRSM Su Pin and Mervin Beng Anonymous At-Sunrice GlobalChef Academy Pte Ltd Maisy Koh and Dr Beh Swan Gin BinjaiTree Prof Chan Heng Chee Chan Wing Cheng Pauline Chan and Jean Nasr Anonymous Choo Chiau Beng DBS Bank Limited Andress Goh Lai Yan Amy and Kevin Gould Harpreet K. Bedi and Satinder S. Garcha Hi-P International Limited Hong Leong Foundation Kai S. Nargolwara Lee Ming San
LGT Bank (Singapore) Ltd Liew Wei Li Anonymous Lito and Kim Camacho Liu Chee Ming Anonymous Olivia Lum Marina Bay Sands Pte Ltd Devika and Sanjiv Misra Nomura Asset Management Singapore Ltd One North Capital Pte Ltd David Ong Eng Hui OSIM International Limited PSA International Private Limited Resorts World at Sentosa Pte Ltd Santosa Handojo Doris and Andreas Sohmen-Pao Tan Choo Leng Tan Kong Piat (Pte) Limited Kim Teo Poh Jin Thomas Teo Van Cleef and Arpels Christine Yeh Yong Pung How
$5,000 and above David Lim Juliana and Clemente Benelli Prof Arnoud De Meyer Chartered Asset Management Private Limited Marie Elaine Teo Ms Manju Vangal and Mr Arudra Vangal Sharon Chandran AIA Singapore Private Limited Odile & Douglas Benjamin Dorothy Chan Chng Hak-Peng Lionel Choi Electrolux S.E.A. Pte Ltd F & N Foods Pte Ltd
Fullerton Fund Management Company Ltd Goh Geok Ling Ross & Florence Jennings AndrĂŠ Klein Prof and Mrs Lim Seh Chun Lin Diaan-Yi Loke Cheng Kim Foundation Anonymous Poh Beng Swee Mr & Dr Peter Sheren Dr Gralf Sieghold Taizo Son Ms Tan Sook Yee
$1,000 and above Thorsten Walther Johanes Oeni Christian Rothenbuehler Jullie Kan Anonymous Mr and Mrs Leong Wah Kheong nTan Corporate Advisory Pte Ltd Anonymous Schroder Investment Management (Singapore) Ltd Dr Tan Chin Nam Eric Wong Ronald and Janet Stride William H Hernstadt Michelle Loh Kanti Bajpai Lawrence Basapa Cynthia Chee Bin Eng Patrick Chong Chong Siak Ching Dr and Mrs Choy Khai Meng Fong Ei Lie Daniel Harel and Laurence Harel Mr & Mrs Winston Hauw Guy J P Hentsch Ho Soo Foo Judy Hunt Khoo Boon Hui Paterson Lau & Pauline Tan Leong Yoke Chun Leow Oon Geok Dr Ng Eng Hen and Prof Ivy Ng Lim Eng Neo Anonymous Prive Clinic Pte Ltd Jonathan Reiter Bernard Jean Sabrier Peter Seah See Tho Kai Yin Dr Adrian Saurajen Anonymous Ivy Teh Whang Tar Liang Kris Wiluan Lucien Wong Xeitgeist Entertainment Group Pte Ltd David & Catherine Zemans Electronics & Engineering Pte Ltd Jennie Chua Kim Woon Soo Shih Chih-Lung Dr Christopher Chen Adya Elizabeth Sunindar Gianluca Castaldi D'Isidoro Eddy Gael Bomblian Coutte Didier Pauline Ang Hooi Yeong Cambridge Therapeutics Pte Ltd Carmichael Heather Connie Chaird Sally Chy High Notes Music Solutions Bobby Chin Tracey Chu Gajardo Eugenia Aaron Hardy
Ho Soh Choon JW Central Pte Ltd Jean Yip Salon Pte Ltd Peggy Kek Tommy Koh Kwa Chong Seng Kenneth Mark Lai Lau Leok Yee Lau Kheng Tiong Anonymous Dr Norman Lee Anonymous Lek Lee Yong Lim Swee Lin Betty Lim & Ng Yi-Kheong Lim Lay Min Lin John Hsu Richard Low Ng Pei-Sian Ong Lee Fong Sheila Patel Robin Ian Rawlings Sara Taseer Fine Jewellery Pte Ltd Michael Schlesinger Dr Ho Ching Lin (SNEC) Richard Smith Wan Pong Liang Wee Joo Yeow Wee Kok Wah Kevin Wong Willam Wong Aznan Abu Bakar Ang Seow Long Cees & Raife Armstrong Marcie Ann Ball Bao Zhiming John & Eliza Bittleston Chai Huei Chuen Chan Ah Khim Chan Wai Leong Richard Chen Cheng Wei Margaret Chew Sing Seng Evelyn Rachel Chin Shang Thong Kai and Tiffany Choong Jennie Chua Kheng Yeng Barry Duncan Clarke John S Davison Maureen Derooij Jamie Lloyd Evans Irina Francken Christopher John Fussner Brian Holt Gambrill Goh Chiu Gak Goh Sze Wei Jerry Gwee Mark Edward Hansen Liwen Holmes Matthew G Johnson Khor Cheng Kian Belinda Koh Yuh Ling Takashi Kousaka Lai Kim Peng Mitchell Anonymous Vincent Lam Ho Ming Matthew Latham Eugene Lee
Lee Li-Ming Madeleine Lee Lee Peck Gee Lee Shu Yen Siong Ted Lee Leong Keng Hong Xiao Li Bettina Lieske Alvin Liew Liew Geok Cheng Mavis Lim Geck Chin Lim Hong Eng Janet Ling Yu Fei Stuart Liventals Jeffrey Loke Sin Hu Victor Loo Low Boon Hon Donny Low Low Fatt Kin Benjamin Ma Eunice Mah Li Lien Adelina Mah Li Ting Andre Maniam Gillian Metzger Izumi Miyake Joseph Mocanu Kathleen Moroney Mr & Mrs Willem Mark Nabarro David Neo Chin Wee Todd On Enhao Reuben Ong Herve Pauze Timothy Pitrelli Anonymous Anonymous Derek Quah Allyson Rameker Charles Robertson Andreas Ruschkowski Bernard Jean Sabrier Arend Schumacher Naoyoshi Nick Shimoda Jeremy Snoad Bernhard Steiner Bo Sun Tan Boon Ngee Tan Kok Huan Tan Kok Kiong Anonymous Ivan Tan Meng Cheng Giles Tan Ming Yee Tan Wee Kheng Kenneth Michael Daniel Tando Teo Ee Peng Tian Xiaoye Mr & Mrs Neil Tottman Michiel van Selm Peter White & Ong Yaw Hwee Wong Liang Keen Wu Peichan Valerie Satoru Yano Annie Yeo Vanessa Yeo
This list is for donations from 1 Jan 2017 to 31 Dec 2017.
Supporting the Local Arts and Cultural Scene Partner of SSO since 1978 NSL is a long-standing sponsor for Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO). We have been instrumental in helping the Orchestra reach out to the community-at-large as SSO brings music to the world. A leading industrial group in the Asia Pacific with businesses in Precast & Prefabricated Bathroom Unit and Environmental Services, NSL believes that while achieving business goals is important, its actions need to also create a positive impact on the community, environment and all stakeholders.
NSL LTD 77 Robinson Road #27-00 Robinson 77 Singapore 068896 Tel: 6536 1000 I Fax: 6536 1008 I www.nsl.com.sg
NIKOL AI RIM SK Y- KOR S A KOV (18 4 4 -19 0 8) Scheherazade, Op. 35
42’00
1. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship Largo e maestoso — Allegro non troppo 2. The Tale of the Kalendar Prince Lento — Andantino — Allegro molto — Vivace scherzando 3. The Young Prince and the Princess Andantino quasi allegretto 4. Festival at Baghdad; The Sea; The Ship Goes to Pieces on a Rock Surmounted by a Bronze Warrior; Conclusion Allegro molto — Vivo — Allegro non troppo e maestoso — Tempo come I The two hundred or so dramatically linked stories that constitute the Thousand and One Nights (or Arabian Nights) originated in Eastern lands centuries ago. The stories were handed down over the years and embroidered by each storyteller in his or her own fashion. A raconteuse named Scheherazade provided a convenient framework on which to drape a rich and colourful tapestry of these stories, folk tales, poems and dramatic narratives. In the form she related them, we are indebted to the misogynistic Persian King Shahriar. Having been outraged by his faithless wife, Shahriar resolved to avenge himself on the entire female population of his city. Each night he would marry a beautiful young woman, only to kill her the following day. After some time, a girl of exceptional charm, wit and intelligence came forward with a plan to end this reign of terror. She offered herself to the King as his next bride, and the King gladly accepted, though he warned her that she would die on the following day. When bedtime approached, the girl began to relate an enthralling story to the King, but broke off just at the most exciting part, with a promise to continue the next day. The King postponed her execution so as to hear the outcome of this story, but the girl repeated her tactic the following night, and the night after that to a total of a thousand nights. By this time, she had borne him a son, the King had come to love her, and he finally renounced his categorical hatred of women. The Queen had in the meantime won the love and gratitude of the people as well, and they named her Scheherazade, which means “Savior of the City”.
Wondrous to hear were Scheherazade’s marvelous tales of intrigue and adventure set in exotic lands. Rimsky-Korsakov, with his masterful ability to exploit dazzling orchestral colours and sonorities, was just the composer to set these tales to music. Scheherazade, his four-movement “narrative” of scenes from the Arabian Nights, was written during the summer of 1888 and first performed in St. Petersburg on 22 October with the composer conducting. “My aversion for the seeking of a too definite programme in my composition,” wrote Rimsky-Korsakov, “led me [in the new edition] to do away with all those hints of it which had lain in the headings of each movement. … In composing Scheherazade, I meant these hints to direct but slightly the hearer’s fancy on the path which my own fancy had traveled, and to leave more minute and particular conceptions to the will and mood of each listener.” Since Rimsky-Korsakov wished each listener to imagine his or her own kaleidoscope of fairy-tale images and designs of Oriental fantasy, there is little to be gained by trying to match the music with specific stories. Likewise, a lengthy description of each movement would serve little purpose; the individual imagination must be free to roam. Nevertheless, one cannot miss the recurring “voice” of the lovely, seductive, mysterious Scheherazade, represented by a sinuous theme played by the solo violin. This is just one of the many tantalizing touches of orchestration found in the score. Here are a few poetic lines from Edward Downes, commenting on the resplendent orchestration: “The colour of the melody changes like the shifting lights on the fabled Arabian Sea.… the strings glint and gleam with true oriental splendour . . . Rimsky’s orchestra displays an iridescence of tone colour so rich and subtly shifting that one is reminded of the spreading of a peacock’s tail.… The storm and sea subside and the story is done. The voice of Scheherazade’s violin fades upward through a final, serene chord of the orchestra, like the passing of a dream.”
RECOMMENDED LISTENING 1) Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade and Other Works Berlin Philharmonic & Philharmonia Orchestra (Deutsche Grammophon, 2000)
music i a n c h a ir s
Igor Yuzefovich Concertmaster The GK Goh Chair The GK Goh Chair is endowed by the Family and Friends of Mr Goh Geok Khim
GUO HAO Fixed Chair Cello The Fixed Chair Cello is supported by
CORPORATE SEAT S The Singapore Symphony Orchestra appreciates the support of companies in our Corporate Seats scheme. The scheme supports the Orchestra through regular attendance of subscription concerts. $20,000 and above Petrochemical Corporation of Singapore (Pte) Ltd
Up to $10,000 Hong Leong Foundation Nomura Asset Management Singapore Ltd Prima Limited Santa Lucia Asset Management Stephen Riady Group of Foundations
This list is for donations from 1 Jan 2017 to 1 Jan 2018. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a charity and not-for-profit organisation. Find out how you can support us at www.sso.org.sg. Call or email us at 6602 4238 or peggykek@sso.org.sg.
2017 A nnu a l A p p e a l Donor s Special thanks to everyone who responded to our 2017 Annual Appeal. With your generous donations, we are able to subsidise more student tickets and continue to stage free public performances to share the love of music. $10,000 Prof Chan Heng Chee Devika and Sanjiv Misra Anonymous $2,000 to $5,000 Lionel Choi Eric Wong Chng Hak-Peng Paterson Lau & Pauline Tan
$1,000 Michelle Loh Pauline Ang Prof Kanti Bajpai Sally Chy Elizabeth Fong Guy Hentsch William Hernstadt Peggy Kek Ad Ketelaars Khoo Boon Hui
Paul Kitamura Prof Tommy Koh Dr Norman Lee Lek Lee Yong Wendy Leong Dr Brian Lo Ng Pei-Sian Monique Ong Bernard Jean Sabrier Michael & Megumi Schlesinger
Prof Richard Smith Tan Lian Yok David & Catherine Zemans Zhang Weihua Anonymous Anonymous Anonymous Anonymous
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a charity and not-for-profit organisation. You can support us by donating at www.sso.org.sg/donate
For inquiries, please call Nikki at 6602 4238, or email peggykek@sso.org.sg For tax-payers in Singapore, 2.5 times the donation amount will be deducted from your taxable income.
K IMMO HA KOL A (b.195 8) Clarinet Concerto (Singapore Premiere)
40’00
Finnish composer Kimmo Hakola studied at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and began attracting significant attention in the late 1980s at the UNESCO Composers’ Rostrum. In 1987 he won the Rostrum with his First String Quartet, and again in 1991 with his Capriole for cello and clarinet. Since then he has turned out three more string quartets; two large-scale oratorios (Le Sacrifice and Song of Songs); works for mixed choir including the 60-minute fantasia De kaspiska tigrarnas Gud (The Caspian Tiger’s God); concertos for guitar, violin, piano, flute, oboe, clarinet, electric kantele, and a double concerto for violin and viola premiered just last September; numerous works for orchestra (some with vocal soloists); compositions for various chamber ensembles (including a Clarinet Quintet for tonight’s soloist, Kari Kriikku); and six operas, among them The Mastersingers of Mars, The Mustard Seed, Rolling Stone, and La Fenice, the latter commissioned by the Savonlinna Opera Festival for a 2011 premiere. Hakola’s compositions are often expansive, even epic in nature. His Piano Concerto is nearly an hour in length. The Clarinet Concerto is some forty minutes, one of the longest written for this instrument. “Hakola says he sees music as drama”, writes composer Kimmo Hakonen. “His dramas explore almost Shakespearean extremes, from moments of raging ‘sound and fury’ and violent battles to quiet moments of meditation and heart-rending monologues.” Hakola’s music shows a wide range of styles and influences, including romanticism, Orientalism and elements of klezmer music, all of which surface in the Clarinet Concerto, one of his most frequently performed works. It received its world premiere in Porvoo on 28 June 2001 with the AVANTI! Chamber Orchestra and soloist Kari Kriikku, conducted by Jukka-Pekka Saraste. Since then it has gone on to performances in numerous cities in Finland, all over Europe, in New Zealand and in the United States. The performance tonight is the second in Asia after Seoul. Writing about this composer’s music in the New York Times some years ago, Allan Kozinn noted that “Mr. Hakola’s music scampers about mischievously, mixing together shapely lyricism, atonality, quirky folkishness and an almost hedonistic approach to timbre and rhythm.” Most of these qualities apply also to the Clarinet Concerto. Throughout the concerto Hakola consistently exploits the full range of the clarinet, often with leaps from one extreme to the other in rapid succession. Extremes of other sorts inform the music
as well – from ultra soft to ultra loud, from breathless whispers to roaring screams, and from pure sustained tones to wailing “bent” notes. The expressive range is equally wide, with passages of gentle solace and haunting loneliness alongside hair-raising rollercoaster rides and moments of ecstatic jubilation. The first movement opens with a rapid pounding motif for full orchestra playing fortississimo that could almost be an imitation of machine-gun fire – an attention-grabber if there ever was one. (This “machine-gun” motif recurs again just before the cadenza and as a closing gesture to the movement.) The soloist makes his first appearance a moment later in a wide-arching line that spans nearly the entire range of the instrument. Thereafter the clarinet engages in almost constant rapid-fire dialogue with the orchestra, including much virtuoso work for the timpani. The high-octane repartee temporarily ceases for the soloist’s long (more than three minutes) cadenza. The second movement, entitled “Hidden Songs”, features slowly unfolding melodic lines for the clarinet. Hakola claims that Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto served as inspiration for this movement, though there are no direct quotations. The “hidden songs” are, in Hakola’s words, “songs that have been left to mature in the cellars of the mind”. Towards the end we hear clarinet and harp in a wistful, romantically tinged episode in the character of a ballad (Andante amoroso). The third movement resembles an eccentric dance set to the erratic meter of 7/8. Astute listeners may note that the structural scaffolding of this movement consists of a passacaglia, a method of composition common in the Baroque era in which a set of variations is constructed over a simple repeating bass line or chord progression. Brahms famously did this in the finale of his Fourth Symphony. There trombones first present the repeating bass line. In Hakola, this goes first (and many times thereafter) to the tuba – a descending series of seven pitches, one per bar of music. The movement concludes with a long stretch for orchestra alone, building to a sustained, ferocious climax that leads without pause into the final movement, a juncture marked by an outburst of voices either from the musicians on stage or from a taped recording. The last movement, marked Khasene (Yiddish for wedding), invokes a joyous ritual characterised by klezmer music of feverish, dancelike impulses interrupted by a passage of poignant pathos (Adagio). The concerto does not so much end as break off unexpectedly, underscoring the unpredictable nature of all that has gone before. Programme notes by Robert Markow
b oa r d of dir ec tor s & COMMITTE e S board of directors
SSO Council
SSO LADIES’ LEAGUE
Mr Goh Yew Lin (Chairman) Ms Yong Ying-I (Deputy Chairman) Mr Ang Chek Meng Mrs Odile Benjamin Mr Chng Hak-Peng Mr Lionel Choi Mr Warren Fernandez Prof Arnoud De Meyer Mr Heinrich Grafe Ms Liew Wei Li Ms Lim Mei Mr Sanjiv Misra Mr Andreas Sohmen-Pao Mr Paul Tan Dr Kelly Tang Mr Yee Chen Fah
Prof Cham Tao Soon (Honorary Chairman) Mr Alan Chan (Chairman) Mr Choo Chiau Beng Dr Geh Min Mr Goh Geok Khim Mr Khoo Boon Hui Prof Tommy Koh Mr JY Pillay Dr Stephen Riady Ms Priscylla Shaw Dr Gralf Sieghold Mr Andreas Sohmen-Pao Dr Tan Chin Nam Ms Tan Choo Leng Mr Tan Soo Nan Mr Wee Ee Cheong
Mrs Odile Benjamin (Chairlady) Mrs Kwan Lui (Deputy Chairlady) Mrs Celeste Basapa Mrs Maisy Beh Mrs Kim Camacho Mrs Rosy Ho Ms Judy Hunt Prof Annie Koh Dr Julie Lo Mrs Clarinda TjiaDharmadi-Martin Ms Paige Parker Ms Kris Tan Ms Manju Vangal Mrs Grace Yeh
Nominating and Executive Committee Mr Goh Yew Lin (Chairman) Mr Paul Tan Ms Yong Ying-I Audit Committee Mr Yee Chen Fah (Chairman) Ms Lim Mei Endowment Fund Committee Mr Goh Yew Lin (Chairman) Mr David Goh Mr Paul Supramaniam Mr Anthony Teo
Musicians’ Committee Mr Chan Wei Shing Mr Jon Paul Dante Mr Jamie Hersch Mr Ng Pei-Sian Mr Mark Suter Mr Christoph Wichert Mr Yeo Teow Meng SNYO Committee Ms Liew Wei Li (Chairlady) Mr Ang Chek Meng Ms Vivien Goh Dr Kee Kirk Chin Mrs Valarie Wilson
MANAGEMENT CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Mr Chng Hak-Peng
CEO OFFICE
PROGRAMMES (VCH)
Mr Lim Yeow Siang Mr Edward Loh Mr Chris Yong
Ms Michelle Yeo (Head) Ms Erin Tan
ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT Mr Ernest Khoo (Head) Mr Chia Jit Min Ms Tan Wei Tian Stage Management Ms Kimberly Kwa (Stage Manager) Ms Chin Rosherna Mr Ramayah Elango Mr Md Fariz bin Samsuri Mr Radin Sulaiman bin Ali LIBRARY Mr Lim Lip Hua Ms Priscilla Neo PROGRAMMES (SSO) Ms Kua Li Leng (Head) Ms Teo Chew Yen Ms Jolene Yeo Community Outreach Ms Kathleen Tan Ms Vanessa Lee Choral Programmes Ms Regina Lee Ms Whitney Tan
DEVELOPMENT & PARTNERSHIPS Ms Peggy Kek (Head) Corporate Communications Ms Leong Wenshan Development & Sponsorship Mr Anthony Chng Ms Nikki Chuang Mr Chris Yong MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS & CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE Ms Cindy Lim (Head) Mr Chia Han-Leon Ms Myrtle Lee Ms Jana Loh Ms Hong Shu Hui Ms Melissa Tan Ms Cheryl Pek Ms Khairani Basman Ms Dacia Cheang Ms Nur Shafiqah bte Othman CORPORATE SERVICES Mr Rick Ong (Head) Mr Alan Ong (Finance) Ms Goh Hoey Fen (Finance) Mr Md Zailani bin Md Said
HUMAN RESOURCES & ADMINISTRATION Mr Desmen Low Ms Melissa Lee Ms Evelyn Siew SINGAPORE NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA Ms Pang Siu Yuin (Head) Ms Shirin Foo Mr Tan Yong Qing Ms Tang Ya Yun ABRSM Ms Hay Su-San (Head) Ms Patricia Yee Ms Lai Li-Yng Mr Joong Siow Chong
SUPPORTED BY
PATRON SPONSOR
Tote Board Group
OFFICIAL AIRLINE
OFFICIAL HOTEL
OFFICIAL TRAINING PARTNER
OFFICIAL RADIO STATION
OFFICIAL OUTDOOR MEDIA PARTNER
OFFICIAL POSTAGE SPONSOR
SPONSORS
LEE FOUNDATION
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and registered under the Charities Act.
SSO.ORG.SG