Concert: NAC-ExxonMobil: Concert at the Park

Date/Time: 2 Aug 09, 5 pm

Venue: West Coast Park (carpark 3, behind McDonald's)

Ticket Price: Free Admission!!

---Courtesy of our friends at A Cappella Sounds---



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Be spellbound as we bring you many exciting performances by our renowned local music acts – Budak Pantai, The Lion Story and EN-X including Electrico presenting NDP 09
theme song amidst the lush greenery of the West Coast Park! This concert promises something for everyone!

Be spotted in your most stunning red and white outfit to receive ArtReach freebies and be part of this great celebration. Early birds will receive a NDP 09 goody bag! So pack your picnic baskets and come party with us!

Organised by National Arts Council, sponsored by ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte Ltd and supported by National Parks Board. This event is part of the National Day 2009 celebrations.

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Concert: The Voices of Lisbon Chamber Choir

((Update: Discount available!!))

Date/Time: 8 Aug 09, 5 pm

Venue: Victoria Concert Hall

Ticket Price: Stall: $28, Circle: $35

10% Discount for Students, Senior Citizens & NSmen
15% Discount for PAssion Card Members & STB Staff

Offer from 31 Jul - 2 Aug 09: 2 tickets at $44 (includes booking fee)!

For group booking (min. of 20 tickets), kindly please contact DynamicWorkz at 6255 2019 or email at contact@dynamicworkz.com.sg

**Free Seating, and tickets are excluding booking fee.



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The Lisbon Chamber Choir (Coro de Câmara de Lisboa) was founded in 1978 by Prof. Teresita Gutierrez Marques and is formed by twenty young musicians.
The Choir has always been very active, maintaining an artistic level which is unanimously applauded by the public and the critics. They have performed all over Portugal and has participated in the most significant cultural exhibitions like Capuchos and Sintra festivals, The Gulbenkian Festival of Ancient Music, Lisbon ´94 – European Capital of Culture, Expo ´98 – World Exposition of Lisbon, the International Festival of Organ in Lisbon, to name a few.
The Lisbon Chamber Choir has also performed all over the world extensively, including Madrid, Cuenca, León, Seville, Sória, Vitoria (Spain), Paris, Strasbourg, Rouen, Caen, Mont. St. Michel (France), Brussels, Malines (Belgium), Amsterdam (The Netherlands), Rome, Bergamo, Biella, Bolzano, Novara, Trento, Turin, Verona (Italy), Bonn (Germany, Vienna (Austria), London (UK), Montréal (Canada), New York, Santa Barbara, San Diego, San José (USA), Belo Horizonte, Florianópolis, New Hamburg, Porto Alegre (Brazil), Montevideu (Uruguay), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Puebla (Mexico), Santiago de Cuba (Cuba), Macao, and Cape Verde.

This International Choir Competition of Toloso winner has recorded several CD (for the labels EMI, Milan, Movieplay, Numérica and Virgin). They have also participated in recordings, both in Portugal and abroad, for radio, television and cinema.

In this concert, the Choir will perform a variety of program from the Renaissance to the 21st century, and from folksong to some famous musicals like West Side Story and The Phantom of the Opera.


PROGRAM - LISBON CHAMBER CHOIR

Ay mi Dios - D. Pedro de Cristo (+1618)
Tleycantimo choquiliya -Gaspar Fernandes (1570-1629)
A este sol peregrino - Tomás de Torrejon y Velasco (1644-1729)
Convidando esta la noche - Juan Garcia de Zéspedes (1614-1678)

Arioso - J. S. Bach / R. Santos (1685-1750) / (1941)
O Salutaris - Pierre Villete (1926-1998)
Psalm 43 - Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Alleluia - Randall Thompson (1899-1984)
___________________

Três Esconjuros - Fernando Lopes Graça (1906-1994)
1)Contra os maus encontros
2)Contra os maridos transviados
3)Contra as trovoadas

Katakataka - Suarez / Laureola (1940)
Ni wa wa - Americ Ting-Wei Goh (1982)
Mamayog akun - Fabian Obispo (1952)
Jacinto Chiclana - Piazolla / Cangiano (1921-1992) / (1951-1997)
Vangelo - Eurico Carrapatoso (1962)
São João

One hand, one heart - L. Bernstein
(from "West Side Story")

Wishing you were somehow here again - Webber / Turner
All I ask of you
(from "The Phantom of the Opera")

Direction: Teresita Gutierrez Marques

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Book your tickets from Tickets.com or their outlets today!

Concert: TPCC Mendelssohn and Beyond

Date/Time: 4-5 Sep 09, 8 pm

Venue: Esplanade Recital Studio

Ticket Price: Standard - S$25
20% discount ($25) for Students, Senior Citizens (age 55 yrs & abv), NSF.
S$18 for TPCC Members

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The Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra
Lim Yau conductor

The Philharmonic Chamber Choir presents a programme of a cappella choral music, joining choirs worldwide in celebrating the 200th birth anniversary of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy.

He is the single most influential early 19th-century personality who connects the splendour of the Baroque period with the apocalyptic Romantic era.

Schools will be able to use the Tote Board Arts Grant to subsidise 60% (excluding GST) of ticket price for the concert on 5 September 2009 only.

Programme:
Felix Mendelssohn - Selections from Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten
Tian Hui Ng - Siehe!
Kurt Nysedt - Immortal Bach
Arvo Pärt - Magnificat
Ildebrando Pizzetti - Due Composizioni Corali

* All ticket proceeds for the 4 September 2009 concert will be donated to the SOTA Education Fund.

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Get your tickets from SISTIC today!

Contest Results: Lisbon Chamber Choir

Hi guys,

The contest for a pair of tickets to the Lisbon Chamber Choir's concert has ended.

The winner is... Siti Z!

Congratulations, our staff will be mailing you shortly for your contact details!

Listening Recommendation: Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir

Dear all,

We first brought to your attention Eric Whitacre's appeal for a virtual choir a while back. Guess what, it has been brought to fruition! :)



And guess what, they're doing it again! This time with Lux Aurumque More details will be given in due time, but meanwhile, add Eric Whitacre's Official Virtual Choir to your list of friends or subscribe!

Enjoy!

Sing-ing Sunday: Concerts I Wish I Attended

I'm starving for a good concert. Since the most recent one I had watched left an aftertaste in my mind.



ACJC choir's annual concert, unknown year. Although the recording quality is bad, you can tell the choir is pretty good.



World Youth Choral Festival 2008, held in Singapore. I heard the junior college choirs were very good.



Raffles Chorale (RJC) Vocal Exploits. This makes for a very unconventional and refreshing concert opening number! Clapping Music by Steve Reich (1972), by the way. Very famous minimalist composer.



Vocal Consort, unknown year. Too bad this is another badly taken video. I always liked the way Mr Kwei interprets Asian and especially Chinese songs.

Contest: The Voices of Lisbon Chamber Choir

((Update2: Contest closes today! For those who haven't already submitted your entry, please do so by tonight!))

((Update1: please note that our e-mail's not sing4harmony@gmail.com. It's singforharmony@gmail.com. Apologies for the inconvenience caused.))

Hi guys!

As part of our 100th post celebrations, the organiser of the concert, Voices of Lisbon Chamber Choir, has kindly agreed to sponsor a pair of tickets for our readers!

Simply answer this question and e-mail us at singforharmony@gmail.com or yeshamiel@gmail.com:

Name one musical from which the Lisbon Chamber Choir will be performing a piece from during their concert on 8 Aug 09.

*Hint: Look at the concert programme ;)*

Hurry! The contest ends on 25 Jul 09, and we'll pick out a winner, at random!

Note: Friends and affiliates of ours (e.g. friends who know us in person) are not eligible for the above-mentioned contest.

Sing4Harmony is now on Twitter!

The title says it all!

We've synced updates on the blog to that of twitter so busy individuals would be able to just check their twitter feeds instead of hopping around to blogger every couple of days :)

Listening Recommendations: Michael Jackson Tribute

Hi all,

We thought it'll be unfitting of us to not have a Michael Jackson tribute.

Here are some of his most renown works sung either a cappella or with choir. Enjoy!

Event: Auditions for ONE

[UPDATE: The deadline has been amended to 24 Jul 09]

Date/Time: 18 & 25 Jul 09

Venue: Not stated.



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There is a new choir that is being set up, under the direction of Ms Lim Ai Hooi, one of Singapore's leading choral directors. Auditions are being held on 18th and 25th July.

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For more info on how to apply, visit their blog here, or e-mail them at audition.one@gmail.com. Please note that only those aged 18 and above may apply, and the deadline for submissions is on 24 Jul 09.

Concert: Love Notes by NJChorale

Date/Time: 31 Jul 09, 7.30 pm

Venue: Young Musician's Society Auditorium, 54 Waterloo Street

Ticket Price: Standard - S$12

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E-mail NJChorale (basically the alumni) at njchorale@gmail.com. For those with facebook accts, to find out more, you may also visit their facebook event

Sing-ing Sunday

This is our blog's 100th post!

The following are a few clips of local polytechnic and university choirs. Enjoy...

NTU Choir.

Doesn't everybody love Sisters Act. Fast forward to 3:53 for a Sisters Act medley.



Ngee Ann Polytechnic. This is my first time listening to a polytechnic choir, actually.



And here's NP's LinkaGe.

Concert: A Cappella Championships 09

Date/Time: 31 Jul 09 (Sec Sch), 1 Aug 09 (Choir), 2 Aug 09 (Open/College), 7.30 pm

Venue: Arts House Chamber (31 Jul 09), Esplanade Recital Studio (1-2 Aug 09)

Ticket Price:

Free Admission (31 Jul 09)

S$25, S$20 - Students, TAS members, purchases of 10+ tickets (1-2 Aug 09)



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Don't miss your chance to be a part of the biggest A Cappella competition ever held in Singapore! A total of 31 groups has registered for the A Cappella Championships 09, held over 3 days, 31 July at The Arts House Chamber and 1 & 2 August at Esplanade Recital Studio. Tickets for the Finals on 1 August (Choirs) and 2 August (Open/College) at Esplanade Recital Studio are available from The A Cappella Society, find all infos and details on our website www.a-cappella.org.sg Mrs Fields - Prize Sponsor of the A Cappella Championships Thanks to Mrs. Fields, you now have the chance to enjoy the best of both worlds! Present your ticket stubs for the A Cappella Championships and you get a 10% discount for all products at all Mrs Fields outlets. Not only that, coupons will be distributed on the competition days at the door before the start of competition. You will be entitled to a free nibbler with no strings attached when you present the coupon at any Mrs Fields outlet! (Not valid with other promotions) Coupons are limited and they are given out on a first come first serve basis, so do come early and support your favourite A Cappella teams!

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Book your tickets through The A Cappella Society, by mailing them this booking form, or contacting them at 94559407, Fax at 64459835 or email: contact@a-cappella.org.sg. Do note that cheque payments must be made before 24 Jul 09More info can be found here.

Concert: Agapella's 7th Birthday Concert

((We sincerely apologise for not plugging this event earlier.))

Date/Time: 10-11 Jul 09, 7.30 pm

Venue: Lee Foundation Theatre, NAFA, Campus 3, 151 Bencoolen Street

Ticket Price: Standard - S$7

---Courtesy of A Cappella Sounds---



Agapella's Youtube video of its rendition of Pachelbel's Canon in D has been viewed more than 20,000 times and has attracted rave reviews from around the world for its smooth blend of harmonies. Yet we've never performed the song in public... until now. Be among the first to hear them perform this song and many other contemporary numbers spanning a plethora of genres, all this in a two-night only musical fiesta on 10th & 11th July 2009!

In celebration of our 7th anniversary, Agapella presents our biggest concert yet, Seven @ 8. We'll serve up fan favourites like "I Will Follow Him" (popularised by the movie, Sister Act) and "Testify To Love", on top of brand new arrangements. Among the new numbers, don't miss the re-written lyrics to the tune of the classic "Good 'Ol A Cappella". The concert will be a delight for the entire family with Agapella's unique brand of music and tight harmonies, together with a zany dash of theatre for a toe-tappin' good time!

Agapella's debut album, "Follow That Star" was released in 2007 to much acclaim. The album will be made available for sale at the concert. Don't forget to stick around for the post-concert refreshments (included in the ticket price) and hang out with Singapore's coolest vocal band!

* Every 5 tickets purchased in a single receipt will entitle you to a complimentary copy of the album,“Follow That Star”. Please present receipt at the door on the evening of the performance for redemption.

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Get your tickets from SISTIC today! Alternatively, contact them at agapella@gmail.com, or for more info do visit their blog.

Review: Moscow State Chamber Choir & Chamber Orchestra Moscow Soloists

The abovementioned concert, held on 12 June, was only 'alright' to me.

The programme was rather heavy, with Stravinsky's Concerto in D for strings and Brahms' Adagio in B minor from Op 115. The concerto was executed decently, but the motifs and gestures of the phrases were not always articulated well. It was, at least to me, obvious that the instruments were not tuned properly prior to the performance, too. Either that, or the intonation is not always spot-on. I know it's ironic that one would comment that a Stravinsky's piece is played out of tune, but I think it really was.

And I was proven right, when I heard the Adagio. Some notes of the scale were tuned too high or low for the chords to lock totally. Still, the Adagio was performed better than the concerto. Nicely shaped, lyrical and pleasing. Yuri Bashmet, the soloist on the viola, was rather musical. However, he was sometimes not audible against the accompaniment. Perhaps that was because his parts were often in the mid-register, and that he just blended in too well with the rest in timbre. Although I could hear he played his parts denser in quality whenever he crossed downwards into the midst of the accompaniment, I sometimes confuse his part with the other violists or cellists. The work was originally to be for a clarinet soloist, by the way.

Takemitsu's Three Film Scores for strings was more palatable than the previous programmes. Although Music of Training and Rest was played with appropriate lightness, the jazz piece was not played like a jazz piece. Honestly, I don't remember much about the other two pieces, Funeral Music and Waltz from Face of Arthur, now that the concert is long over, but I do know that they were decent, just not spectacular.

I liked the soprano soloist in Mozart's Exsultate, jubilate (K165). A pity that the audience didn't seem to enjoy the piece as much as the rest, judging wholly on the volume of applause given. She was very tasteful in the passages, and the cadenza was, although not mind-blowingly amazing, very florid, in style with the rest of the work, and exhibited her vocal prowess. Lovely.

Schubert's Mass No. 2 in G major for mixed chorus and strings was up to standard, too. The chorus was brilliantly shimmering throughout the work, although in a tad destructive manner as well. Vibrato sounds good, but when 40-odd choristers sing together with soloist voices, harmonies become vague and the soundscape becomes too thick and opaque. Perhaps the intended effect was to imitate a large chorus sound, which worked out perfectly. Thankfully the Mass was entirely homophonic, so the opacity of the sound did not disturb the melody-accompaniment balance. The soloists were all good - I liked the tenor's voice. Very clear and bright. The soprano solo was slightly operatic and off-tune, though.

The encore pieces, performed by the chamber orchestra and Yuri Bashmet, were well-played, I must say. It was just that most of the programme was either dark or executed heavily, such that the encore pieces felt coherent and did not evoke any new sensations.

Overall, the concert was rather disappointing as I had expected top-notch quality from the state's choir and more so, the chamber orchestra. Punctuating the programme with one or two short light works, especially after Stravinsky, would have made the slow, heavy parts of the programme more listenable. Also, the choir could have been featured more and sung a piece which contrasts with Schubert's Mass. That could have possibly made the second half a joy to hear, especially after the fantastic start with Mozart's motet.

Personal score: 6/10

Review: SYF Choral Presentation

Programme:

SYF Choral Presentation Combined Choir (conducted by Stephen Leek) - White Horses by Stephen Leek

Anglican High Sch - Sleep by Eric Whitacre

Commonwealth Sec Sch - Jaakobin Isot Pojat by Pekka Kostianen

Nanyang Girls' High Sch - Zima (Winter) by Lojze Lebic;
The Typewriter by Leroy Anderson (arr. Ko Matsushita)

Catholic JC - Jauchzet dem Herrn by Felix Mendelssohn

Victoria JC - My Love Dwelt in a Northern Land by Edward Elgar

The Australian Voices Ensemble (conducted by Stephen Leek):
Coonawrin (from Glasshouses) by Stephen Leek
Southern Garden (from My Country) by Stephen Leek
Tides of Ocean by Matthew Orlovich
Wirindji (from Great Southern Spirits) by Stephen Leek
Waltzing Matilda arr. Stephen Leek

---Interval---

Victoria JC - Sounds of Joy by Zechariah Goh;
Hana by Ko Matsushita

Catholic JC - Mayila by Chen Yi;
Pokpok Alimpako by Francisco Feliciano

Nanyang Girls' High Sch - Aitakute (I Want To See Them) by Ko Matsushita

Commonwealth Sec Sch - Meplalian by Budi Susanto Yohanes;
Ashita wa Hare kana, Kumori kana by Toru Takemitsu

Anglican High Sch - Maiden of Miao arr. Nelson Kwei

SYF Choral Presentation Combined Choir - A Singaporean Medley arr. Zechariah Goh

Review:

As with any other concert, it had its highs and its lows. I enjoyed the presentation of pieces put forward by Nanyang Girls', especially so for the full sound they produced. It is truly difficult to obtain a full sound from an all girl's choir, simply due to the lack of TBs. They were, for the most part, brilliant. In addition, despite the errors, I enjoyed CJ's Jauchzet dem Herrn. The tight and warm sound was a nice contrast against Nanyang Girls' fuller, broader sound. Some of the schools disappointed us and didn't perform up to par with the standard in which they had done so during SYF. Some recovered in the 2nd half, some didn't. Perhaps they haven't sung for a long time since the competition, I don't know, but it was indeed a little disappointing to listen to.

The programme put forward by the Australian Voices was interesting. It's always something special to have the composer conducting his own piece. Out of the five pieces which they performed, Wirindji truly evoked an image of death in the wilderness. I was almost conned by the ending when I thought I heard overtones, only to realise someone was actually whistling. Oh well haha.

All in all, it was a decent concert. I liked the idea of separating Asian music and Western music. However, the time in which it took to change from one choir to the next really set back the programme. In doing so, we probably ended abt half an hour later. Perhaps this is something for the organisers to note for future presentations :)