Orchestra delivers brilliant music befitting Singapore's 50th anniversary
A vibrant orchestra of 80 young musicians from the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music was a showcase of Singapore's coming of age in the musical arts at its debut concert in Hong Kong.
Under the baton of Jason Lai, a former conductor in Hong Kong, the show opened a new chapter in the tale of the two cities. But lending an edge was the fine discipline the Singaporean band executed, which would call for some quality ensemble playing by local musicians to match.
But the sobriety quickly dissipated when Li Churen, 20, delivered an energetic reading of Beethoven's . A conservatory alumni who is now a Yale postgraduate student, the young Singaporean showed extraordinary skill, displaying a sense of urgency in her playing that Lai had to stay vigilant to keep up with. Regrettably, the clapping was not sustained enough to get an encore from the brilliant pianist.
The passionate players brought the evening to a smiling close with a vivacious , performed in response to rapturous applause.