24 Sep 2025
SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma in Recital
25 Sep 2025
SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma / Dvořák Cello Concerto
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24
SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma in Recital
Wed, 24 Sep 2025
Esplanade Concert Hall
SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma / Dvořák Cello Concerto
Thu, 25 Sep 2025
Esplanade Concert Hall 14
For the enjoyment of all patrons during the concert:
Please switch off or silence all electronic devices.
Please minimise noises during performance. If unavoidable, wait for a loud section in the music.
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Non-flash photography is allowed only during bows and applause when no performance is taking place.
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Cover photo: Yo-Yo Ma © Jason Bell
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Bowen Enterprises Pte Ltd is honoured to be a new partner of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. In presenting the SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma in Recital and Yo-Yo Ma / Dvořák Cello Concerto for Singapore’s 60th birthday, we bring the unique bridge of East-West performing arts to even greater heights, while providing invaluable exposure to young musicians through students ticket-gifting.
For SG60, we pay a special tribute to Cultural Medallion recipient Maestro Choo Hoey (1934–2025), the founding Music Director who came back to Singapore to set up the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in 1979, after an illustrious career of being the first Asian conductor to a European national orchestra, and a guest conductor of over 60 orchestras. Since 1979, we take great pride in seeing SSO grow from strengthto-strength, with similar “can-do” qualities shining through every single concert. Till this day, Maestro Choo’s qualities of Dignity, Humility, Perseverance and ability to reach across cultures, have inspired many Singaporeans to continue to overcome the odds and do the impossible.
In these two evenings of SSO galas, we look forward to superstar cellist Maestro Yo-Yo Ma dazzling us with the music of great classical composers such as Bach and Dvořák. We hope to inspire a similar passion in Singaporeans, Asian musicians and composers, to blend their unique experiences into better music creations through mastery, adaptation and devoted execution, and to reach for the stars!
Bowen Enterprises Pte Ltd is a small company with a big heart. Encouraging arts and cultural appreciation in Singapore is one of Bowen’s philanthropic goals. Bowen believes in educating, promoting awareness and growing appreciation of Asian artists, traditional/ classical artforms and compassion in society. Its vision is to encourage communal harmony, social understanding and caring through sharing:
“Music hath Charms that soothe a savage beast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak” (Poet William Congreve). Bowen believes in sharing the common love of music across all cultures, as its small contribution to Singapore and to World Peace.
Anne Lee Investments Director, Bowen Enterprises Pte Ltd
The orchestra performs over 60 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. The SSO makes its performing home at the 1,800-seat state-of-the-art Esplanade Concert Hall. More intimate works, as well as community performances take place at the 673-seat Victoria Concert Hall, the Home of the SSO.
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 with its 44week calendar of events.
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 through its school programmes. The SSO has also earned an international reputation for its orchestral virtuosity, having garnered sterling reviews for its overseas tours and many successful recordings. In 2021, the SSO clinched third place in the prestigious Orchestra of the Year Award by Gramophone. In 2022, BBC Music Magazine named the SSO as one of the 23 best orchestras in the world.
From the 2026/27 season, the SSO will be led by Finnish conductor Hannu Lintu, the fourth Music Director in the orchestra’s history after Choo Hoey (1979–1996), Lan Shui (1997–2019) and Hans Graf (2020–2026).
Beyond Singapore, the SSO has performed in Europe, Asia, Australia and the United States. In the 2024/25 season, the SSO performed to full houses at Asia Orchestra Week in Kyoto, Japan, and made its “dazzling – and true-blue – Down Under debut” (Limelight) in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. 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 second performance at the Berlin Philharmonie. In 2014, the SSO’s debut at the 120th BBC Proms in London received praise in major UK newspapers The Guardian and The Telegraph. The SSO has also performed in China on multiple occasions.
The SSO has released more than 50 recordings, with over 30 on the BIS label. Recent critically acclaimed albums include Herrmann’s Wuthering Heights (Chandos) and Scriabin – Poems of Ecstasy and Fire (BIS).
A complete Mozart Violin Concerto cycle with Singaporean violinist Chloe Chua conducted by Hans Graf is released in 2025 on Pentatone.
The SSO also leads the revival and recording of significant works such as Kozłowski’s Requiem, Ogerman’s Symbiosis (after Bill Evans) and violin concertos by Robert Russell Bennett and Vernon Duke.
The SSO has collaborated with such great artists as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Gustavo Dudamel, Charles Dutoit, Joe Hisaishi, Neeme Järvi, Lorin Maazel, Martha Argerich, Diana Damrau, Janine Jansen, Leonidas Kavakos, Lang Lang, Yo-Yo Ma, Mischa Maisky, Gil Shaham, Daniil Trifonov and Krystian Zimerman.
The SSO is part of the Singapore Symphony Group, which also manages the Singapore Symphony Choruses, the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, the Singapore International Piano Festival and the biennial National Piano & Violin Competition.
The Group’s vision is to be a leading arts organization that engages, inspires and reflects Singapore through musical excellence. Our mission is to create memorable shared experiences with music. Through the SSO and its affiliated performing groups, we spread the love for music, nurture talent and enrich our diverse communities.
Hans Graf
Quantedge Music Director
Rodolfo Barráez
Associate Conductor
Choo Hoey
Conductor Emeritus
Lan Shui
Conductor Laureate
Eudenice Palaruan
Choral Director
Wong Lai Foon Choirmaster
Ellissa Sayampanathan
Assistant Choral Conductor
(Position vacant) Concertmaster, GK Goh Chair
David Coucheron Co-Principal Guest Concertmaster
Kevin Lin Co-Principal Guest Concertmaster
Kong Zhao Hui1 Associate Concertmaster
Chan Yoong-Han2 Assistant Principal
Cao Can*
Duan Yu Ling
Foo Say Ming
Jin Li
Kong Xianlong
Cindy Lee
Karen Tan
William Tan
Wei Zhe
Ye Lin*
Zhang Si Jing
Sayuri Kuru Associate Principal
Nikolai Koval*
Hai-Won Kwok
Renyu Martin Peh^
Margit Saur
Shao Tao Tao
Wu Man Yun*
Xu Jueyi*
Yin Shu Zhan*
Zhao Tian
Manchin Zhang Principal, Tan Jiew Cheng Chair
Guan Qi Associate Principal
Gu Bing Jie* Assistant Principal
Marietta Ku
Luo Biao
Julia Park
Shui Bing
Janice Tsai
Dandan Wang
Yang Shi Li
Ng Pei-Sian Principal, The HEAD Foundation Chair
Yu Jing Associate Principal
Guo Hao Assistant Principal
Chan Wei Shing
Christopher Mui
Jamshid Saydikarimov
Song Woon Teng
Wang Yan
Wu Dai Dai
Zhao Yu Er
Yang Zheng Yi Acting Principal
Karen Yeo Assistant Principal
Po-Yu Fang
Victor Lee
Jacek Mirucki
Wang Xu
Jin Ta Principal, Stephen Riady Chair
Evgueni Brokmiller Associate Principal
Roberto Alvarez
Miao Shanshan
Piccolo
Roberto Alvarez Assistant Principal
Oboe
Rachel Walker Principal
Pan Yun Associate Principal
Carolyn Hollier
Elaine Yeo
Cor Anglais
Elaine Yeo Associate Principal
Clarinet
Ma Yue Principal
Li Xin Associate Principal
Liu Yoko
Tang Xiao Ping
Bass Clarinet
Tang Xiao Ping Assistant Principal
Bassoon
Guo Siping Principal
Liu Chang Associate Principal
Christoph Wichert
Zhao Ying Xue
Contrabassoon
Zhao Ying Xue Assistant Principal
Austin Larson Principal
Gao Jian Associate Principal
Jamie Hersch Associate Principal
Marc-Antoine Robillard Associate Principal
Bryan Chong
Hoang Van Hoc
Trumpet
Jon Paul Dante Principal
David Smith Associate Principal
Lau Wen Rong
Nuttakamon Supattranont
Allen Meek Principal
Damian Patti Associate Principal
Samuel Armstrong
Bass Trombone
Wang Wei Assistant Principal
Tomoki Natsume Principal
Christian Schiøler Principal
Mario Choo
Jonathan Fox Principal
Mark Suter Associate Principal
Mario Choo
Lim Meng Keh Harp
Gulnara Mashurova Principal
With deep appreciation to the Rin Collection for their generous loan of string instruments. Musician on annual contract.
Kong Zhao Hui performs on a J.B. Guadagnini of Milan, c. 1750, donated by the National Arts Council, Singapore, with the support of Far East Organization and Lee Foundation.
Chan Yoong-Han performs on a David Tecchler, Fecit Roma An. D. 1700, courtesy of Mr G K Goh. Musicians listed alphabetically by family name rotate their seats on a per programme basis.
SSO Gala: Yo-Yo Ma / Dvořák Cello Concerto 25 Sep 2025
First Violin
Chen Dawei
Second Violin
Lisa Obert Guest Principal
Bobirjon Eshpulatov
Lee Shi Mei
Lim Shue Churn
Syu Cheng-Yi
Yew Shan
V iola
Ho Qian Hui
Patcharaphan Khumprakob
Erlene Koh
Yeo Jan Wea
Double Bass
Olga Alexandrova
Guennadi Mouzyka
Yo-Yo Ma’s multi-faceted career is testament to his belief in culture’s power to generate trust and understanding. Whether performing new or familiar works for cello, bringing communities together to explore culture’s role in society, or engaging unexpected musical forms, Yo-Yo strives to foster connections that stimulate the imagination and reinforce our humanity.
Most recently, Yo-Yo began Our Common Nature, a cultural journey to celebrate the ways that nature can reunite us in pursuit of a shared future. Our Common Nature follows the Bach Project, a 36-community, six-continent tour of J. S. Bach’s cello suites paired with local cultural programming. Both endeavors reflect Yo-Yo’s lifelong commitment to stretching the boundaries of genre and tradition to understand how music helps us to imagine and build a stronger society.
Yo-Yo Ma was born in 1955 to Chinese parents living in Paris, where he began studying the cello with his father at age four. When he was seven, he moved with his family to New York City, where he continued his cello studies before pursuing a liberal arts education.
Yo-Yo has recorded more than 120 albums, is the winner of 19 Grammy Awards, and has performed for nine American presidents, most recently on the occasion of President Biden’s inauguration. He has received numerous awards, including the National Medal of the Arts, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Birgit Nilsson Prize. He has been a UN Messenger of Peace since 2006, and was recognized as one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020.
conductor
Juanjo Mena began his career as artistic director of the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra in 1999. His extraordinary talent was soon recognized internationally, and he was appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic, Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestra of the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa and Associate Conductor of the Spanish National Orchestra. In 2011 he became Chief Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic, which he led for seven seasons, taking the orchestra on tours of Europe and Asia, and conducting televised BBC Proms concerts annually from the Royal Albert Hall. His work at the BBC featured particularly memorable performances of Bruckner and Schubert's symphonies, setting new standards for the interpretation of Spanish and South American repertoire. Until 2023 he was Chief Conductor of the Cincinnati May Festival, the longest-running choral festival in North America, expanding the reach of this legendary organization with new commissions and greater social involvement.
As guest conductor, Juanjo Mena is a highly sought-after artist. He has conducted the most prestigious ensembles in Europe and regularly collaborates with the most important symphonic groups in his native Spain. He has conducted most of the major orchestras in North America, and in Asia he regularly conducts the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo.
Juanjo Mena’s 2025/26 highlights include his debuts with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, plus return visits to the Houston Symphony, Danish National Symphony, Madrid Symphony Orchestra and Barcelona Symphony Orchestra.
In 2016 Juanjo Mena was awarded the prestigious National Music Prize of Spain.
Wed, 24 Sep 2025
Esplanade Concert Hall
Yo-Yo Ma cello
Supported by
Concert Duration: approximately 2 hrs (including 20 mins intermission)
Check-in to tonight’s concert
Scan this QR code with the Singapore Symphony Mobile App.
Zhao Jiping
Summer in the High Grassland
5 mins
J.S. Bach
Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007
18 mins
Ahmet Adnan Saygun
Allegretto from Partita for Solo Cello, Op. 31
4 mins
J.S. Bach
Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011
25 mins
Intermission
20 mins
George Crumb
Sonata for Solo Cello
11 mins
J.S. Bach
Cello Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009
18 mins
b. 1945
Summer in the High Grassland (2004)
Summer in the High Grassland is written by Chinese composer Zhao Jiping (赵季平), who is perhaps most well-known for his award-winning film scores, Farewell My Concubine《霸王别姬》, Ju Dou《菊豆》 and Raise the Red Lantern《大红灯笼高 高挂》 . This work was developed by the Silkroad Ensemble for the Japanese television documentary series on the Silk Road. The piece features syncopated rhythms and a melodic line reminiscent of Mongolian music, a gesture reinforced by the cello emulating the sound of the morin khuur (Mongolian horsehead fiddle).
Notes with kind permission from the Silkroad Ensemble
Writing idiomatically for an instrument is a skill that comes naturally to a composer who plays that particular instrument, for example Mozart and Chopin for the piano, Handel for the organ, Marais for the viol, Quantz for the flute, and Dowland for the lute. Bach did not, as far as we know, play the violoncello, yet his Six Suites for Violoncello Solo, BWV 1007– 1012 have become a cornerstone of the instrument’s repertoire. It is not known for certain when or where they were composed, and no autograph manuscript survives, only secondary sources— including a hand-written copy by Bach’s second wife, Anna Magdalena. On stylistic grounds, some scholars have dated the six suites to the period 1717–1723, that is to say, Bach’s time as Kapellmeister at Köthen, which would mean they likely predate his seminal violin sonatas. The suites were largely unknown before the 20th century, until Spanish cellist Pablo Casals recorded them and made them an integral part of his concert repertoire. Since
then, their popularity has exploded and they have been performed and recorded widely in versions for all sorts of solo instruments, including ukulele, guqin, xylophone, marimba, trumpet, and even in orchestral versions. The meditative and rather cerebral nature of the suites have ensured their popularity with musicians, listeners, and even among listeners who do not otherwise listen to much classical music.
The suites are in the typical Baroque format: starting with a prelude, followed by a set series of dances originating from different countries. Given the diverse origin of the various dances, the Baroque suite perfectly exemplifies what in 1724 François Couperin called Les Goûts-réunis (“The Tastes Reunited”), where he argued that the perfect music comes from a unification of both the dramatic Italian style and the elegant French style.
1685 – 1750
Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007
Prélude
Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Minuet I and II
Gigue
The First Suite in G major, BWV 1007, begins with a Prelude, one of the most famous in classical music, its soaring line endlessly used for advertisements. A meandering and bittersweet Allemande (‘German’, always in duple metre) brings us back to earth. A sprightly and smiling Courante (in triple metre, originally the Italian corrente) gives us something to tap our toes to, and we remember—this is all supposed to be dance music!
A respite comes in the form of a slow Sarabande (originally the Spanish zarabanda, a lively and scandalous dance with South American and Arab influences). Next is a pair of Menuets (in triple time, and of French origin) with the first menuet repeated after the second. The suite ends with the merry Gigue (originally the English jig), giving us hope that a happy ending awaits us. In early French theatre, it was customary to end a play’s performance with a gigue, complete with music and dancing, and perhaps this is the origin of the gigue’s place in the Baroque suite format.
1907 – 1991
Allegretto from Partita for Solo Cello, Op. 31 (1955)
Ahmet Adnan Saygun is widely regarded as one of the most important 20th century Turkish composers. Saygun’s compositional style emerged from an education in the Western classical tradition combined with a dedication to researching and preserving the folk music of his homeland. Themes from these two conventions are beautifully woven together in the simple but artful Allegretto movement from his Partita, Opus 31 for solo cello.
1685 – 1750
Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011
Prélude Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Gavotte I and II
Gigue
In the Fifth Suite in C minor, BWV 1011, Bach takes us away from the sunshine of the previous major-key suites, into dark brooding regions. The Prelude begins with anguish almost immediately, and is in two parts, making it a French-style overture, in contrast with the Italian style of the previous suites. The second part of the movement is a determined fugue that stretches the polyphonic possibilities of the cello, outlining the various voices of the counterpoint as they enter and interact with each other—in this movement Bach is as much composing music in our minds as on the cello. The subsequent Allemande is much more down to earth, but still the music retains a
“The Sarabande is the heart of the Baroque suite”
sense of unease and unsettled searching. The obligatory Courante follows, but Bach gives us a French-style movement, slower and serious, rather than the Italian form, and the searching intensifies. As always, the Sarabande is the heart of the Baroque suite, and that of this suite is perhaps one of Bach’s most minimalist and desolate melodies—its bareness a great
challenge for the musicality of the performer. Warmth returns with the pair of Gavottes (of French origin), and the second gavotte is a notably swirling melody that at points reminds one of Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee. As required, our suite ends with a Gigue, but still in the C minor of the suite, where the slightly angular character of the melody leaves an impression of longing.
1929 – 2022
Sonata for Solo Cello (1955)
Toccata I II III
Fantasia
Tema Pastorale con variazioni
George Henry Crumb Jr was an American composer of avante-garde contemporary classical music, and filled his music with a sometimes bewildering array of instrumental and human sounds, drawing on the traditions of his native Appalachia as well as those of the world at large, including Asia. During his lifetime, he received numerous awards and grants, including the Pulitzer Prize in 1968 for his orchestral work Echoes of Time and the River, as well as others from the Fromm, Guggenheim, Koussevitsky, and Rockefeller Foundations. His work often incorporated effects such as hissing, whispering, clicking and shouting, as well as occasionally including prerecorded sounds. Trained in the USA and Germany, he held teaching positions at the University of Colorado (1959–1964) and the University of Pennsylvania (1965–1995). While officially retired, in 2002 he was appointed to a residency at Arizona State University.
Crumb’s style is marked by a certain terseness and austerity, and commentators have noted the influence of Webern, Debussy, and Eastern traditions. His highly original music is marked by a willingness to explore unfamiliar sonorities, as well as a ritualistic and almost mystical quality. Through these subtle effects and unusual timbres, Crumb’s stated aim was to “contemplate eternal things”.
Dedicated to his mother Vivian, his Sonata for Solo Cello, composed in 1955 while he was
still a student in Berlin, was groundbreaking when it premiered in 1957. The opening Fantasia begins with strummed chords which then alternates with a bowed melody. After the initial shock of the dissonance, the listener begins to perceive Crumb’s fantasy soundscape, which incorporates, among other unusual techniques, sliding.
The second movement is a Tema Pastorale con variazioni, and it can be challenging to internalise the theme (a sicilienne) enough to appreciate the variations, but listen out for the melodic material that centres around D with quasi tonic-dominant movement.
The Toccata starts imposingly, but quickly turns frantic as it cascades. As if in a nod to the Renaissance toccata form, which was intended to sound like an improvisation, Crumb’s music here seems to avoid any semblance of set form, yet after a comparatively lyrical middle section, the frantic cascade of notes returns, building tension and excitement till the end. Though over 50 years old, the sonata remains strikingly modern and continues to surprise listeners.
1685 – 1750
Cello Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009
Prélude
Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Bourrée I and II
Gigue
The Third Suite in C major, BWV 1009, begins with a Prelude in which Bach’s organ background can be heard, with its insistent pedal notes. The descending C major scale appears again in the Allemande, adding a hint of melancholy to the noble and stately dance. A sense of movement permeates the Courante as it drives us to our destination—the meditative Sarabande, which luxuriates in a sort of languid splendour. Instead of the menuet, Bach gives us two Bourées (in duple time, originally a French peasant dance with wooden clogs, and only much later a ballet step en pointe). As always, Bach ends with a Gigue, and Bach paints just enough polyphony for our minds to hear multiple voices singing, sometimes in counterpoint, sometimes in harmony.
“Bach has been my teacher all throughout my life. Every stage in life, he’s taught me something new about something that I didn’t know before, but I can find resonance with.” — Yo-Yo Ma
20–30 Nov 2025
Witness first-hand the virtuosity of Singapore’s finest young musicians at the 15th National Piano & Violin Competition — Singapore’s most prestigious competition of its kind.
Enjoy free access to most rounds in person at the Victoria Concert Hall, or online via livestream on the Singapore Symphony YouTube channel. Ticket sales for the Artist Finals for both piano and violin, taking place on 29 and 30 November, will be launched on 2 October 2025
Learn more
SS O.ORG.SG / NP VC
14 & 15 Nov 2025 Fr i & S at, 7.30pm E splanade C onc er t Hall
H an nu Li nt u c onduc t s
Nelson M a s s M a h ler 4
Voic e of A ngel s
Singapore Sy mphony Orchestra
Singapore Sy mphony Chor us
Singapore Sy mphony Youth Choir
Hannu Lintu Music Director-designate
Eudenice Palar uan Choral Dir ector
Wong Lai Foon Choir master
Hera Hyesang Par k soprano
V irginie Ver rez mezzo-soprano
Elgan Ll ŷ r Thomas tenor
Ed ward Grint bass baritone
Programme
Haydn Missa in angustiis – Nelson Mass Mahler Symphony No. 4 in G major
Tickets from $38
Thu, 25 Sep 2025
Esplanade Concert Hall
Singapore Symphony Orchestra
Juanjo Mena conductor
Yo-Yo Ma cello*
David Coucheron
Co-Principal Guest Concertmaster
Nielsen Symphony No. 4, Op. 29 “The Inextinguishable” 36 mins
Intermission 20 mins
Dvořák
Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104* 40 mins
Concert Duration: approximately 1 hr 50 mins (including 20 mins intermission)
Supported by
Check-in to tonight’s concert
Scan this QR code with the Singapore Symphony Mobile App.
1865 – 1931
Symphony No. 4, Op. 29 “The Inextinguishable” (1916)
Allegro
Poco allegretto
Poco adagio quasi andante
Allegro
For an art form where class and opportunity are of the utmost essence, Nielsen was an exception. The story goes that the seventh of twelve children born into a poor family, at five years of age, gathered fire logs from his family shed and played the popular folktunes of his neighbourhood. As the second movement of this symphony suggests, he never forgot his heritage. At the time of its composition, Europe was ravaged by a war in which Denmark
remained neutral. Nielsen’s faith in humanity was tested, but he felt compelled to make some kind of affirmative statement. On 3 May 1914, Nielsen wrote to his wife: “I have an idea for a new work, which has no programme but which is meant to express what we understand by the life-urge or life-manifestation; that’s to say: everything that moves, that craves life, that can be called neither good nor evil, neither high nor low, neither great nor small, but simply: ‘That which is life’ or ‘That which craves life.’ ”
“The Inextinguishable” is full of conflicts, between peace and violence, and between major and minor keys. Timpani ostinatos set the Allegro off to a mighty start, with propulsive strings vying against the brass in their upward shrieks. As the fury subsides, a long-drawn woodwind tune led by the clarinets emerges, which would return at the symphony’s conclusion. A golden brass chorale marked pesante ma glorioso (“weighty but glorious”) gives way to fragments of solo flute and pizzicato strings in a somewhat comedic fashion, before ominous mutterings from bowed strings pull the music back into turmoil. The Allegro closes with a return of the glorioso material, and a solo violin leads the way into the Poco allegretto. In this idyllic movement, Nielsen might have reminisced childhood memories of his father’s village band playing for dances at a nearby farm as he lay in bed.
Delicate pizzicatos add to the nocturnal feeling, and the music swings between two and three beats a bar in charming imitation of a tipsy village dance.
The Poco adagio quasi andante begins with a recitative lament for the violins, soaring over timpani and lower strings, in Nielsen’s words, “like an eagle on the wind”. Passionate declamation finds respite in a hymn-like serenity as a solo string quintet (violin, viola, two cellos, double bass) presents a new adagio theme, and the winds pick up its threenote fragment. More ideas are introduced: a raucous repeated-note motif from the reeds in unison, then a brass chorale. The reeds’ idea becomes a quasi-fugue in the strings, and the three-note motif returns in increasing desperation, as all the varied ideas of the movement pile into a mass of sound. These layers peter out, and the movement’s opening lament is recalled before high string trills hurtle towards the final Allegro. Here, two sets of timpani duel, spatially opposed and placed next to the audience for maximum impact. Blaring horns manage to assert themselves above the timpani and violins with the peace motif from the first movement, now in radiant E major. It is even more heartening that, after interludes in a village and with a church hymn, this musical victory comes from the symphony’s beginning, as if we had it in us all along. As Nielsen had written to his friend Julius Röntgen: “If the whole world was destroyed, Nature would once again begin to beget new life and push forward with the strong and fine forces that are to be found in the very stuff of existence … These ‘inextinguishable’ forces are what I have tried to represent.”
3 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 3 oboes, 3 clarinets, 3 bassoons (1 doubling on contrabassoon), 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, strings
World Premiere 1 Feb 1916, Copenhagen
First performed by SSO 8 Dec 1989
1841 – 1904
Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104 (1895)
Allegro
Adagio ma non troppo
III
Finale: Allegro moderato
In February 1895, Antonín Dvořák completed his Cello Concerto in B minor. This came thirty years after his first attempt at a cello concerto— “attempt” being the operative word. He never orchestrated it, leaving it unfinished as a cello-piano score. It is posited that he abandoned the project because he was dissatisfied with his own work, believing the cello was best reserved for chamber groups and orchestras, but inadequate as a solo instrument.
What changed in thirty years? One inspiration is said to be his attending the premiere of Victor Herbert’s Cello Concerto No. 2 in New York in 1894. He was struck by Herbert’s creative and sensitive use of instrumentation that allowed the cello to shine in a way he did not think possible. Another motivation was his friendship with the cellist Hanuš Wihan. Over their years of acquaintance, Dvořák had written Wihan a few chamber works such as his opus 90 and opus 94, but what Wihan really wanted was a full-scale concerto. With inspiration on one hand and a friend’s request on the other, Dvořák finally sat down to the task.
The Allegro first movement opens with a dark, somewhat ominous first theme introduced by clarinets and built up by the orchestra. This is contrasted with a second theme played by a solo horn, its warmth reminiscent of the famous 1893 “From the New World” Symphony. If Dvořák was mostly concerned about cementing the cello as the soloist, he may rest assured that his hard work has paid off. Its entry is bold and resolute, ringing out a major key version of the opening theme and proceeding to lead the orchestra to the movement’s powerful end.
In the midst of the writing the second movement, tragedy struck. A letter came from his first love (and first rejection), Josephina Čermáková, informing him that she was seriously ill. The pair met sometime in the
1860s, and Dvořák eventually moved on to marry her sister. As an homage, he worked in the melody of one of her favourite songs into the movement. This was Kéž duch můj sám (“Leave me alone”), which he wrote in 1888. Sadly, Čermáková died three months after he finished the concerto, and he revised it to add another quotation of the same song in the final movement. He also rejected Wihan’s addition of a flashy cadenza and left the soft sighing coda that remains today. In his own words, “The finale should close gradually with a diminuendo like a breath… then there is a crescendo, and the last measures are taken up by the orchestra, ending stormily. That was my idea, and from it I cannot recede.”
Instrumentation
solo cello, 2 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 3 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, triangle, strings
World Premiere 19 Mar 1896, London
First performed by SSO 22 May 1981 (Bohuslav Pavlas, cello)
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SSO Chamber Series: Die Fledermaus in a Pocket 10 1 1
Oct 7.30pm
Filled to the brim with lively polkas and irresistible waltzes, Johann Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) is a tale of love affairs and lovers’ identities gone awry. Come see this abridged 90-minute version of one of the most popular comic operettas of all time.
SSO Chamber Series: Elements – SSO × Ding Yi 11 Jan
In this multi-hued collaboration with the renowned Ding Yi Music Company of Singapore, musicians of the SSO explore an elemental gathering of Chinese/Asian and Western musical traditions, with music by Singaporean composers Sulwyn Lok and Ho Chee Kong as well as Chinese-American composers Tan Dun and Zhou Long. 7.30pm
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4
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SSO Concertmaster l GK Goh Chair
In July 2017, the SSO established the GK Goh Chair for the Concertmaster. Mr Goh Geok Khim and his family have been long-time supporters of the national orchestra. We are grateful for the donations from his family and friends towards this Chair, especially Mr and Mrs Goh Yew Lin for their most generous contribution.
Mr Igor Yuzefovich was the inaugural GK Goh Concertmaster Chair. The position is currently vacant.
SSO Principal Cello
The Head Foundation Chair
In recognition of a generous gift from The HEAD Foundation, we announced the naming of our Principal Cello, “The HEAD Foundation Chair” in November 2019. The Chair is currently held by Principal Cellist Ng Pei-Sian.
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Stephen Riady Chair
In recognition of a generous gift from Dr Stephen Riady, we announced in May 2022 the naming of our Principal Flute, “Stephen Riady Chair”. The position is currently held by our Principal Flutist Jin Ta.
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Tan Jiew Cheng Chair
In recognition of a generous gift from the Estate of Tan Jiew Cheng, we announced in February 2024 the naming of our Principal Viola, “Tan Jiew Cheng Chair”. The position is currently held by our Principal Violist Manchin Zhang.
The SSO is delighted to announce the naming of the “Quantedge Music Director” position, currently held by Maestro Hans Graf.
With his spirit of musical exploration, innovative programming, and captivating stage presence, Maestro Graf has consistently inspired audiences and elevated orchestras to new heights. We are deeply grateful for his continued leadership as Chief Conductor in the 2020/21 season and Music Director since the 2022/23 season.
We extend our sincerest gratitude to our anonymous donor for this generous gift of $3 million to mark SG60.
Auditions will be held for shortlisted Singaporean instrumentalists performing concertos or concertante works written for their instrument and Singaporean vocalists performing any vocal work with orchestra.
Eligibility: Applicants must be Singapore citizens and 25 years old or younger as of 1 Jan 2026.
Application Deadline: Applicants are invited to submit their online application by 5 Dec 2025, with the following items:
1. Biography including their date of birth, musical background and contact information
2. A high-quality video featuring a recent performance of a complete concerto or concertante work with either piano or orchestra accompaniment, with composer name, duration of each movement and edition (if applicable) of the work clearly labelled.
For application enquiries, please contact: pypc@sso.org.sg
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Application deadline: 5 Dec 2025
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