SYC Ensemble Singers
The SYC Ensemble Singers began life in 1964 as the Singapore Youth Choir (SYC), a national choir for young singers. To celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2004 and to mark a point of musical evolution, the choir was renamed the SYC Ensemble Singers.
Considered a trailblazer and standard-bearer throughout its history, the SYC was the first Singaporean choir to win an international competition, the Llangollen International Music Eisteddfod. It was also the first choir to receive the President’s Charity and the Excellence for Singapore awards. To celebrate Singapore’s 50th year of independence, the choir performed in Washington D.C. at the invitation of the Embassy of Singapore.
Led by Jennifer Tham since 1986, the SYC Ensemble Singers promotes and performs the work of living composers, often exploring spatialised sound, theatre and movement. To date, the SYC has commissioned over 60 works, most recently from Americ Goh (Singapore), Jacob Mühlrad (Sweden) and Saunder Choi (Philippines). Their flexible musicianship and commitment to diverse and complex voices have earned them an international reputation as performers and interpreters of contemporary music.
Connect with the SYC Ensemble Singers and find out more about Living Music:
The SYC Ensemble Singers are…
Charlotte Cheong, Karen Cheong, Szecindyo Chewandi, Chin Zhi Hui, Chong Wai Lun, Nicolette Foo, Americ Goh, Calvin Goh, Hong Zhengyang, Angela Lee, Hillary Lee, Aaron Liew, Brian Lim, Lim Ming Boon, Lim Pei Yu, Lin Yun Xin, Look Ru Shin, Justin Lutian, Charlene Mooi, Benlee Tan, Tan Pei Ling, Joseph Tay, Jean Teo, Shaun Teo, Teo Boon Fang, Teo Jia Yu, Faith Yang, Albert Yeo.
Keen to sing with us? Contact enquiries@syc.org.sg
Jennifer Tham
Artistic Director & Conductor
Jennifer is curious about the sight of sound and has a multi-modal listening practice as a conductor and composer. Her work is shaped by a love of words, phenomenology, mapping, spatial practices, conceptual art, contemporary music and choral theatre. With the SYC Ensemble Singers (Singapore)—a mixed chamber choir she has directed since 1986—she works at the intersection of the literary, musical and visual cultures, employing staging, movement and lighting design to reify the patterns of new music on stage. For her role in shaping Singapore’s cultural landscape, she was awarded the Cultural Medallion, the nation’s highest arts accolade, by the President, Republic of Singapore.
Jennifer taught choral conducting and pedagogy at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, and teaches short courses and workshops on repertoire, conducting, and rehearsal technique, equipping young conductors around the world with a toolbox of musicianship games for learning and performing contemporary music. She has chaired and spoken on panels on repertoire and programming at conferences and symposia in Argentina, Denmark, Estonia and Sweden, and was Principal Lecturer at the Lithuanian Conductors Summer Academy hosted by the Lithuanian Choral Union and the Ministry of Culture.
Under the auspices of the Young Musicians’ Society, Jennifer was Artistic Director of the Asia South Pacific Symposium on Choral Music (2001) and its offshoots, the First Aid for Choirs clinics (2002-2017) and Kodaly Seminar Asia series (2009-2016), the latter in partnership with the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy of Music (Budapest, Hungary). For the International Federation for Choral Music, Jennifer co-coordinates the Asia Pacific Working Committee and the Asia Pacific Youth Choir. She represents Singapore on the World Choir Council, and has been on jury at the World Choir Games and other festivals in Asia, Europe and America since 2003.
In 2021, Jennifer obtained her Master of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts from the School for Contemporary Arts at Simon Fraser University (Vancouver). Since then, she has been giving foundation courses in musical leadership to student conductors, and sharing rehearsal games in a series of workshops for the Taiwan Choral Association, the Choral Directors’ Association of Singapore, and at the World Symposium on Choral Music 2023 in Istanbul, Türkiye.
Read more at www.jennifertham.com
Chong Wai Lun Associate Conductor
Wai Lun joined the SYC Ensemble Singers in 2005 and found his passion for choral music. He helped prepare the choir for performances with Vytautas Miškinis, Ko Matsushita and Corrado Margutti, in addition to assisting with SYC’s regular season of concerts and tours. He completed further studies in Hungary and Wales, graduating with a Master’s in Kodaly Music Pedagogy and a Master’s in Choral Conducting, from the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy of Music, and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, respectively.
In 2018, Wai Lun founded Symphonia Choralis, a community choir specialising in symphonic choral works, and is Chorus Master for the Metropolitan Festival Orchestra (MFO) and Orchestra of the Music Makers (OMM). At the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, his alma mater, Wai Lun is on faculty as an adjunct lecturer, teaching aural musicianship, and rehearsing the Chamber Singers. He continues to sing with Vocaluptuous, a local a cappella group.
Nicolette Foo Assistant Conductor
Nicolette has been singing with the SYC Ensemble Singers since 2014 and has served on several portfolios including Rehearsal Conductor and Librarian.
Nicolette was first exposed to contemporary choral music when she sang with the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus (CHIJ) Secondary School Choir, under the direction of Jennifer Tham, later serving as their student conductor. She now conducts several choirs, including the choir of CHIJ Secondary School where her journey as choral conductor began. In 2021, Nicolette received a scholarship to the 6th International Conductors Seminar in Wernigerode from Interkultur.
Leslie Tan
In a career that has spanned 35 years, ranging from orchestral to chamber and solo concerts; from contemporary and crossdisciplinary works to historically informed performances, Leslie is sought after both as a pedagogue and concert artiste. He has performed to critical acclaim in major venues and festivals worldwide, including the Tanglewood and Aspen Festivals in the USA; the Melbourne and Port Fairy Festivals in Australia; the New Zealand Festival; the Hong Kong Arts Festival; and the PragueVienna-Budapest Sommerakademie, the City of London Festival and the Edinburgh Festival in Europe.
A champion of outreach activities and transformative education through music in the ASEAN region, Leslie teaches in different festivals and projects. He hopes to enrich the lives of the underprivileged and the disenfranchised across Asia through his latest initiative, ProjectArtitude.
Leslie is a founding member of Red Dot Baroque, and the Artistic Director and co-founder of the Bach-in-Bali Festival.
April och tystnad (1996)
Sven-David Sandström (1942-2019)
Text: Tomas Tranströmer (1931-2015)
Translation: Robin Fulton
Våren ligger öde Det sammetsmörka diket krälar vid min sida utan spegelbilder.
Det enda som lyser är gula blommor.
Jag bärs i min skugga som en fiol i sin svarta låda.
Det enda jag vill säga glimmar utom räckhåll som silvret hos pantlånaren.
Spring lies desolate. The velvet-dark ditch crawls by my side without reflections.
The only thing that shines is yellow flowers.
I am carried in my shadow like a violin in its black box.
The only thing I want to say glitters out of reach like the silver in a pawnbroker’s.
:
Zauberspruch den Liebsten zu beschworen (1962)
Petr Eben (1929-2007)
Translation: New Amsterdam Singers, USA
Leuchte du mein lieber junger Morgen, doch du, klarer Tau des Himmels, fall nicht nieder, und du, helle Sonne, geh nicht auf, schein nicht auf Berge, nicht in Täler, und nicht auf den Kreuzweg!
Sonne, Sonne, scheine nur allein auf den lieben Allerliebsten mein, der von Gott mir ist gegeben, der mir soll im Herzen leben.
O Sonne mein, scheine auf den Liebsten, und wenn du ihn siehst, so entflamme du das Herz ihm, auf daß er fürder könne nimmer essen, nimmer trinken, nimmer schlafen, nimmer fröhlich sein! Soll nur an mich denken, soll sich zu mir lenken.
Eine Stunde soll ihm keine Stunde sein, die lieb ihm waren, sollen lieb ihm nimmer sein, die eigne Schwester sei ihm nicht mehr Schwester, und sein Bruder
sei ihm nicht mehr Bruder, seine Mutter nicht mehr Mutter und sein Vater nicht mehr Vater! Nichts soll ihm lieb sein auf der Welt, als nur die Eine, die ihm auserkorn.
Give forth your light, oh early morning, but you, clear dew of heaven, do not fall, and you, bright sun, do not rise, shine not on hills, nor on valleys, nor on the crossroads!
Sun, sun, shine only on my dearest beloved, whom God has given to me, and who shall always live in my heart.
Oh sun, shine on my beloved, and when you see him, set his heart aflame, so that he can no longer eat, nor drink, nor sleep, nor be happy! He shall only think of me, his thoughts, shall revolve around me only.
An hour shall no longer be an hour for him, those he cared for, he shall not care for anymore, his own sister shall not be a sister anymore, nor his brother shall not be a brother anymore, nor his mother a mother, nor his father a father! He shall not care for anything in the world, except the one who is destined to be his.
Sie soll ihm lieb sein, mehr als alles in der Welt, als die schönen Jungfräulein, als die Witwen ohne Zahl, als die Frauen allzumal.
Sie soll ihm lieb sein über alle Königinnen in der Welt, über alle Kaiserinnen, über Gold und Edelstein, Honigseim und Diamant. Hinter Bergen weilt er, soll geschwind sie überschreiten, wenn uns Wasser trennt, soll geschwind er’s überqueren, und wenn ihn Gitter von Eisen halten, soll er sie geschwind zerbrechen. Zögern nimmer soll er und sich nicht verweilen, soll nur immer zu mir eilen, ohne Zögern, ohn Verweilen her zu mir eilen!
Exaudi (2004)
Jocelyn Morlock (1969-2023)
Exaudi orationem meam; ad te omnis caro veniet.
In Paradisum deducant te Angeli; in tuo adventu suscipiant te martyres, et perducant te in civitatem sanctum Jerusalem.
Her he shall love more than anything in the world, more than the lovely young virgins, more than all the widows, more than all women.
He shall love her more than all the queens in the world, all the empresses, gold and jewels, honey nectar and diamonds. If he is behind mountains, he shall hurriedly climb them, if water parts us, he shall quickly swim across, and if iron gates bar him, he shall smash them. No longer shall he hesitate and wait, but shall rush to me without hesitation, without delay rush here to me!
Chorus Angelorum te suscipiat, et cum Lazaro quondam paupere aeternam habeas requiem.
Hear my prayer; for unto you all flesh shall come.
May angels lead you into Paradise, at your coming may martyrs receive you, and may they lead you into the Holy City, Jerusalem.
May the chorus of angels receive you, and with Lazarus, who once was a pauper, may you have eternal rest.
Silent Steps (2021)
Nana Forte (1981)
Text: Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941)
Have you not heard his silent steps? He comes, comes, ever comes.
Every moment and every age, every day and every night he comes, comes, ever comes.
Many a song have I sung in many a mood of mind, but all their notes have always proclaimed, 'He comes, comes, ever comes.’
In the fragrant days of sunny April through the forest path he comes, comes, ever comes.
In the rainy gloom of July nights on the thundering chariot of clouds he comes, comes, ever comes.
In sorrow after sorrow it is his steps that press upon my heart, and it is the golden touch of his feet that makes my joy to shine.
buying a hope (2023)
Americ Goh (1982)
Americ Goh has an affinity for voice, and works closely with singers and choirs. His primary focus in composition is on experimentation without neglecting tradition and craft, striving for balance, meaning and communication. His works are often reflections on social issues and an introspection on spirituality. He currently lectures at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.
For this concert of music and numbers, he took inspiration from the neighbourhood kopitiam, watching a queue form as he had his daily coffee. People were lining up to buy 4D, eagerly waiting for the auspicious hour to arrive. Americ writes, “The queue grew and it became a performance, each of them scribbling, thinking mouthing. I was bewildered by this happening. The queue grew longer and became a dragon. An overwhelming feeling of collective hope swept over me—a hope that is resonated through their visible incantation. And the further anticipation of striking it lucky, waiting, and praying for your numbers to be picked by near future’s fate. It was exciting to witness, and to be part of this ritual—the society’s ceremony. Leaves of pink rained upon us...”
There is no text for buying a hope, only numbers, personal to each singer of the choir.
Ay Li Lu (somewhere in infinity) (2023)
Jacob Mühlrad (1991)
Jacob Mühlrad, a young Swedish composer, has made a name for himself with a handful of highly original works for both instruments and voices. His choral works often reflect his Jewish heritage, and this is also true of the second premiere of this concert, Ay Li Lu, based on an old Yiddish lullaby. This work was commissioned by the SYC Ensemble Singers in collaboration with three other choirs on four continents—the Vox Chamber Choir in South Africa, Kampin Laulu Chamber Choir in Finland, and the Vancouver Chamber Choir in Canada, led by Kari Turunen, who initiated the global multi-choir commission and premiered the work in Vancouver in April 2023.
Ay Li Lu is an interplay between Mühlrad’s interpretation of the Yiddish lullaby and a chanting of the beginning of the infinite number of π (pi). Mühlrad writes, “Lullabies are a universal human phenomenon where the parent sings their child to sleep. No matter the time and no matter the geographical location, the phenomenon of a lullaby is constant. My aim is to explore the lullaby from different musical folk traditions in several pieces. In this piece, I am focusing on the Yiddish lullaby.” For the duration of this work of over ten minutes in length, one remains in the embrace of this lullaby. The music does not seem to have a direction but rather creates the same kind of trance that watching a living fire does. The music flickers and ebbs and wanes, but in many ways remains the same throughout. (Programme note by Kari Turunen.)
Ay li lu li lu, ay li lu li lu…
Shlof shoyn mayn tayer faygele, makh shoyn mayn jinggale tsu dayn kosher aygelekh. Shlof shoyn, shlof in ziser ruh.
Ay li lu li lu, ay li lu li lu…
Shlof doorkh di gantse nakht, makh shoyn dayn aygelekh tsu.
Ay li lu li lu…
Ay li lu li lu, ay li lu li lu…
Sleep now my dear birdie, close now my young one your Kosher eyes. Sleep now, sleep in sweet rest.
Ay li lu li lu, ay li lu li lu…
Sleep through the entire night, close now your little eyes.
Ay li lu li lu…
