Senior Arts Review
TERM 2, 2024/25
THE ARTS AT TANGLIN
"It starts with a spark of curiosity that is fuelled by passion. A desire to be creative while persevering through the challenges. Discovering your artistic identity through personal expression. Developing an appreciation and mutual respect for the work of others. Encouraging inclusion and diversity so everyone can participate, succeed and achieve their personal best."
At Tanglin, we have a thriving Arts community with over 800 students participating in approximately 50 CCAs weekly, culminating in over 50 events yearly. We also achieve outstanding results in the classroom and have been awarded ‘best in the world’ for A Level 6 times in the last 4 years for individual Arts Subjects. Our talented teaching staff and Arts technicians work tirelessly with our students daily to offer memorable opportunities to be creative, collaborate and express themselves in the Arts, inside and outside the classroom.
This is the second edition of the Senior Arts Review this academic year. It has been another busy term with so many fantastic events being showcased across the Arts in the Senior School, as well as preparing students for their coursework and final examinations. I hope you enjoy reading about all our endeavours, and we will hopefully see you at our events in Term 3.
Richie Baxter Head of the Arts Faculty
DRAMA
In January, the Berrick Hall was transformed into the Hotbox Club, New York, for four days of Guys and Dolls, the classic musical written by Damon Runyon in the 1920s, the perfect choice for Tanglin’s Centenary. Over 80 students were involved, playing the roles of gamblers, dancers, and Salvation Army members, with some outstanding performances by our main cast. This was followed in March with the annual Musical Showcase, capably led this year by Year 12 students Charlotte and Renata, with all years represented, delighting their audience with this joyful performance.
Kate Edwards
Senior Drama Specialist
My thanks go to all those involved in the drama productions; they are an enormous undertaking, and producing the quality of performances that we do says much about the individuals involved and the culture of support that exists in what can be a challenging environment. I can count myself truly fortunate to have witnessed West Side Story, Chicago and Guys and Dolls productions we would have all gladly paid the ‘going rate’ for.
Chris Seal Head of Senior School
"Leading this year's Musical Showcase, Broadway Nights, Big City Lights, was a challenging but deeply rewarding experience. After growing up immersed in Tanglin Drama and participating in these shows, we were grateful to have the opportunity to give back to the community and contribute our own show to the legacy.
We created engaging choreography for students across all senior years and worked hard to build a welcoming and inclusive environment where anyone with a passion for musical theatre could shine. It was a joy to see so many come together to share their love of performance."
Charlotte A. and Renata D. (Year 12 Students)
The term kicked off with the highly valued Year 10 and Year 12 Production Days with Ian Pike (Director, Writer, Lecturer). The Year 10 students took advantage of Ian’s understanding of script writing conventions to help them plan for an important piece of coursework – the Camera and Editing task for Competency 2. Ian helped them unpack the script and think about how to visualise the action from a cinematography point of view.
Both our IB and A Level students were able to work with Ian and experiment with production techniques, developing their technical skills and capturing valuable footage for their portfolios and music video projects. The Year 12 IB students spend time unpacking the role of Director and practising hands-on directing skills such as coaching performance, choreographing camera movements, and working on blocking plans. The Year 12 A Level students had a deep dive into music video production, looking at the conventions of the genre and analysing the elements that make successful music videos. In the afternoon, this led to the creation of a music video utilising elements from the morning session.
Later in the term, our Year 12 and Year 13 Media Studies students enjoyed a panel discussion on The Contemporary Media Landscape with industry professionals from Mediacorp. Relevant topics, such as media regulation, the changing face of social media, and the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on content creation, were discussed at length in a lively back-and-forth debate.
This term also saw the continuation of the Media Tech Crew CCA, which focuses on students who are intending to study Film and Media production at university. Working with our technician, Andrea, students from the CCA have had skills-based workshops on a variety of real-world industry scenarios as well as taking part in numerous school-based filming projects including filming Guys and Dolls, Battle of the Bands, centenary guest speakers for The Institute, filming for Leaver's Week, and the Upper School Counselling Team.
Ben Astley Head of Film and Media
“In February, the Year 12 students participated in an engaging workshop with Ian Pike. In this workshop, we worked on a short music video for the song Dr. No by Babyshambles. The students were then asked to select a section of the song and think about what they should do with it. Everyone got creative with their editing, the section of the song they chose, and their locations. The process was very enjoyable and worthwhile as it allowed the class to learn and apply skills that will give us all a head start in our coursework. After a productive afternoon, the students watched each other’s work and commented on what they liked about each video.”
Aahana
R.
(Year 12 Student)
ART & DESIGN
Numerous events have been facilitated by the Art department has facilitated numerous events this term. The Ian Murphy Residency (funded by the Foundation) saw all schools collaborate in creating birthday-themed artworks. Local artist, Chen Shitong, led a printing workshop for our Year 12 students, and out of school, we provided enrichment opportunities by taking our Year 7 students out to Bright Hill Temple to observe the rich patterns and colours. The prestigious Articulation semi-final was held at the National Gallery Singapore, and our Year 12 student, Jahnavi P., participated with an engaging speech. Also, our Year 10 Art and Graphic students visited the incredible ARTSG exhibition at Marina Bay Sands.
In March, we held our IB Refraction Private View, celebrating the Year 13 Visual Arts students’ two-year art journey. We held our half-termly early morning ‘Drawing by The Bus Bay’ event for the whole school community to collaborate with creating large-scale artworks with an international language focus. Cross-school collaborations saw our Year 12 art prefects visit Year 2s to celebrate their Ian Murphy exhibition. It was delightful to see art-focused conversations emerge while the students were nibbling on biscuits and sipping on Ribena!
Later in the term, we were fortunate to have the IB Visual Arts Curriculum Lead visit our Art department. She enjoyed spending time with our students discussing their work and was extremely impressed with the guidance our students receive and the quality of the artwork we generate.
Next term, we look forward to our external examinations, our Summer Art exhibition and our Interpretations event at The National Gallery, Singapore in May.
Elizabeth Anstiss Head of Senior Art and Design
I had the privilege of attending the Year 2 Ian Murphy art private view, which was an inspiring and enriching experience. It was a great opportunity to engage with students who had also participated in an Ian Murphy workshop, and I was genuinely impressed by their understanding of artistic techniques. They shared insights into their use of graphite and charcoal to shade cupcakes drawn in celebration of Tanglin's centennial, demonstrating strong awareness of light, shadow, and depth. I was also able to share my own knowledge with them, particularly around the use of value and tone, and answer their thoughtful questions about my own Ian Murphy-inspired work. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the exchange of ideas and appreciated the chance to learn about their creative achievements.
Aradhana C. (Year 12 student)
MUSIC
The special centenary edition of Battle of the Bands saw over 100 students from Years 7 – 13 in 20 bands competing to see who would be crowned this year’s champions. A very enthusiastic audience cheered them on, and the judging panel (comprising a number of industry professionals) were blown away by the standard of performances. Many of the bands also performed at the Blackbird the following weekend, which was an excellent showcase for our talented rock musicians.
Botanic Beats was a really lovely event that involved around 300 students performing in orchestras, choirs, and jazz ensembles. The weather was kind to us, and an estimated 2,700 people came along to watch the performances of everything from Elgar to Jamiroquai to Bruno Mars. Once again, our student musicians did us proud!
In addition to these events, there have been numerous other highlights, including a visit from Desford Colliery Brass Band, Informal and Formal Concerts, Musician of the Year finals, performances in the Bus Bay, and an exciting trip to see Wicked
In class, our Year 11, 12 and 13 students have done some sterling work on their composition and performance coursework, and we wish them all the best for their upcoming exams.
My experience of Battle of the Bands was amazing - it was a very fun night of rock and pop music, with a large variety of bands. My band was ‘Kimchi and the Krayfish’; we won and got a prize of having a professional recording in the Lion studio with Roo Pigott. The studio had very nice sounding instruments and amplifiers, and the whole session was really inspiring and interesting. The equipment and facility was very advanced and sounded great. Even if we hadn’t won, Battle of the Bands was still a superb experience, and in general, it got everyone’s mood up. After that night, the school was still buzzing with excitement about the performances.
Adeline K. (Year 8 Student)
COLLABORATION IN THE ARTS
Film and Media students have successfully collaborated with students on a range of IB and A Level arts courses.
HL IB Film students worked with a composer taking IB Music to produce a musical score for their Collaborative Film Project. As can be seen from the stills below, this was no mean feat as the film required music within a range of genres and moods - from mournful and reflective to joyful and hi-energy.
Likewise, Film students also collaborated with the Art Department to produce short docu-films about the creative processes of students taking A Level Art. These films will ultimately be used as part of the A Level final, examined exhibition. Stills from the films are below.
“In a creative and intriguing collaboration, I worked closely with an incredibly talented A Level art student to produce a short documentary showcasing her artistic journey. Capturing the essence of her work and its cultivating backstory, this short film brings her vision to life, offering a rich insight into her creative process. By carefully planning shots to showcase her incredible artwork, I ensured that the emotion and thought behind each art piece were conveyed through the screen. Moreover, apart from techniques used in filmmaking, I gained an immense appreciation for this creative process by viewing the dedication and passion behind the art. Overall, this project beautifully blended filmmaking and fine art, admiring and magnifying artistic expression one stroke at a time.”
Ishita A. (Year 12 Student)
