Singapore Symphony Orchestra Jul-Aug 2026

Help us expand Singapore’s living library of music

The Singapore Symphony Group actively commissions and performs works by Singaporean composers, reflecting our nation’s stories and heritage through music.

Make a Gif t

Scan the QR code to donate now, or write to development@sso.org.sg for more details.

Singapore tax residents are eligible for 250% tax deduction.

This year’s SSO National Day Concert on 15 August 2026 features four new commissions by local composers – one of which is A Singapore Suite by Low Peng Guan, selected through an open Call for Compositions held earlier this year.

Your gift supports such vital platforms for young emerging composers, and enables us to continue championing local voices while building a lasting library of our nation’s music for future generations.

16

24

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series:

Gil Shaham and Mahler 5

Fri & Sat, 17 & 18 Jul 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series:

Zarathustra and Bluebeard’s Castle

Fri, 24 Jul 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

30

Marc-André Hamelin & Sebastian Weigle – Brahms Piano Concerto 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

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.

No photography, video or audio recording is allowed when artists are performing.

Non-flash photography is allowed only during bows and applause when no performance is taking place.

Go green. Digital programme books are available on www.sso.org.sg.

Photographs and videos will be taken at these events, in which you may appear. These may be published on the SSO’s publicity channels and materials. By attending the event, you consent to the use of these photographs and videos for the foregoing purposes.

Cover photo: Hannu Lintu © Crispian Chan

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

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 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.

The SSO is 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).

The orchestra performs over 60 concerts a year, and its versatile repertoire spans all-time 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-ofthe-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.

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 A Hero’s Life (OUR Recordings), Symbiosis – Tribute to Bill Evans (Pentatone) and a complete Mozart Violin Concerto cycle with Singaporean violinist Chloe Chua conducted by Hans Graf (Pentatone). The SSO also leads the revival and recording of significant works such as Kozłowski’s Requiem 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 organisation 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.

The Orchestra

Second Violin

Markus Gundermann Co-Principal (Guest)

Qing Li Co-Principal (Guest)

Sayuri Kuru Associate Principal

Bobur Eshpulatov

Nikolai Koval*

Hai-Won Kwok

Margit Saur

Shao Tao Tao

Reina Teo

Wu Man Yun*

Xu Jueyi*

Hannu Lintu

Quantedge Music Director

Nathanaël Iselin

Associate Conductor

Lan Shui

Conductor Laureate

Hans Graf

Conductor Laureate

Eudenice Palaruan Choral Director

Wong Lai Foon Choirmaster

Ellissa Sayampanathan

Assistant Choral Conductor

First Violin

Andrew Beer Concertmaster, GK Goh Chair

Chan Yoong-Han1 Acting Associate Concertmaster

Cao Can*

Duan Yu Ling

Foo Say Ming

Jin Li

Kong Xianlong

Cindy Lee

Renyu Martin Peh

Karen Tan

William Tan

Wei Zhe

Ye Lin*

Zhang Si Jing

Yin Shu Zhan*

Zhao Tian

Viola

Manchin Zhang Principal, Tan Jiew Cheng Chair

Guan Qi Associate Principal

Gu Bing Jie* Assistant Principal

Chen Li

Marietta Ku

Luo Biao

Julia Park

Shui Bing

Janice Tsai

Dandan Wang

Yang Shi Li

Cello

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

Double Bass

Joan Perarnau Garriga Principal (Visiting)

Yang Zheng Yi Associate Principal

Karen Yeo Assistant Principal

Po-Yu Fang

Victor Lee

Jacek Mirucki

Wang Xu

Flute

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

Simon Emes^

Carolyn Hollier

Elaine Yeo

Cor Anglais

Elaine Yeo Associate Principal

Clarinet

Chiang Yung-Yuan 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

Details correct at the time of printing and subject to change. * ^ 1

Horn

Austin Larson Principal

Marc-Antoine Robillard Associate Principal

Thossaporn Sombat^ Associate Principal

Bryan Chong

Gao Jian

Hoang Van Hoc

Trumpet

Jon Paul Dante Principal

David Smith Associate Principal

Lau Wen Rong

Nuttakamon Supattranont

Trombone

Allen Meek Principal

Damian Patti Associate Principal

Samuel Armstrong

Bass Trombone

Wang Wei Assistant Principal

Tuba

Tomoki Natsume Principal

Timpani

Christian Schiøler Principal

Mario Choo

Percussion

Jonathan Fox Principal

Mark Suter Associate Principal

Mario Choo

Harp

Gulnara Mashurova Principal

With deep appreciation to the Rin Collection for their generous loan of string instruments. Musician on annual contract.

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.

Guest Musicians

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series: Gil Shaham and Mahler 5 17 & 18 Jul 2026

First Violin

Seow Jin Chong

Yew Shan

Second Violin

Lee Shi Mei

Yvonne Lee

Viola

Joelle Hsu

Double Bass

Guennadi Mouzyka

Horn

Liu Yang Guest Associate Principal

Lewis Lim

Percussion

Tan Pei Jie

Harp

Vanessa Jazzy

Piano Beatrice Lin

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series: Zarathustra and Bluebeard’s Castle 24 Jul 2026

First Violin

Lim Shue Churn

Seow Jin Chong

Second Violin

Wilford Goh

Lee Shi Mei

Yvonne Lee

Viola

Torsten Tiebout Guest Principal

Joelle Hsu

Patcharaphan Khumprakob

Double Bass

Ma Li Ming

Oboe

Hu Qiuzi Guest Associate Principal

Horn

Grzegorz Curyla

Jaben Sim

Trumpet

Lertkiat Chongjirajitra

Tuba

Henrique Costa

Harp

Vanessa Jazzy

Celesta

Beatrice Lin

Organ

Koh Jia Hwei

Marc-André Hamelin & Sebastian Weigle – Brahms Piano Concerto 2

6 Aug 2026

First Violin

Lim Shue Churn

Second Violin

Jeongyeon Im Guest Principal

Seow Jin Chong

Yew Shan

Ikuko Takahashi

Viola

Torsten Tiebout Guest Principal

Patcharaphan Khumprakob

Double Bass

Guennadi Mouzyka

Hannu Lintu

Quantedge Music Director, Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Hannu Lintu continues to maintain his reputation as one of the world’s finest conductors. From this season, Lintu leads the Singapore Symphony Orchestra as its Quantedge Music Director, and continues his tenures as Music Director of Orquestra Gulbenkian, Artistic Partner of the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, and Artistic Director of the International Sibelius Festival.

2026/27 appearances include returns to the Netherlands, Seoul, and Hong Kong Phiharmonics, the Minnesota Orchestra, and the Atlanta Symphony, as well as a debut with the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich.

Symphonic highlights of recent years have seen Lintu conduct the Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Berliner Philharmoniker, Cleveland Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de Radio France, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony, Deutsches SymphonieOrchester Berlin, and London Philharmonic. He continues to enjoy relationships with many of the orchestras in his native Finland including

the Finnish Radio Symphony and Tampere Philharmonic orchestras – of whom he is a former Chief Conductor.

As an expert in both operatic as well as symphonic repertoire, Lintu’s recent opera highlights have included the world premiere of Sebastian Fagerlund’s The Morning Star at Finnish National Opera, Enescu’s Oedipe at Bregenz Festspiele, Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer at Opera de Paris and Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande at Bayerische Staatsoper, as well as multiple productions at Finnish National Opera and Ballet, including a multiseason Ring Cycle, Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites, Strauss’ Elektra, and Mozart’s Don Giovanni.

Lintu studied cello and piano at the Sibelius Academy, where he also later studied conducting with Jorma Panula. He participated in masterclasses with Myung-Whun Chung at L’Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy, and took first prize at the Nordic Conducting Competition in Bergen in 1994.

Gil Shaham is one of the foremost violinists of our time; his flawless technique combined with his inimitable warmth and generosity of spirit has solidified his renown as an American master. He is sought-after throughout the world for concerto appearances with leading orchestras and conductors, and regularly gives recitals and appears with ensembles on the world’s great concert stages and at the most prestigious festivals.

Highlights of recent years include a recording and performances of J.S. Bach’s complete sonatas and partitas for solo violin and recitals with his long-time duo partner, pianist Akira Eguchi. He regularly appears with the Berlin Philharmonic, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco Symphonies, the Israel Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, and in multi-year residencies with the Orchestras of Montreal, Stuttgart and Singapore.

Gil Shaham has more than two dozen concerto and solo CDs to his name, earning multiple GRAMMYs, a Grand Prix du Disque, Diapason d’Or, and Gramophone Editor’s Choice. Many of these recordings appear on Canary Classics, the label he founded in 2004. His 2016 recording 1930s Violin Concertos Vol. 2 as well as his 2021 recording of Beethoven and Brahms Concertos with The Knights were nominated for GRAMMY Awards.

Gil Shaham was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 1990, and in 2008 he received the coveted Avery Fisher Prize. In 2012, he was named “Instrumentalist of the Year” by Musical America. He plays the 1699 “Countess Polignac” Stradivarius and performs on an Antonio Stradivari violin, Cremona c1719, with the assistance of Rare Violins In Consortium, Artists and Benefactors Collaborative. He lives in New York City with his wife, violinist Adele Anthony, and their three children.

Gil Shaham violin

Shenyang

bass-baritone

After winning the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition in 2007, Shenyang’s career was launched with acclaim for interpretations of Mozart, Rossini, and Handel and in recent years, Beethoven, Strauss, and Wagner.

Shenyang’s affinity for Wagner has been demonstrated in performances as Gunther (Götterdämmerung) with Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra under Jaap van Zweden, Klingsor (Parsifal) at La Monnaie under Alain Altinoglu, Heerrufer (Lohengrin) at Opéra national de Paris under Alexander Soddy, and Kurwenal (Tristan und Isolde) at Glyndebourne Festival under Robin Ticciati. His portrayal of Wotan (Das Rheingold) with Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, and his debut in Die Walküre as part of Bayreuth in Shanghai under Xu Zhong, further confirm his growing stature in this repertoire. Other highlights include Don Pizarro (Fidelio) with Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel and Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich under Paavo Järvi, and Jochanaan (Salome) with Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra under Alexander Liebreich.

Concert highlights include Beethoven, Symphony No. 9 with Philadelphia Orchestra under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and New York Philharmonic under Alan Gilbert, Verdi’s Requiem with Orchestre National de Lyon under Simone Young and at Bergen International Festival under Ed Gardner, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem with Boston Symphony Orchestra under Andris Nelsons, and Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette with Berliner Philharmoniker under Daniel Harding.

In 2025/26, Shenyang debuted Amonasro (Aida) at Washington National Opera under Kwamé Ryan, performed Kullervo with London Philharmonic Orchestra under Robin Ticciati and Puccini’s Messa di Gloria with Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo and Thierry Fischer. Next season, Shenyang joins Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Tarmo Peltokoski for Mahler Symphony No. 8.

Recognised as one of the most important voices of her generation, esteemed mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnston has established a formidable reputation as a preeminent interpreter of Mahler, Wagner, Britten, Beethoven, and Elgar.

Highlights of recent seasons include Judith (Duke Bluebeard’s Castle) with Oslo Philharmonic and with English National Opera, as well as role debuts as Ježibaba (Rusalka) for Den Norske Opera and Fricka (Das Rheingold and Die Walküre) with the Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal. Mahler’s works have been a central feature of Johnston’s career, with key performances including Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under Klaus Mäkelä, Wiener Philharmoniker under Franz Welser-Möst, Bayerisches Staatsorchester under Kirill Petrenko, Prague Philharmonic Orchestra under Semyon Bychkov, Cleveland Orchestra under Klaus Mäkelä, and with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra under Domingo Hindoyan.

Upcoming engagements include Judith (Duke Bluebeard’s Castle) with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra on tour under Klaus Mäkelä, Mahler Symphony No. 8 with Orchestre de Paris, and Mahler Symphony No. 3 with Orquesta y Coro de la Comunidad de Madrid, Bremer Philharmoniker and National Arts Centre Orchestra Ottawa.

A former BBC New Generation Artist and graduate of Cambridge University and the Royal College of Music, Johnston was awarded the Royal Philharmonic Society Singer Award in 2021.

Jennifer Johnston mezzo-soprano

Gabriel Chan

lighting designer

Gabriel is an acclaimed lighting designer based in Singapore. Graduating from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts with First Class Honours in Lighting Design, supported by the NAC Overseas Bursary and the Strand Lighting Scholarship, he was conferred the Young Artist Award in 2019 for his artistic excellence and contribution to Singapore’s performing arts scene. A chameleon of a designer, Gabriel is well-versed in lighting for the theatre, dance, music concerts, sporting and live national broadcast events.

Signature theatre designs include Shakespeare in the Park: Macbeth (2025), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2023), Julius Caesar, Romeo & Juliet, The Tempest, The LKY Musical (Singapore Repertory Theatre), The Crab Flower Club 2022 (Toy Factory Productions), and Every Brilliant Thing (The Fingers Players).

Music lighting design credits include Ravel’s Spain (Singapore Symphony Orchestra), Pipa Virtuoso, Wu Man, in Borderlands (SIFA 2016), Eight, Stories from an Island City, Mind the Music, Heirlooms and Forefathers (The Teng Ensemble), SCO 25th Anniversary Virtuoso Series I, II, III, Rhapsodies of Spring (Singapore Chinese Orchestra), The Origins Cipher, Nine Songs, Soul Journey Ten Years, (Siong Leng Musical Association), the South East Asian Tour of Sound of Wisdom - Heal and Sound of Peace (IMMPAC) and prolific Taiwanese singer A-Lin’s A Link with Passengers World Tour in Singapore.

Gabriel also goes by the moniker Linesmith (www.linesmith.net) authorised directly by Vectorworks Headquarters based in Washington for conducting training of the Vectorworks software, the leading drafting solution for Entertainment and Performing Arts technical design.

Marc-André Hamelin & Sebastian Weigle

Sebastian Weigle

conductor

Since the 2019 season, Sebastian Weigle has served as Chief Conductor of the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo, where he has made a significant impact with concert performances of Alban Berg’s Wozzeck and a highly acclaimed European tour featuring works by Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, and Beethoven. Most recently, he made his debut with both the Berlin Philharmonic and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

In the 2025/26 season, further concert invitations will take him to the RundfunkSinfonieorchester Berlin, the Hungarian National Philharmonic, the Graz Philharmonic, the Stuttgart Philharmonic, and the Frankfurt Museum concerts. He will also make debut appearances with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.

He returns to the Bavarian State Opera after the highly acclaimed new production of Strauss’s Die Liebe der Danae and will take over the musical direction of Parsifal in spring 2026, as well as concert engagements with the Bavarian State Orchestra. Other major opera engagements take him to the Vienna State Opera with Salome

Weigle’s career has taken him to numerous renowned houses, including the state operas in Berlin, Munich, Dresden, Hamburg, and Vienna, as well as to Zurich, Tokyo, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. As a conductor, he has worked with leading orchestras such as the radio orchestras in Berlin, Munich, Vienna, and Stuttgart, the Vienna and Bamberg Symphony Orchestras, the major Scandinavian orchestras, and internationally in Tokyo, Chicago, and Melbourne.

Born in Berlin, Sebastian Weigle studied horn, piano, and conducting at the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music. He was Chief Conductor at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona (2004–2009) and also served as General Music Director of Oper Frankfurt (2008–2023).

Marc-André Hamelin & Sebastian Weigle

Pianist Marc-André Hamelin, a “performer of near-superhuman technical prowess” (The New York Times), is known worldwide for his unrivaled blend of consummate musicianship. He continues to amass praise for his brilliant technique in the great works of the repertoire, and for his intrepid exploration of the rarities of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. He regularly performs around the globe with the leading orchestras and conductors of our time, and gives recitals at major concert venues and festivals worldwide. His 2026/27 season spans North America, Europe, and Asia, featuring a full schedule of orchestral, recital, and chamber music performances.

An exclusive artist with Hyperion Records, Hamelin has released over 90 albums. Hamelin is the recipient of seven Juno Awards, eleven Grammy nominations, the Jean Gimbel Lane Prize from Northwestern University, and the Paul de Hueck and Norman Walford Career Achievement Award.

Marc-André Hamelin piano

Fri & Sat, 17 & 18 Jul 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series:

Gil Shaham and Mahler 5

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Hannu Lintu conductor

Gil Shaham violin*

Andrew Beer concertmaster

Tan Chan Boon

Après l'Odyssée 《守护》

W ith support from Vanessa & Darren Iloste 19 mins

ASIAN PREMIERE

Mason Bates Nomad Concerto* 27 mins

Intermission 20 mins

Mahler

Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor 68 mins

Concert Duration: approximately 2 hrs 25 mins (including 20 mins intermission)

Check-in to tonight’s concert

Scan this QR code with the Singapore Symphony Mobile App.

Post-Concert Survey (18 Jul only)

To help us improve your concert experience, we invite you to participate in our survey. After the concert, be the first 120 to show proof of survey completion at the foyer, level 1, to receive a gift.

Message from Raffles Hotel Singapore

Dear Guests,

We are honoured to continue our partnership with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra as the Official Hotel Partner for the 2026/27 season. This ongoing collaboration reflects a shared commitment to excellence, heritage and the creation of meaningful experiences that resonate long after the final note has been played. As we welcome this new season, it is our pleasure to join you in celebrating another year of inspiring performances and memorable musical experiences.

Music has a remarkable ability to bring people together, transcending cultures, generations and backgrounds through shared moments of inspiration and discovery. As Singapore continues to grow as a vibrant cultural destination, the arts remain an essential part of our identity, enriching our communities and fostering meaningful connections.

As we embark on another season together, we would like to extend our sincere appreciation to the musicians, conductors, guest artists and dedicated members of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra team. Their passion, artistry and unwavering commitment continue to inspire audiences and contribute significantly to Singapore’s cultural landscape. Behind every performance is an extraordinary collective effort and we are deeply grateful for the dedication that makes each season possible.

Over the years, our partnership has created opportunities to celebrate music both within the concert hall and beyond. Through special collaborations, unique experiences and community engagement, we have witnessed the enduring power of music to connect people and create lasting memories.

We hope each performance offers moments of wonder, reflection and connection. May the music inspire new perspectives, evoke cherished memories and create experiences that stay with you long after the curtain falls.

Raffles Hotel Singapore

Tan Chan Boon

b. 1965

Après l'Odyssée (“After the Odyssey”)《守护》(2025)

With support from Vanessa & Darren Iloste

The title I gave to the first movement of my Seventh Symphony “守护” (2025), carries a dual meaning. Beyond the idea of guardianship and stewardship that underpins the entire symphony, it also reflects the fact that this work was composed after Symphony No. 6, Odyssée /长征 (2022).

If the Sixth Symphony was a huge voyage through human conquered the pandemic, with adversity and perseverance, then the Seventh Symphony contemplate what follows the journey – the responsibility to safeguard what has been found cherished, and entrusted to us.

Written in sonata form, the first of a fourmovement symphony opens with a bright and affirmative first subject in A major. This theme embodies the spirit of guardianship—of our Earth, our home, the environment, those around us, and a broader sense of universal compassion. After a substantial exclamatory gesture, the atmosphere darkens. In contrast, the second subject appears in D minor, gradually emerging through contrapuntal writing. Beginning softly, it intensifies toward a sudden, dramatic climax before a transitional passage, built from elements of both subjects and coloured in shades of grey, leads into the Development section.

The woodwinds enter first with the opening portion of the first subject, the strings subsequently reinforce and expand the consequent phrases. This alternating process continues in a series of transformations, eventually reaching the first major peak of the movement and leading directly into the development of the second subject.

The second subject undergoes increasingly intense transformations, moving through Locrian and Phrygian modes, then moves through echoing double-semitones and passages based on the diminished scale. This culminates in the climax of the development which is simultaneously the Recapitulation of the first subject.

Following an even larger exclamatory gesture, the second subject reappears in major. It gradually evolves into pentatonic incorporating contrapuntally with inversions of its consequent phrase. Throughout the recapitulation, the second subject is presented in a bright and optimistic light, eventually growing into the largest climax of the entire movement.

A brief coda follows. Fragments of the minormode second subject are combined with material from the first subject. After several questioning gestures, the music once again turns toward the major mode and concludes the movement gently, warmly, and with quiet assurance.

Après l’Odyssée deliberately avoids extensive development and transformation. Instead, it maintains a degree of restraint, preparing the way for the thematic material of the second and third movements. These ideas will ultimately be united and brought to full fruition in the fourth movement, culminating in a radiant and triumphant conclusion to the symphony.

Instrumentation

3 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 3 oboes (1 doubling on cor anglais), 3 clarinets (1 doubling on E-flat clarinet, 1 doubling on bass clarinet), 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (tam-tam, bass drum), 2 harps, strings

Tan Chan Boon composer

French-trained Tan Chan Boon started composing at age 12, as well as conducting at 16. He studied composition with Leong Yoon Pin, Jacques Castérède, Michel Merlet, and conducting with Shalom Ronly-Riklis, Richard Schumacher and Leonard Bernstein.

Recipient of various awards, Tan was made a Chevalier dan's l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government in 2008.

His main works include seven Symphonies: No. 1 “Aurore” (1986-89), No. 2 “Genèse” (1989-95), No. 3 “Eden” (2002-04), No. 4 “Déluge” (2004-05), No. 5 “Exodus” (2015), No. 6 “Odyssée” (2022), No. 7 “守护 ” (2025), Symphonic Poems, and other orchestral and chamber works.

Mason Bates

b. 1977

Nomad Concerto (2023)

Song of the balloon man

Magician at the bazaar

Desert vision: oasis

Le jazz manouche

Nomad Concerto explores the mysterious and soulful music of the wanderer. Envisioned to showcase the legendary Old World sound of Gil Shaham, the concerto is informed by a diverse range of traveling cultures from Eastern Europe to the Middle East. In the same way that nomadic music have continually reimagined themselves, the many styles informing the concerto are swirled together into a unique soundworld.

The concerto’s opening movement imagines an old balloon seller wandering through a village as he sings a doleful tune, which is gradually picked up by the villagers. The music draws from a variety of elements of the European Roma, with the soloist sometimes using a strumming pizzicato effect suggestive of mandolin. The movement is followed by the short, scherzo-like ‘magician at the bazaar’ showcasing quicksilver violin figuration that the orchestra transforms into shimmering and gossamer textures.

Over haunting orchestral expanses depicting the vast deserts of the Middle East, the Jewish folk tune “Ani Ma’amin” unfolds in “Desert vision: oasis.” The movement’s heaviness temporarily brightens at the vision of a sparkling oasis. A propulsive finale is animated by the ‘minor swing’ of 1930s jazz clubs, as epitomized by the legendary Django Reinhardt of the ‘manouche’ clan.

Instrumentation

solo violin, 2 flutes (doubling piccolos and alto flute), 2 oboes (1 doubling cor anglais), 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, bass trombone, timpani, percussion (triangle, suspended cymbal, finger cymbals, tam-tam, Thai gong, snare drum, bass drum, bongos, drum set, bell tree, castanets, crotales, glockenspiel, rute, shaker, tambourine, vibraphone, wood block, djembe), harp, piano, strings

World Premiere 26 Jan 2024, Philadelphia

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series: Gil Shaham and Mahler 5 | 17 & 18 Jul 2026

Gustav Mahler

1860 – 1911

Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor (1902)

Part I

Trauermarsch Wie ein Kondukt (Death March: like a funeral procession) Stürmisch bewegt. Mit größter Vehemenz (Turbulent. With great vehemence)

Part II

Scherzo: Kräftig, nicht zu schnell (Strong, but not too fast) III

Part III

Adagietto: Sehr langsam (Very Slow)

Rondo-Finale: Allegro – Allegro giocoso. Frisch (Fast – Fast and playful. Fresh)

Mahler’s Fifth Symphony marked a new beginning in his career. He turned away from the song- and voice-focused style of his earlier symphonies and fully immersed himself in creating symphonies of instrumental brilliance and virtuosity. Across his Fifth to Seventh Symphonies, he achieved a new level of compositional mastery, with greater emphasis on instrumental colour and counterpoint (where two or more musical lines are played simultaneously), resulting in a triptych of highly sophisticated and challenging, yet very rewarding, works to perform. Maestro Lintu has remarked that much of contemporary orchestral music has its roots in these three symphonies. Fittingly, we begin his tenure as the fourth Music Director of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra with this work.

Beethoven’s seminal Fifth Symphony established the course of symphonic odysseys for the next century, with its journey from darkness to light. Here, Mahler reframes this idea, writing a symphony about darkness and light.

Mahler groups the five movements into the three parts shown above. This allows him to explore similar musical themes in very different ways across the symphony. There is also a clear journey across the predominant sound of each

part: the first part is dominated by the brass and percussion, the second by the horns and woodwinds, and the third by the strings.

Funeral marches occur in each of Mahler’s symphonies, and the first movement opens with a determined and militaristic fanfare, with Mahler tipping his hat to Beethoven’s famous short-shortshort-long rhythm. This is met by a mournful dirge led by sorrowful strings and weeping woodwinds. Its ceremonial formality is broken by a sudden interruption, marked by Mahler as “Suddenly faster, Passionate, Wild”, as Mahler whips the orchestra into a sonic frenzy, before the regular trod of the cortège returns, but this soon morphs into a type of macabre tango before the trumpet call returns.

The second movement is almost the opposite of the first: all decorum is cast aside in an eruption of passion and intensity underpins this sonata-form movement, with a slow lament at its centre. Mahler contrasts the first fiery theme with an elegiac second theme (introduced in the preceding movement) and puts both through an exhaustive workout. Later in the movement, the second theme is transformed into an achingly passionate form that brings the intensity to greater heights. All this energy collapses as the

music runs out of steam. Mahler tries to revive momentum, until the trumpets step in with a gleaming chorale that offers a vision of paradise. This is but a brief glimpse, as the woodwinds bring us back to the emotional inferno before the music seemingly collapses with a thud.

Mahler continues exploring dualities in the scherzo, placing an unusual concerto-like solo passage for the horn at the centre of the symphony, and juxtaposing the ländler (a heavy rural dance with clapping and stamping) with the waltz (a more sophisticated urban dance). Mahler described the scherzo as “an expression of extraordinary strength. It is mankind in the full brightness of day, at the zenith of life.” The ländler dominates, evoking a simpler yet exuberant life in the countryside, with horn calls echoing across mountains and valleys.

After all the drama, excitement, and strength of the first two parts, Mahler reduces the orchestra to just the strings and harp in the Adagietto. Programme annotator Michael Steinberg wrote that it conveyed the essence of Mahler’s heartache and melodic style. The conductor Willem Mengelberg, one of Mahler’s closest friends, shared that this movement was Gustav Mahler’s declaration of love for Alma.

A solo horn brings us into the Rondo-Finale, where the woodwinds present several themes that follow. Strings continue to dominate the soundscape as Mahler alternates between lyrical and virtuosic fugal sections. Themes from previous movements are transformed almost beyond recognition: the second movement’s chorale is turned into a sprightly tune for the violins, while the Adagietto’s longing melodies are recalled in an almost flippant manner. Towards the end, the trumpet-led chorale is recalled in its original form yet extended even further, building to a triumphal climax, before a virtuoso, boisterous coda brings the symphony to a close with a shout of laughter.

Instrumentation

4 flutes (all doubling on piccolos), 3 oboes (1 doubling on cor anglais), 3 clarinets (1 doubling on E-flat clarinet, 1 doubling on bass clarinet), 3 bassoons (1 doubling on contrabassoon), 6 horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (triangle, cymbals, suspended cymbal, tam-tam, snare drum, bass drum, bass drum with cymbals, glockenspiel, whip), harp, strings

World Premiere 18 Oct 1904, Cologne

First performed by SSO 15 Sep 1989

Notes by Christopher Cheong | Christopher heads the SSO’s artistic planning and administration team.

Fri, 24 Jul 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series:

Zarathustra and Bluebeard’s Castle

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Hannu Lintu conductor

Shenyang bass-baritone (Bluebeard)*

Jennifer Johnston mezzo-soprano (Judith)*

Gabriel Chan lighting designer

Andrew Beer concertmaster

Michael Huang surtitles

Gábor Takács-Nagy prologue narrator

R. Strauss

Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 33 mins

Intermission 20 mins

Bartók

Duke Bluebeard’s Castle*

56 mins

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.

Zarathustra’s Preamble

by Nietzsche

When Zarathustra was thirty years old, he left his homeland and the lake of his homeland and went up into the mountains. Here he enjoyed his intelligence and his solitude and did not weary of them for ten years. Finally, however, his heart was changed – and one morning he arose with the dawn, stepped before the sun and addressed it thus:

– Thus began Zarathustra’s descent. Hannu

I want to give and distribute gifts until the wise ones among mankind have once again grown happy in their folly, and poor in their wealth.

For that purpose I must descend into the deep: as you do in the evening when you go beneath the sea and bring light to the underworld, you abounding star!

I must, like you, be submerged, or ‘perish’, as those men say to whom I wish to descend. So bless me, you calm eye, who can look upon even far too great good fortune without envy.

Bless the goblet that wants to run over, so that the water flows from it in a golden stream and bears the reflection of your rapture everywhere!

Behold! This goblet wants to become empty again, and Zarathustra wants to become a human being again.”

“You mighty star! What happiness would be yours if you did not have those for whom you shine? For ten years you have been coming up here to my cave: you would have been sated with your light and this path if it were not for me, my eagle and my serpent.

But we awaited you each morning, took your overabundance from you and blessed you for it.

Behold! I am tired of my wisdom, like a bee that has gathered too much honey; I have need of outstretched hands.

Richard Strauss

1864 – 1949

Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30 (1896)

Einleitung (Introduction)

Von den Hinterweltlern (Of the Backworldsmen)

Von der großen Sehnsucht (Of the Great Longing)

Von den Freuden und Leidenschaften

(Of Joys and Passions)

Das Grablied (The Song of the Grave)

In addition to being a philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche was also a pianist and amateur composer, and had a love-hate relationship with the composer Richard Wagner. His best-known work, Also sprach Zarathustra (1883–1885), has been set to music by many composers, including Mahler (Third Symphony), and Delius (A Mass of Life).

It is in Zarathustra that most of Nietzsche’s famous ideas appear, “God is Dead,” the “Will to Power,” and the “Übermensch” (Overman). Nietzsche challenged human existence and aspiration, viewing them as fuelling an endless cycle of self-glorification, and claimed that humanity’s achievements, morality, religion, and the arts, are mere distractions from an underlying banality, from which the Übermensch would lead mankind beyond this eternal recurrence.

From this vast four-volume treatise, Strauss chose one theme as the basis for his tone poem. He explained that he did not intend to write philosophical music or portray Nietzsche’s work directly, but rather to convey musically the evolution of the human race from its origins, through religious and scientific development, to Nietzsche’s idea of the Übermensch as merely “the starting point” for the musical expression of emotion.

Von der Wissenschaft (Of Science and Learning)

Der Genesende (The Convalescent)

Das Tanzlied (The Dance-Song)

Nachtwandlerlied (Song of the Night Wanderer)

Since its premiere in Frankfurt in 1896, Zarathustra has been frequently performed worldwide. At its Hungarian premiere, it made a lasting impression on the young Béla Bartók, who later recalled being struck “as by a flash of lightning,” finding in it a way forward that led him to throw himself into studying Strauss’s scores and composing again.

Strauss described Zarathustra as an alternation between two remote keys: C major, representing nature and the universe, and B major, representing humanity. He depicts eight chapters from Nietzsche’s work, also wanting to express Zarathustra’s inability to find satisfaction in religion, science, or humour when confronted with the enigma of nature.

Strauss placed Nietzsche’s prologue to Zarathustra before the score, as he awakens and addresses the rising sun. The famous opening then commences, depicting a great Sunrise

The first section concerns the backworldsmen, depicting man in his most primitive state who, according to Nietzsche, places his faith in the promise of an afterlife, rather than try to find fulfilment in this life. The Gregorian Credo melody sounds in the horns, symbolising traditional

religion, before the strings divide into sixteen parts to craft a yearning hymn built in of the great longing. Strauss depicts mankind’s “inquiring mind” to move beyond mere superstition, and the organ’s Magnificat melody is quickly and symbolically banished, before we are plunged into of pleasures and passions, with turbulent, tempestuous emotions leaping and crashing.

The oboe, solo violin and solo cello come to the forefront in the song of the grave, mourning lost youth but reaffirming man’s will to survive. A twelve-tone fugue begins in the basses and cellos, rising gradually and taking flight briefly in of science and learning, celebrating human knowledge and intellectual accomplishment. The fugue builds into a huge climax in the convalescent as Zarathustra collapses from exhaustion, but is soon healed and restored amid twittering bird calls and heralding trumpets.

Strauss pays homage to his illustrious namesake, Johann Strauss Jr (no relation of his), the Waltz-King, with a magnificent Dance-Song. The concertmaster and his associate lead an intoxicating orchestral waltz, in which Zarathustra (whom Nietzsche also described as a dancer) sings of the capricious nature of wisdom and the caprice of life. High spirits abound as the harps and glockenspiel add a sprinkling of stardust around the swooping violins, building to an ecstatic climax.

The bell tolls twelve times for midnight, and Strauss dispels the glitter, bringing us to the ethereal Night-Wanderer’s Song, far removed from the gleaming sunrise. The violins usher in the gentle coda in B major, magically echoed by the winds. The cellos and basses repeatedly interrupt with a low C pizzicato, and have the last word. It is a symbol of both the irreconcilable relationship between man and nature, and of nature’s enduring presence both before and after mankind.

Instrumentation piccolo, 3 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 3 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, 3 bassoons, contrabassoon, 6 horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 tubas, timpani, percussion (triangle, chimes, cymbals, suspended cymbal, bass drum, glockenspiel), 2 harps, organ, strings

World Premiere 27 Nov 1896

First performed by SSO 15 Sep 1995

Notes by Christopher Cheong | Christopher heads the SSO’s artistic planning and administration team.

Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series: Zarathustra and Bluebeard’s Castle | 24

Béla Bartók 1881 – 1945

Duke Bluebeard’s Castle (1911)

“Once upon a time… Where did this happen? Outside or within?” The boundary between stage and spectator dissolves as Duke Bluebeard’s Castle pulls us into fairytale horror. Rooted in Symbolism, Bartók’s sole opera adopts Béla Balázs’s Hungarian libretto, which originated from the Bluebeard legend first recorded by Charles Perrault in 1697. Bluebeard gives his new wife the keys to his castle but forbids one locked chamber; she enters regardless and finds the bodies of his murdered former wives. In Maurice Maeterlinck’s retelling Ariane et Barbe-Bleu (1899), the structure expands into seven doors.

The castle is a psychological metaphor: Bluebeard’s past and secrecy, and Judith’s desire to know and redeem him. Inspired by Hungarian folk ballads, Balázs’s libretto breathes in continuous eight-syllable lines. Bartók’s wordsetting creates a hypnotic, incantatory flow, with the occasional asymmetrical rhythm.

Shrouded in a slow, pentatonic melody, the pair enter the gates. Bluebeard invites Judith to reconsider, but she has already absorbed the castle’s F-sharp minor world, colouring it with a brighter Mixolydian mode. Judith notices the walls appear to weep yet remains resolute. From this point, the pair diverge in intention and tonality: Judith fantasises about warmth and total revelation, but Bluebeard answers her A with A-flat.

The First Door (Torture Chamber) opens with a cavernous sigh. A red light floods the stage as xylophone and high woodwinds reveal instruments of torture. The ‘blood motif’—a jarring minor second—appears for the first of many times throughout the opera. Opening the Second

Door (Armoury), brass fanfares and aggressive contours depict weapons. Judith’s confidence grows as Bluebeard’s resistance begins to soften.

Celesta and harps create a radiant texture of jewels and gold beyond the Third Door (Treasury). Judith interprets this as evidence of Bluebeard’s love and generosity. A more expansive orchestral palette and a brighter Lydian inflection accompany the Fourth Door (Garden). There emerges a pattern of associating major-key qualities with the doors Bluebeard is willing to have opened. Yet even here, the flowers and clouds are stained by the recurring blood motif.

The Fifth Door (Bluebeard’s Domains) heralds the opera’s dramatic apex. A vast, chorale-like texture, crowned by the organ, erupts into a radiant C major. Its tritone relationship with the opening’s F-sharp intensifies the sense of rupture. Bluebeard attempts to hold the relationship at this moment of grandeur and fascination. Staring stiffly and absent-mindedly at his kingdom, Judith searches for the ever-pervasive signs of blood. As the mood dampens, they each begin to sing against the orchestra’s metre.

The Sixth Door (Lake of Tears) reveals a hollowed orchestral texture in which harp and celesta shimmer over muted strings. Judith takes on non-lyrical qualities, her pitch material circling G with ascents to successively higher peaks as she disentangles from Bluebeard’s embrace. Behind the Seventh Door stand Bluebeard’s three former wives, preserved in a timeless state: Ladies of Dawn, Noon, and Evening. Judith becomes the Lady of Night and is compelled to join them. Tonally, the music returns to the opening’s F-sharp darkness and cantabile string

melody. His final words, ‘Henceforth all will be darkness, darkness, darkness’, seal the work in perpetual night.

The opera’s central tension—widely understood as the irreconcilability between men and women— echoed aspects of Bartók’s own life. In 1910, following his marriage, he wrote to Frederick Delius: “I am very much alone here, apart from my one friend, Kodály.” Yet his wife Márta Ziegler remained steadfast through years of war and hardship, supporting his work in multiple ways. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1923. A century later, we could perhaps transcend gendered interpretations of Bluebeard’s legend to consider a more fundamental truth: the impossibility of fully knowing another person.

First performed by SSO 8 Sep 1995 (Ildikó Komlósi, mezzo-soprano, Kolos Kováts, bass) Hannu Lintu Inaugural Series:

Instrumentation

bass-baritone, mezzo-soprano, 4 flutes (2 doubling on piccolos), 2 oboes, cor anglais, 3 clarinets (2 doubling on E-flat clarinets, 1 doubling on bass clarinet), 4 bassoons (1 doubling on contrabassoon), 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (triangle, cymbals, suspended cymbal, tam-tam, snare drum, bass drum, xylophone), 2 harps, celesta, organ, strings

World Premiere 24 May 1918, Budapest

Notes by See Ning Hui | See Ning Hui is a pianist, researcher, and lecturer passionate about integrating music by lesser-known composers. www.ninghuisee.com

Thu, 6 Aug 2026

Esplanade Concert Hall

Marc-André Hamelin & Sebastian Weigle – Brahms Piano Concerto 2

Singapore Symphony Orchestra

Sebastian Weigle conductor

Marc-André Hamelin piano*

Andrew Beer concertmaster

Brahms

Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83*

46 mins

Intermission 20 mins

Dvořák

Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70 35 mins

Concert Duration: approximately 2 hrs (including 20 mins intermission) Dedicated

Check-in to tonight’s concert

Scan this QR code with the Singapore Symphony Mobile App.

Johannes Brahms

1833 – 1897

Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83 (1881)

I II III

IV

Allegro non troppo

Allegro appassionato

Andante

Allegretto grazioso

Brahms in 1882. Portrait by Hermann Dröhmer.

The Leipzig premiere of Johannes Brahms’s First Piano Concerto was famously disastrous at best. Brahms determined in the wake of that 1859 concert that “a second one will sound very different,” in his letter to his good friend and violinist, Joseph Joachim. It took Brahms a good twenty or so years before he attempted to write his second piano concerto. During these two decades, his output included the variations on themes by Handel, Haydn and Paganini; numerous chamber works; and over a hundred

songs and some large-scale choral pieces. In this time, he also underwent a few personal breakthroughs, finally finding the confidence to step out of the great Beethoven’s shadow and write a second symphony, as well as the Violin Concerto in D major in collaboration with Joachim.

“a tiny, tiny piano concerto with a tiny, tiny wisp of a scherzo”

By the time he wrote the Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83, Brahms was a middleaged, bearded introvert who had matured in his composition style and was known for writing poignant, emotional works. In a letter to close friend and musical confidante Elisabeth von Herzogenberg, he described in jest that he had just finished “a tiny, tiny piano concerto with a tiny, tiny wisp of a scherzo”. His confidence of success in the work is shown in his dedication of it to “dear friend and teacher Eduard Marxsen”, with whom he had studied when he was seven years of age.

A single, solo horn innocently opens the Allegro non troppo first movement, overlapped by the piano from the depths, echoing the last few notes poetically. After a short commentary by the woodwinds and strings in this chorale style, the solo piano asserts itself with a long passage while

the orchestra remains silent. A dramatic cadenza is followed by the opening theme returning triumphantly via the orchestra. The movement unfurls with thoughtful musical conversations between the piano and the orchestra; whenever things are getting too heated, the opening theme presents itself in various guises to soothe and placate. When the horn call returns for the final section, the piano tinkles above it mysteriously and picks up where the conversation left off at the beginning. Where there was an outburst before, the piano and orchestra continue civilly and lyrically instead. The movement ends in a celebratory mood: trills in the piano while the orchestra restates the theme for the final time, and three strong chords.

From the first few seconds of the Allegro appassionato scherzo, it is clear that Brahms’s “tiny, tiny wisp of a scherzo” is anything but. Set in the key of D minor, the mood is tempestuous and dramatic, full of a pent-up energy that is wild and almost relentless. The violins introduce a yearning theme before the drama returns. Suddenly, we are in the key of D major and seem to have timetravelled back to the Baroque period for a while in the trio section. When the D minor section returns, the roles reverse: orchestra takes the lead and the piano follows.

The spirit of chamber music is most apparent in the Andante. Not unlike the long oboe solo in the slow movement of his Violin Concerto, Brahms bestows a solo cello the privilege this time, with a charming melody that he later turned into a lied with an equally charming title Immer leise wird mein Schlummer (“My Sleep Grows Ever More Gentle”). The piano never tries to steal the melody from the cello, and when it enters, it creates an obscure, dreamy sound world with shifting harmonies. Brahms achieves an ethereal, otherworldly quality with transparent scoring until the solo cello brings the music back into home territory, continuing the conversation in an intimate setting.

The Allegretto grazioso finale is a playful rondo that has the piano and orchestra tossing out memorable themes with a Mozartian wit. Brahms throws in Hungarian melodies and touches of Gypsy music, ending the movement with a brilliant tarantella based on the rondo’s opening theme.

With this concerto, Brahms opened up a new possibility of a symphonic concerto: a hybrid between both genres where the orchestra and soloist are so closely integrated that it is impossible for one part to do without the other.

Instrumentation

solo piano, 2 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, strings

World Premiere 9 Nov 1881, Budapest

First performed by SSO 1 Feb 1980 (Bernard Ringeissen, piano)

Antonín Dvořák 1841

– 1904

Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70 (1885)

Allegro maestoso

Poco adagio

Scherzo: Vivace

Finale: Allegro

Born on 8 September 1841 in Nelahozeves near Prague, Antonín Leopold Dvořák famously incorporated folk elements into his symphonic compositions. At age six, Dvořák began studying the violin and later took organ and piano lessons. When the Czech composer was a young boy, a train station was built across the street from his home, igniting his passion for trains which provided inspiration for his compositions, including one of his most renowned symphonies.

Commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society in London, Dvořák began working on the D minor symphony in early 1885. During a daily walk to the Prague railway station, the composer witnessed a train arriving from abroad. Alighting the train were a group of Czech patriots coming to Prague to attend a musical event in support of the struggling Czech nation. Inspired, Dvořák decided to write the symphony upholding the Czech identity. Shortly after he began, he wrote to a friend: “I am now busy with this symphony for London, and wherever I go I can think of nothing else. God grant that this Czech music will move the world!!”

Opening with a rumbling theme in the cello, the Allegro sets the aggressive, dark mood for the whole symphony. The theme is echoed in the clarinet, followed by tremolos in the strings section. It then turns into a lively ensemble, with arpeggios, scales, and lilting violin melodies. Throughout the movement, the mood shifts from

stormy chords to lyrical melodies that eventually leads to the low rumbling D notes heard in the beginning, now in pianissimo.

The second movement, the Poco adagio, opens in F major with a tender, hymn-like theme presented by clarinets and bassoons over pizzicato strings. This principal melody unfolds in long, arching phrases with folk-song simplicity. The music changes into darker minor keys in the development, where deep harmonies intensify the emotions. An oboe solo emerges above trembling strings, leading to a brass climax in fortissimo before the opening theme returns, now supported by the full orchestra, concluding with hushed strings and woodwinds in peaceful resolution.

The Scherzo in D minor is much more lively than the previous two movements. Erupting with fierce rhythmic energy driven by syncopated accents, sharp dynamic contrasts and aggressive sforzandos create an almost Beethovenian intensity. The main Scherzo theme features a distinctive dotted rhythm heard across all instruments in the orchestra, with brass punctuations adding dramatic weight. The contrasting Trio section shifts to a gentler, more lyrical character in G major, with floating woodwind melodies. Before long, the Scherzo returns, propelling the piece to the last movement.

Like the first movement, the Finale is an Allegro in D minor. Ranking among the most dramatic symphonic movements Dvořák has written, it opens with an angry, dotted theme in D minor. The second theme gives melodic contrast in F major, though with remnants of the darker mood still lingering. Brass fanfares and swirling string passages build to a coda that transforms the minor-key struggle into an enthusiastic D major triumph.

Instrumentation

2 flutes (1 doubling on piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, timpani, strings

World Premiere 22 Apr 1885, London

First performed by SSO 31 Oct 1980

to the 10th grade and

Our Heartfelt Thanks

To Our Donors

We would like to express our deepest appreciation to the following individuals and organisations who support our mission to create memorable shared experiences with music in the past year. Without your support, it would be impossible for the SSO to continue to strive for artistic excellence and touch the hearts of audiences.

Patron Sponsor

Tote Board Group

(Tote Board, Singapore Pools & Singapore Turf Club)

Maestro Circle

Mr & Mrs Goh Yew Lin

Stephen Riady Foundation

Temasek Foundation

The HEAD Foundation

Anonymous

Concertmaster Circle

Bowen Enterprises Pte Ltd

Dr & Mrs Antoine & Christina Firmenich

Elaine and Eduardo Saverin Foundation Ltd

Kris Foundation

Mr Christopher & Mrs Rosy Ho

Anonymous (2)

Symphony Circle

DBS Bank Ltd

De Miguel Solaguren Family

Doris Sohmen-Pao

Dr Thomas & Mrs Mary Zuellig

Hao Glory Family Foundation

Indosuez Wealth Management

Madeleine Cheok & Wong Hong Ching

Ms Paige Parker & Mr Jim Rogers

Anonymous (2)

Concerto Circle

Andrew & Stephanie Vigar

Andy, Raymond, Bubble & Breton Tan

Cara & Tamara Chang

Colin Lee

Dr Geh Min

Far East Organization

Farhana Sharmeen

Geoffrey & Ai Ai Wong

Geraldine Choong & Dennis Au

Mavis Lim Geck Chin

Miriam & Merle Hinrich

Neo Group Limited

Patek Philippe Southeast Asia

Paul & Lena Ng

Priscylla Shaw

Prof Chan Heng Chee

UOB

Yao Hsiao Tung

Yong Ying-I Anonymous

Overture Donors

Adsec Singapore Pte Ltd

Ayesha Aziz Khan

Azeeza Aziz Khan

Bernard Ryan & Michael Rowe

Bernhard Michael Steiner

BinjaiTree

Blossom Hing

C & L Fund

Cavazos Tinajero Family

Chen Xiaoyan

Chloe Lee En Yi & Family

Chuin Wei Yap

Colin & Janet Leong

Daniel Choo & Family

Devika & Sanjiv Misra

Dorian Goh & Rathi Ho

Dr & Mrs Adrian Koh

Dr & Mrs Choy Khai Meng

Dr June & Peter Sheren

Dr Karen Soh

Dr Kevin T Yap

Dr Kieron Lim

Eva & Nilay Patel

Frans & Marie-Pierre Mol

Geraldine Lim & Lim Him Chuan

Goh Swee Chen

Guy Hentsch & Geoffrey Yu

Hemal & Paritosh Thakore

Hong Leong Foundation

JCCI Singapore Foundation

Jonathan Stona

Joy & Han Li Toh

Julien Willeme

Kae Fujii & Laurent Proutiere

Kenneth Kwok

Kris Foundation - Lim Kang Ning

Krishnan Family

Lee Hsien Loong

Leong Wai Leng

Liew Wei Li

Lito & Kim Camacho

Marina Bay Sands

Matthew L & Kenneth K

Mr & Mrs Choo Chiau Beng

Mr Tony & Mrs Melanie Chew

Pavilion Capital

PCS Pte Ltd

Prima Limited

Prof Gralf & Silvia Sieghold

Robert & Vivian Chandran

Sameer Sain

Shanghai Tunnel Engineering (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Sing Lun Group

Tan Chin Tuan Foundation

Tan Meng Cheng Ivan

Tiffany Lim

Timothy & Selena Hia

Tower Capital Asia

Vanessa & Darren Iloste

Wendy Yap

Anonymous (7)

Seranade Donors

Aadarsh Baijal

Adrian Chua

Ang Jian Zhong

Anthony & Chloe Tan from ACE Team Foundation

Anthony Tay

Bloomberg Singapore Pte Ltd

Brown-Forman

Chloé & Romain de Laubier

Clarissa Chow

Claudia & Henning Figge

Cubeassociate Pte Ltd

Dr Victor Lim

D-Y Lin

Embassy of France in Singapore

Francoise Mei

G L Wee

Grace Fu

Hartley & Hong Lynn Clay

Isaiah & Suwei K

Jesher Loi

John & Eliza Bittleston

John & Pauline Foo

Kenneth Kan

Kim Hae Hyun & Heo Soomin

Rhapsody Donors

Adeline Ang

Aileen Tang

Amy Lin

Belinda Koh

Benedict Teo

Benito Ting

Benjamin Ma

Bettina Lieske

Chan Ah Khim

Charles Robertson

Charmaine Lim

Cheng Eng Aun

Choo Lim

Clara Lim-Tan

Craig McTurk

David Chan & Sarah Chan

David Leung

Dr June Goh

Dr Peter Chew

Evelyn Chin

Faith Chia

Hwang Chih Ming

In memory of Timothy Kok Tse En

Jazz Chong & Edmund Ng

Jeanne Lee

Jennifer & Alexander Chan

Jennifer Lee

Lai Siu Chiu

Lau Leok Yee

Lee Yeow Wee David

Lilian Loke

Liwen & Steven Holmes

Lorinne Kon

Madeleine Lee

Maisy Koh

Marcelo V Achoa & Silvia Bordoni

Meng

Michael Brenninkmeijer

Mr & Mrs Ong Kong Hong

Nicole & Edoardo Prina

Patricia Lim

Prof Arnoud De Meyer

Prof Cham Tao Soon

Ruyters Audrey

Suzanne Lim

Tan Wan Chi

Tantallon Capital Advisors Pte Ltd

The Linh Tinh Family

Wayne & Kim Giap Khoo

Xinyi Ong

Anonymous (3)

Jerry Gwee

Jinny Wong

Julian & Jane Tan

Julian & Sandra Chang

Julien Brousseau

Kasch Kimmy Kimberly

Kirk Tay

Kok Leong Lim

Kris Wiluan

Lawrence & Celeste Basapa

Martin Siah & Wendy Long

Michael & Katherin Puhaindran

Mr & Mrs Tan Soo Nan

Naserah Tyebally

Pierre Colignon

Ren QiMei

Ronald & Janet Stride

Sam & Claire Loh

Soh Leng Wan

Tang See Chim

Wang Pei Zhong

Warburg Pincus Singapore Pte Ltd

Winston Hauw

Wong Yan Lei Grace

Zheng HongBo

Anonymous (12)

Prelude Donors

A T Teo

A.R.

Adi F & Hui Shi

Ahn Sehwan

Aileen Teo

Akihiro Nemoto

Alexey Filimonov

Alvin Lim Cheng Hin

Alwyn Loy Suan Mao

Andre Francis Maniam

Andrew & Jacqueline Tan

Andrew Cheong

Ang Hui Tiong Eugene

Ang Quek Kaifeng

Ang Seow Long

April Mak

Aw Jia Yu

Bella Gan

Brenda Ang

Bryan Carmichael

Casey Tan Khai Hee

Cham Gee Len

Chang Chee Pey

Chen H W

Cheng Sok Theng

Chong David

Chong Mi-Li Pamela

Chong Sien Thye Albert

Chong, Wai Ying Ruby

Christopher Chen Li Hsian

Chua Saw Lan

Cindy

Claire & Ian Jones

Colin Lang

Cynthia Chee

D Cheong

Daniel Yong

DCP

Deborah Chee

Denis Tenchurin

Denise Wong

Derek Lim HK

Doris Song

Dr & Mrs Winson Lay

Dr Anne-Marie Schleich

Dr Chong Shin Min

Dr Lien Boon Hua

Dr Norman Lee

Dr Tan Lay Kok

Dr Tashiya Mirando

Dr Teo Kien Boon

Dr Wong Hin Yan

Dr Yap Zhu Li

Edith & Sean Lim

Emma Lexi Ng

Ernest Khoo

Esther Fang

Gallery NaWei Pte Ltd

Gan Chee Yen

Ghislain Olagne

Giles Tan Ming Yee

Goh Chiu Gak

Goh Jun Yi

Hans Michael Brandes

Heinrich Grafe

Henry & Tiffany

Herman Felani MY

Ho Jun Yi & Family

In loving memory of Jasper

Irina Piano

James Tan Teng Chuan

JAR Wealth Management Pte Ltd

Jason & Jennifer Chew

Jay Ganapathy

Jeanie Cheah

Jean-Pierre Felenbok

Jessica Tan

Jiang Wenzhu

Jiyeon Kang

Joanne Lim

Johannes Yap & Family

Joseph Wolpin

Joseph Yoong

K Goh & Family

Keith Goh

Kelvin Ho

Kelvin Wong

Khoo Ken Hui

Khor Cheng Kian

Kianyew

Koh Ruizhi

Kyra Teo

Laurent Ye

Lee Sian Ching

Leonard Augustine Choo

Li Danqi & Liu Yi

Lily Low

Lim Boon Kong Andrew

Lim Shue Churn

Lim Yin Yin, Jaime

Lim Yuin Wen

Low Boon Hon

Low Eng Huat Peter

Maggie Dong

Manski-Nankervis Jo-Anne Elizabeth

Marcel Smit & Hanneke Verbeek

Marian Goh

Mark Cranfield

Mark Wang & Gloria Guo

Maxim Yanchenko

Michelle & Eric Anziani

Michelle Loh

Michelle Tan & Soo Yixin

Michelle Tay

Min Tan

Minwei

Mr & Mrs Jeremy Ee

Mr & Mrs Kevin

Mr & Mrs Pont

Mr Gareth Tan & Dr Roweena Yip

msm-productions

Ng Shien

Ngiam Shih Chun

Nguyen Quoc Khanh & Vu Phuong Nhi

Nicolas Pascale Rouveyre

Nikki Padilla & Sebastian L. Sohn

Nishioka Hiroyuki

Nomura Singapore Limited

Nurture With Love Suzuki Music School

Ong Chee Siong

Ong Wee Shiang

Parthesh Gulawani

Patricia Ho

Pauline Ang

Prof Goh Suat Hong

Prof Gungwu Wang

Robert Khan & Co Pte Ltd

Ryan Tan

Sangeeta Razu

See Chai Geok

Seo Miju & Lee Sung Uk

Serene Yeo

Shermin Teh

Siveraman K Pillai

Stephanie Hsiao Yu Lee

SY Lee

Tan Kok Huan

Tan Yi Bin

Teo Eng Chai

Terence Wu and Cheryl Lim

The McCann Family

Tiffany Choong & Shang Thong Kai

Timothy Leong

Tom Szetu

Trina Liang

TseTsean

Tsou Lei Shirley

Victor Huang Kuan Kai

Victor Ow

Viktor & Sonja Leendertz

Virna Machado-Ashish Goyal

Vivien Goh

Voon S Leong

Wang Lei & Gao Bo

Wendy Leong Marnyi

Wennie Wong

Wicky Wong

Wong Lai Foon

Xiao Li

Xu Yixin

Yang Tian

YC Chen

Yee Deng Tan

Yong Chuk Kwin

Yong Ning & Candice Foo

Yong Seow Kin

Zhai, Yuxiang

Zhihong Chen

Zhu Yulin

Anonymous (37)

This list reflects donations that were made from 1 Jul 2025 to 30 Jun 2026. We would like to express our sincere thanks to donors whose names were inadvertently left out at print time.

The Singapore Symphony Group is a charity and a not-for-profit organisation. Singapore tax-payers may qualify for 250% tax deduction for donations made. You can support us by donating at www.sso.org.sg/donate or www.giving.sg/sso

4

4

How can you help?

While SSO is supported partially by funding from the Singapore government, a significant part can only be unlocked as matching grants when we receive donations from the public. If you are in a position to do so, please consider making a donation to support your orchestra –Build the future by giving in the present.

As a valued donor of the SSO, you will receive many benefits.

Corporate Giving

We provide our Corporate Donors with impressive entertainment and significant branding opportunities. Through our tailored packages, corporates may benefit from:

• Publicity and hospitality opportunities at an SSO concert or your private event,

• Acknowledgement and mentions in SSO’s key publicity channels,

• National Arts Council (NAC) Patron of the Arts nominations,

• Tax benefits.

Packages start at $10,000 and can be tailored to your company’s branding needs.

Partnership

We partner with various corporates through tailored in-kind sponsorship and exchange of services. Current and recent partnerships include Official Hotel, Official Airline, and we offer other exciting titles.

For more details, please write to Sarah Wee at sarah.wee@sso.org.sg

A Standing Ovation

SSO Concertmaster GK Goh Chair

Established in July 2017, the SSO Concertmaster, GK Goh Chair honours Mr Goh Geok Khim, and celebrates his enduring contribution to Singapore’s cultural landscape. We extend our gratitude to the Family and Friends of Mr Goh, and especially to Mr and Mrs Goh Yew Lin, for their generosity. The position is held by Andrew Beer.

We recognise major gifts that help sustain the future of the Singapore Symphony Group. The recognition includes naming of a position in the SSO or in our affiliated performing groups such as the Singapore

Quantedge Music Director

In January 2025, the SSO Quantedge Music Director position was named in recognition of a major donation by an anonymous donor. The position is held by Maestro Hannu Lintu.

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 position is currently held by Principal Cellist Ng Pei-Sian.

SSO Principal Flute 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

SSO Principal Viola 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

Board of Directors & Committees

Chair

Goh Yew Lin

Board of Directors

Chang Chee Pey

Chng Kai Fong

Andress Goh

Kenneth Kwok

Clara Lim-Tan

Jesher Loi

Lynette Pang

Prof Qin Li-Wei

Jovi Seet

Farhana Sharmeen

Doris Sohmen-Pao

Prof Peter Tornquist

Geoffrey Wong

Andrew Yeo Khirn Hin

Executive & Nominating Committee

Goh Yew Lin (Chair)

Chng Kai Fong

Lynette Pang

Geoffrey Wong

SSO Council

Alan Chan (Chair)

Odile Benjamin

Prof Chan Heng Chee

Prof Arnoud De Meyer

Dr Geh Min

Heinrich Grafe

Khoo Boon Hui

Liew Wei Li

Lim Mei

Sanjiv Misra

Paige Parker

Dr Stephen Riady

Priscylla Shaw

Prof Gralf Sieghold

Prof Bernard Tan

Dr Tan Chin Nam

Wee Ee Cheong

Yong Ying-I

Human Resources Committee

Doris Sohmen-Pao (Chair)

Jesher Loi

Prof Qin Li-Wei

Heinrich Grafe*

Carmen Wee*

Finance & Investment Committee

Geoffrey Wong (Chair)

Andress Goh

Chua Keng Hong*

Alex Lee*

Development Committee

Prof Chan Heng Chee (Chair)

Odile Benjamin

Dr Geh Min

Heinrich Grafe

Khoo Boon Hui

Lim Mei

Leonard Ong

Paige Parker

Priscylla Shaw

Dr Tan Chin Nam

Audit & Risk Committee

Jovi Seet (Chair)

Prof Peter Tornquist

Andrew Yeo Khirn Hin

Ryan Siek*

Community & Youth Engagement Committee

Clara Lim-Tan (Chair)

Chang Chee Pey

Farhana Sharmeen

Asst Prof Kat Agres*

Cecilia Pang*

*co-opted member

Symphony Ball Committee

Paige Parker (Chair)

Celeste Basapa

Geoffrey Wong

Kris Tan

Joy Tan

Dr Karen Soh

Kim Camacho

Lim Kang Ning

Farhana Sharmeen

SSO Musicians’ Committee

Hoang Van Hoc

Austin Larson

Li Xin

Christopher Mui

David Smith

Elaine Yeo

Zhao Tian

Chief Executive Officer

Kenneth Kwok

Deputy CEO

Programmes & Production

Kok Tse Wei

CEO Office

Shirin Foo

Musriah Bte Md Salleh

Organisation Development

Lillian Yin

Artistic Planning

Christopher Cheong (Head)

Artistic Administration

Jodie Chiang

Terrence Wong

Jocelyn Cheng

Michelle Yeo

Operations

Ernest Khoo (Head)

Library

Wong Yi Wen

Cheng Yee Ki

Ng Yi Xiu

Orchestra Management

Chia Jit Min (Head)

Kelvin Chua

Charlotte Tan

Production Management

Noraihan Bte Nordin

Nazem Redzuan

Leong Shan Yi

Asyiq Iqmal

Khairi Edzhairee

Benjamin Chiau

Syed Muhammad Idris Bin Ramli

Deputy CEO

Patrons & Corporate Services

Jenny Ang

Community Impact

Community Engagement

Kua Li Leng (Head)

Whitney Tan

Lynnette Chng

Chua Xu Yang

Darren Siah

Choral Programmes

Kua Li Leng (Head)

Lu Heng

Chang Hai Wen

Mimi Syaahira

Jasmine Khaliesah Bte Yuraimi

Singapore National Youth Orchestra

Ramu Thiruyanam (Head)

Tang Ya Yun

Tan Sing Yee

Ridha Ridza

ABRSM

Patricia Yee

Lai Li-Yng

Joong Siow Chong

Freddie Loh

Corporate Services

Finance, IT & Facilities

Rick Ong (Head)

Alan Ong

Goh Hoey Fen

Loh Chin Huat

Md Zailani Bin Md Said

Human Resources & Administration

Valeria Tan (Head)

Janice Yeo

Fionn Tan

Netty Diyanah Bte Osman

Patrons

Development

Chelsea Zhao (Head)

Nikki Chuang

Sarah Wee

Samantha Lim

Eunice Salanga

Kevin Yeoh

Audience & Communications

Cindy Lim (Head)

COMMUNICATIONS

Ong Shu Chen

Elizabeth Low

Tan Li Ying

SOCIAL MEDIA & CONTENT

Nikki Loke

Chia Han-Leon

Jana Loh

Iylia Jamaludin

Hong Shu Hui

Kashmira Kasmuri

MARKETING

Myrtle Lee

Carrie Woo

DATA & DIGITAL PROJECTS

Calista Lee

Lim Wen Jie

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Randy Teo

Dacia Cheang

Joy Tagore

8 Aug 2026

Victoria Concert Hall

SSO Chamber Series: The Trout Quintet and Brahms with Marc-André Hamelin

Horn Trio in E-flat major, Op. 40

Schubert

Piano Quintet in A major, D. 667 “Trout”

Tickets from $20. Brahms

21 & 22 Aug 2026

Esplanade Theatre

Agápe –The Human Connection

Apsaras Dance Company proudly presents Agápe, a multidisciplinary work exploring the beauty of human relationships. Led by Artistic Director Aravinth Kumarasamy, Agápe also features conductor Joshua Tan, choreographer and guest dancer Rama Vaidyanathan, principal dancer Mohanapriyan Thavarajah, music composer Dr Rajkumar Bharathi, music arranger and director Sai Shravanam, costume design - MOHA by Priyan, set designer Wong Chee Wai, and dramaturg Lim How Ngean.

Tickets from $30

PATRON SPONSOR

MATCHED BY

MAJOR DONORS AND PARTNERS

The vision of the Singapore Symphony Group is to be a leading arts organisation 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. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a charity and not-for-profit organisation. You can support us by donating at www.sso.org.sg/donate.