"The Invention of Heritage - Pop Music in Singapore" (1995), an article by Dr. Lily L. L. Kong. Geography Department, National University of Singapore.I have taken the liberty of extracting Dr. Lily Kong's article (title above) regarding young Singaporeans' knowledge of our popular 60s music culture: "Knowledge of Singapore’s past music scene is poor among young Singaporeans, evidenced in a survey conducted with 200 undergraduates in their late teens and early 20s.
Only 9 per cent of the respondents could name a local band of the 1960s; only 5 per cent correctly identified the primary cause of the demise of the music scene in Singapore in the 1970s; and only 13 per cent could name the cable radio that popularised music in Singapore...
Clearly, for younger Singaporeans in contemporary Singapore, there is little of English popular music of the past that speaks meaningfully to their lives today. In large part, this is because they know very little of this past in the first place (page: 22)."
And this article was written in 1995, about 15 years ago. Has anything changed much today? I doubt because we are now 45 years away from the 60s...
Image: ChetRossRareBooksWebsite
(The article is available on the Internet using the necessary key words.)
2 comments:
It comes as no surprise to me this abysmal knowledge of our past music scene among younger Singaporeans. It's a real pity. However, let's not throw up our hands in despair. To redress the situation bands and musicians of yesteryear could perhaps work with The Esplanade. Wider exposure and education could be helpful. During Senior Citizens Week The Esplanade offers such opportunities. For further info go to http://www.esplanade.com BTW, in Nov there'll be a festival of evergreen songs and music at The Esplanade. Be there. Ricky Tan
Thanks Ricky for the comments and information. All enthusiasts should make a bee-line to the Esplanade asap.
Cheers,
Andy
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