Memory Trail: Teresa Khoo Music Pioneer From 50s



The following post about pianist Teresa Khoo is information from a letter by Horace Wee (thank you Horace) and articles from the daily newspapers published in Singapore. I do not know her personally but have seen the Khoo family perform on TV and listened to them on the radio. I thought she deserves some recognition since she was one of the pioneers in the music industry from the 50s.

HORACE WEE

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Hi Andy,

You may want to post this as it is about Singapore musicians from the 60's.

Teresa Filmer (nee Khoo) the pianist wife of bassist Winston Filmer passed away on November 8th, 2012 in Melbourne Australia. She was 70 years old and had been in ill health the past few years.

She had a hit song that was popular in Malaysia around the early 60's I think. Not sure the title but was it called, *Say Yes, My Boy (image 1), recorded on the Decca label. She spent her years in Melbourne teaching and I think she was on the board of music examiners for the state of Victoria/Australia.

She is from the well-known family of Khoos in Singapore that includes Victor an entertainer and ventriloquist, The Singing Khoos comprising of her brothers. Her father (Khoo Teng Eng) used to perform magic shows in those early years as well.

Cheers, 
Horace Wee.

1. Mono Extended Play. Cover Photo: George Abbas.

Teresa Khoo was one of Singapore's most talented daughters from the 50s who acquired her LRSM (London Royal School of Music) in piano when she was only 15 years old. According to reliable sources, she was a school-prefect and was usually on stage to lend support by playing the piano on numerous occasions.

She started the first ever all-girls band called the Blue Belles in 1960, way before any guitar group could ever claim that status. The group came in third in a "battle of the bands" contest that year and were a hit when they appeared in nightclubs all over Singapore and Malaya playing jazz standards.

Their ages ranged from 17 to 21 and the combo consisted of a double bassist, a wind-instrumentalist, an accordionist, a violinist, a guitarist and Ms. Khoo herself as a pianist.  But she was also very good on the accordion, flute and vibraphone.

Sometimes, as a family, Khoo was assistant to her father's magic shows but the music was her first love and her musical interest expanded when together with the Singapore Musical Society she formed an official choir of thirty singers. From classics to combo to the choir.

When she turned professional Teresa Khoo and her Three Notes entertained regularly at some of the more established nightclubs in Singapore, namely The Raffles and The Adelphi Night Club and Peacock Bar in the 1960s. With her classical music background, her versatility was obvious when she gave her own twinkling trademark to the pop songs she rendered.



2. The Singing Khoos and sister Teresa Khoo at the piano were
performing an item at the Victoria Theatre on 5 October 1960. The show
was organised by the Chinese Section of Radio Singapore and the
compere was Mr Wang Shih Ming.

Khoo cut an album on Decca Mono DFE 4003: Teresa Khoo and Her Five Notes. Her songs include: You Don't Know, Baby, Unspoken Words, Say Yes, My Boy and A Lover's Concerto. She has another record on Decca F 22658 called Teresa Khoo and Her Five Notes with Tonight in Tokyo/This Must Be Love (1967).

Produced by Darling Lim Geok Lin with cover photo by George Abbas the record sleeve reads: "Presenting for the first time on record as a performer in her own right - the talented and versatile Teresa Khoo. Teresa was trained as a classical pianist, obtaining the music degree LRSM (London).  

Indeed she has her own music school in Singapore but at night - she sizzles. Gone for a while are the classics and, leading her Five Notes, in comes the beat. Teresa prefers sentimental songs. Just listen to her rendering of Unspoken Words."

Unspoken Words climbed the Singapore Charts and was published under Hits of the World on Billboard Magazine when it hit number two in February 1968. The image below shows the song position where it bettered Cliff Richard's, All My Love and Bee Gees' Massachusetts, losing only to the Foundations' Baby, Now That I've Found You.



3. Teresa Khoo's Hit at Number 2 on Billboard.

In the early 80s when the SSO (Singapore Symphony Orchestra) recorded their first album Ms Khoo was the pianist selected for the occasion.   Together with other musicians they formed a contingent and had put on CD a collection of Chinese melodies.

Khoo's popularity allowed her to promote a local product and she was described as "one of Singapore's most respected pianist, a busy woman with performances, recording schedules and also teaching at a well-known music school."  In the newspaper advertisement, the tag-line was, "I must have soft and supple fingers or my playing will not be up to standard."

Video: Late Teresa Khoo's "Lover's Concerto," from her debut EP,

Number 2 in the Singapore Charts in 1967.

NB:  According to the record cover and newspaper advertisements her name is Teresa and not Theresa ie: without the letter h.

YouTube Video You Don't Know Baby song downloaded by: blastfromdepast.
Images 2: Mun Chor Seng Copyrights Reserved.

Image 3: Billboard Magazine: February 1968.

LATEST NEWS: 12 January 2018:

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.sg/2018/01/winston-filmer-bass-man-rts-orchestra.html

LATEST NEWS: Friday 6 June 2014

SINGAPORE: Local ventriloquist Victor Khoo, brother to Teresa Khoo, died on Friday, June 6th aged 63.  A well-known international entertainer, and one that many Singaporeans grew up watching the radio show, Happy Talk on Saturday mornings, he was most famous for performing with his puppet Charlee since the 1970's.

Image: Straits Times Press Singapore, Archives.