Adrian Tan: Music Director Wind Symphony SG & Braddell Heights Orchestra Had Passed Away.

ADRIAN TAN - RIP

MUSIC DIRECTOR 

SINGAPORE WIND SYMPHONY

BRADDELL HEIGHTS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

 UP TO 1,700 VIEWS 

30+ CONDOLENCES

One of the friendliest music persons I've met had passed away on Monday July 12th, 2021. Adrian Tan [Music Director] was only 44 years young and had died of cardiac arrest in his sleep, according to a newspaper report.

As invited guests we met him during a concert as part of Singapore's Golden Jubilee in 2015, where the SG Wind Symphony paid tribute to Singapore pop music. Adrian was the conductor.

He met us as we chatted after the show. With his gentle ways, Adrian introduced us around. We kept in touch and I have found him to be a polite, dedicated and sincere friend. 

Condolences to Adrian's mother (whom he lived with), his family, colleagues and friends.

Rest In Peace Adrian. We will miss you.

A Note From Adrian

"Dear Andy,

Thank you for making time to come to last Sunday's concert, I've been a fan of your blog for the longest time, and follow it regularly. It has been the source of much information and knowledge about local music for me and provided me with a lot of insight.

This is one of the few blogs I read regularly as it is a treasure trove of memories and information on the golden age of local music.

What an honour it is for the SWS to be recognised by some of Singapore's music legends.

Adrian."

21.7.15 

[Comments, tributes, dedications are welcome on What'sApp, Facebook and on this blog.]

Connections:

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2015/07/1-1950s-hari-raya-songs-kampong.html

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2015/07/youre-boy-n-shanty-played-by-wind.html

ADRIAN TAN

A tribute from blog writer Chow Wen Hing:

Singapore lost a creative citizen today. Adrian Tan, Music Director [SG Wind Symphony] left us yesterday. Although he comes from the classical side of musical expressions, nonetheless this is a lost felt across the community as Adrian had also reached out to the pop song community.

We express our deepest condolences to his family and friends, and will draw  inspiration from his work and keep the creative and artistic culture alive in Singapore.

You're with the musicians in the sky now Adrian, we will miss you.

From Wen Hing [Singer/Composer].

Thanks you. Appreciate.

Images from Google and A Personal Collection.

Learning Rachmaninov's Music With My Grandson

  
A HAPPY TEACHERS' DAY FROM SING60sMUSIC !

A Teacher's Day 2014 Posting.
Inspired by my grandson and Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) 2014 activities.

It isn't easy for an 8 year old to watch a live orchestra play *Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27 unless the child has had some classical music background or enjoyed a concert previously.  But there was an audience of children with enthusiastic families who watched our Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) perform at the Republic Polytechnic at Woodlands on Thursday evening at 7.30pm at the institution's Cultural Centre Theatre. My grandson was one of them.

www.sso.org.sg

We travelled 40 minutes in dense after-office traffic to reach the concert in record time, just two minutes before Lan Shui (right), the conductor for the evening's concert, walked up to his podium to conduct Rachmaninov's work.  

The SSO On Campus: Pre-Tour Concerts Programme, which was given out at the lobby, helped me to understand in simple terms what the piece was all about.  

For my grandson, I was just glad that he agreed to attend the concert and watch the wonderful musicians performing on stage.  It was his second time listening to a symphony orchestra (read other posting on Jason Lai).

He nearly lasted the full hour and as he showed signs of tiredness about 10 minutes before the end (he came direct from school and a long afternoon) I told him to pay attention for just a little bit more but an encore performance surprised us and we were treated to one in the form of a short March which kept everyone enthralled to the end.  The applause was deafening.

It was well worth the trip.  And, as usual, the audience triumphed as much as the musicians who, with their magnanimity and dedication, were on stage to perform so magnificently.


"Would you like to come again son," I asked him.

"Not tonight," he said sleepily but from his cheeky grin I knew he enjoyed every moment.   At 10pm we had chicken rice in Thompson Road because we didn't have dinner earlier.  

Once again, thank you Lan Shui and the SSO for making our outing such a precious one. And thanks to little J. for agreeing to come at the last minute...

The SSO leaves for London to perform at the Royal Albert Hall on 2nd September, 2014.

A Happy Teacher's Day everyone.

(This posting is dedicated to Ms Chong Y.L. who feels that the date for T.D. should have never been changed.  I agree.)

*A Programme Note about the piece, written by Ruth Rodrigues, can be read by clicking Comments below.

                 Venue: Republic Polytechnic Cultural Centre Theatre @ Woodlands:

The 1,000-Seat Theatre:

Modelled after the famous Kirishima International Concert Hall in Kagoshima, Japan, the auditorium boasts an acoustic design worthy of international music performance. 

A highlight of this auditorium is its ability to turn into a full fledged concert hall capable of full scale musicals in just 45 minutes.

Image 1, 2: SSO Website.
Image 4: Google. 
Image 5:  http://zongyi.blogspot.sg
Information on theatre: http://www.rp.edu.sg/campus_tour/trcc2.htm

*******************

News Flash:
Dazzling Reviews for SSO in London (2nd September, 2014).

Two British newspapers the Guardian and Telegraph gave four out of five stars for SSO's recent outing at the Royal Albert Hall in London. They played the same piece, Rachmaninov's Symphony No 2, with other ones.

It was done in conjunction with the 120th BBC *Proms.  Some members of the audience were even waving the Singapore flag, proud and excited during the orchestra's (98 members) performance led by Shui Lan.

*The Proms is prestigious, done for 8 weeks per year and organised since 1927 by the BBC.

Sharing A Journey of Classics n Pops With Grandson

A Singapore National Day 2014 Posting and inspired by the forthcoming Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) 2014:

Jason Lai (side) conducted, and a programme of popular melodies and classics performed by the Singapore Symphonic Orchestra (SSO) opened the doors for my 8 year old grandson to appreciate the best in music where local talents and composers feature prominently.

Having played over 50 symphonic concerts a year the orchestra, which was born in 1979, presented yet another afternoon of Home with the Classics at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music within the NUS Campus at Clementi on Saturday, 2nd August at 4pm (last illus. below).

Familiar with museum outings and Esplanade pop shows these last few years, it was Josh's first experience with a symphony orchestra.  The selection couldn't have been better and the conductor couldn't have been friendlier, especially when there were many young parents with children.

Introducing each performance to help everyone understand the music about to be played, Jason Lai who hails from the UK, provided information about the pieces so simply in clipped English the audience was able to appreciate Leonard Berstein, Johann Stauss II, Georges Bizet, Edward Elgar, John Williams and our own local composer Kelly Tang without much ado.

When I asked my grandson a few days before the concert if he had heard of Star Wars he mentioned that he was familiar with it since it was the background to a particular Angry Birds game. I had him listen on You Tube a few West Side Story melodies and familiar ones from our own local repertoire, Stand Up For Singapore, Rasa Sayang and Di Tanjong Katong.

 Somehow I realised he enjoyed the concert and appreciated at least four composers that afternoon but to Josh, Stars Wars Suite was the best and Sketches of Singapore second. Familiarity, I guess.

As we took the lift down after the show, a young man on the ground floor ushered us to what was a food surprise, local mouth-watering eats plus photograph taking. There were two areas filled with bites and picture-taking session provided free by 15 generous sponsors. 

Thanks to the sponsors, Conductor Lai, the Orchestra and organisers.

A Happy National Day to all, especially our children.

NB: The Other Side of the Coin

I went home that evening, turned on Cable and witnessed  little children being raped, ravaged and savaged  by war. A hospital scene showed a 3 year old boy, shaking in fear and pain, another with tubes all over him.  Shrapnel covered both their little bodies.  Sadly, the atrocities are created by adults, and children too young even to understand, suffer the consequences. 

Images from: Sharing The Journey Programme Booklet produced by sso.org.sg 

Other images from Google.