BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1979. It’s the flagship orchestra for a country of around six million people. It’s been recognised as an Orchestra of the Year by Gramophone, and one of the best in the world by BBC Music Magazine.
Audiences across Europe, the United States, and Asia have all experienced the orchestra’s live performances. Australian audiences have not.
So far, our music lovers may have enjoyed listening to the SSO’s recordings. But never before have we heard the orchestra in concert — until now.
In 2025, this prestigious group of world-class musicians will make its Australia debut. It’ll tour three cities, playing in Hamer Hall, Sydney Opera House, and Queensland Performing Arts Centre.
The orchestra will be led by SSO music director Hans Graf, and its program will honour the classical music we know and love — think Brahms and Tchaikovsky. It’ll also present a new work from Singaporean composer Koh Cheng Jin (pictured below) – a young artist who studied at Juilliard on a full scholarship and received a BMI Foundation Young Composer prize. This award-winning piece is called Luciola singapura, and it evokes a glistening natural world.
If the opportunity to see the SSO perform new music in Australia weren’t rare enough, one of the most exciting things about it is the soloist who will join them. Eighteen-year-old violinist Chloe Chua will perform Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor — an experience she’s anticipating just as highly as her concertgoers.
“I am most looking forward to sharing wonderful music with the classical music lovers in Australia, and also performing in all the magnificent halls there!” Chloe tells us.
The Brahms concerto is one of the composer’s most popular works, though it was not composed in the brightest of circumstances: he’d had a falling out with his old friend Joseph Joachim (yes, that famous violinist). Luckily, this piece of music was warm enough to rekindle their friendship.
“I am fascinated by Brahms’ idea of composing a piece of music to patch up this friendship with his old friend, and am extremely moved by his sincerity, which is reflected in so many wonderful dialogues between the two instruments.”
Brahms conducted Joachim in the work’s 1887 premiere in Cologne; Robert Hausmann joined them on cello.
This time, it’ll be Chloe at the violin, and the SSO’s principal cellist Ng Pei-Sian (pictured below) will perform alongside her.
“He is such a wonderful person and experienced musician, so playing this piece with him has been very emotionally satisfying – especially during the moments where the dialogues between the two instruments appear.”
Behind the scenes, the two musicians have discussed their ideas about the music, tested out different interpretations and approaches to Brahms’ melodies, and worked on finding the right balance between their instruments.
Glowingly, Chloe remarks that the cellist “has inspired me to play better, and I feel that I have learnt a lot from him”. It goes both ways, no doubt. Chloe, who started as a child prodigy, now reaches adulthood having already performed to thousands of people across the world; her music has been streamed into the millions.
Not only is she popular among audiences, but Chloe’s talents are critically acclaimed, too – she won first prizes in the Yehudi Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists and the Singapore National Piano and Violin Competition.
When she plays with the SSO (pictured below), she’ll be nurturing a longstanding professional relationship: she became its youngest-ever artist-in-residence for seasons spanning 2022-24.
“I feel like I am part of this big family as I always experience so much love and support from the orchestra members when I am playing with them.”
Chloe says she’s “grateful to be given the opportunity” to record albums and perform with the SSO, but it’s certainly well earned.
“Although I was very busy for those two years, juggling between practising for concerts and recordings, and studying for exams simultaneously, it has been a very fruitful and rewarding experience,” Chloe says.
Chloe is now a student of The School of Music Hanns Eisler Berlin. She feels “recharged” in this environment where she learns and makes music with friends.
“Knowing that I am continuing to develop in every aspect makes me happy,” Chloe shares.
Along with her music-making and studies, Chloe is developing her professional career; like other musicians, she must navigate her virtuosic skills while fulfilling the expectations to be present for her fans.
Despite more than 98,000 followers on Instagram, Chloe still describes her social media use as “very basic, really”. She co-manages her digital presence alongside a supportive team, but for now, she’d “like to focus on my studies, practice, performance, and have some free time to do other non-music-related activities” – a sustainable foundation for a career that’s likely to thrive long into her adulthood.
Although Chloe is 18, she has always been known as a young musician. In her own artist biography, she’s described as a “young star”; she was named by PBS’s Great Performances “one of the most promising young musicians in the world”. So when will she progress from a “young star” to simply a “star”?
Chloe believes the transition will occur when she wins a major international competition (although she has achieved places in multiple competitions already). The answer seems to lie beyond age itself.
“Apart from acquiring immaculate violin techniques, it is the depth and maturity in one’s music interpretation, and the ability to pull the audience’s heartstrings, that mark the progression,” Chloe says.
“I believe that a musician should keep learning and improving on their musicianship and performing skills.”
How better to keep learning than on the biggest stages of Australia?
“I can’t wait to see all the Aussie classical music lovers there, and hope that you all will enjoy the concert!”
Be there for Chloe Chua’s performance with Ng Pei-Sian and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Their debut Australian tour will include performances at the Sydney Opera House, 12 February; Hamer Hall, 14 February; and Queensland Performing Arts Centre, 16 February.
Images supplied. Featured image of Chloe Chua credit Joel Low; Hans Graf credit Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Bryan van der Beek; SSO credit Aloysius Lim; Ng Pei-Sian credit Sloth Creatives.
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