Rebooted Philharmonic Chamber Choir is peerless

The choir shone with its programme of mostly contemporary Japanese music

- Chang Tou Liang

CONCERT ECHOES OF ANCIENT AIRS The Philharmonic Chamber Choir Esplanade Recital Studio Sept 5 The Philharmonic Chamber Choir (TPCC) was formed during the mid-1990s as an offshoot of the Singapore Symphony Chorus, with a vision of specialising in Asian a cappella choral music.

Its members have come and gone over the decades, but one constant remains – the leadership of founding chorus master Lim Yau, still a lively presence in his 70s. His thirst for musical exploration and choral discipline knows no bounds, and reviving TPCC after a seven-year performing hiatus was no mean feat.

Its latest programme dwelled mostly on contemporary Japanese music, opening with two quite different song cycles sung in the native language.

Each of the five songs in Yuka Yamashita's Haru Ga Kitanara (When Spring Comes, 2023) was prefaced by a reading of the late Michizo Tachihara's poetry by alto Tomoko Ichimaru, also the choir's Japanese-language coach.