Singapore Youth Philharmonic Orchestra off to raw but promising start

The Singapore Youth Philharmonic Orchestra (SYPO) made its debut as recently as 2024, and in a very ambitious SG60 celebratory concert, attempted to fly before it had barely started walking.

- Chang Tou Liang

Joined by 31 members of the China Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, the very big orchestra assembled and conducted by Luo Wei had a fair share of stumbles but ultimately stood up tall to be counted.

Amilcare Ponchielli's Dance Of The Hours from La Gioconda, recently performed by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) in its Disney Fantasia concert, opened the evening. The young musicians took a little time to warm up, but soon had a good feel of its dance rhythms, providing a rousingly animated start.

There were two world premieres of works by Singaporean composers. Solace (Op. 10) by 20-year-old national serviceman Chia Ren Cher dwelled on ruminations of troubled youth, with a neo-Romantic feel reminiscent of Russian composers like Alexander Glazunov and Anatoly Lyadov.