Come the seventh night of July, PhilClarinets will be kickstarting the Philharmonic Winds chamber series with a concert featuring an entire clarinet choir.
“We will be making use of the full range of clarinets of different sizes and lengths; from the petite piccolo clarinet with its high-pitched trills, to the gargantuan contra bass clarinet which is taller than the average adult,” said its organizing committee.
Unlike a full wind ensemble performance, the clarinet section does not usually get to showcase the full versatility of its instrument and the entire clarinet family. A clarinet choir however, showcases the rich, colourful and flexible sonorities of the clarinet.
“If you would imagine a pipe organ, the clarinet choir would be different parts of the organ brought to life by the players.”
“How often do you get to see multiple bass clarinets and contrabass clarinets on stage at the same time? It will be a refreshing visual and aural experience for the audience.”
As this is the first time the group will be performing at Victoria Concert Hall, a number of works were chosen to showcase the virtuosity of the ensemble and the versatility of the clarinet.
Some of the music include ‘Toccata and Fugue’, a “must have” for any clarinet choir performance, and ‘New York counterpoint’ by Steve Reich, which will premiered for the first time in Singapore. To round-up the evening, the choir will be performing a clarinet ensemble arrangement of ‘The Seventh Night of July’ by Itaru Sakai.
The choir is led by conductor Daniel Yiau, who has been a member of the Philharmonic Winds for many years before leaving to pursue his conducting studies in Amsterdam.
“This was a natural collaboration – there is no better person to lead a group of like-minded clarinetists, as someone who has played alongside us regularly, and is a talented conductor as well.”
“Of course, it also allows us to spend more time with him while he’s back in Singapore for his break.”
A special feature this concert is the formation of a clarinet choir by like-minded clarinets in Singapore, who will perform the finale item ‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’.
“We wanted to encourage clarinetists to perform outside their regular wind ensembles, and reach out to those who may not have the opportunity to play on a regular basis to join us on stage.”
“We hope that this platform can allow for future collaborations, friendship, and merry music making.”
PhilClarinets in Concert III – The Seventh Night of July
7 July (Friday)
Victoria Concert Hall, 7.30pm
Tickets: $12 ($1 SISTIC Charge) / $20 for 2 tickets
10% Discount for Student, Senior Citizen aged 55 & above and NSF
Tickets available from SISTIC
A contributing editor at TBP.