Cover Photo by Resound Collective / Jack Yam
When Resound Collective takes the stage for its 10th Anniversary Gala Concert, it marks a decade of carving out an uncompromising space for chamber music in Singapore.
Yet for Chairman Mervin Beng, the ensemble’s defining character has remained remarkably constant through ten years of growth.
“Thankfully the group still feels largely the same – small, nimble, very passionate about the music,” Mervin reflects. “Perhaps the biggest changes have been the frequency and the variety of the concerts that we present.”
That identity is etched into every corner of the gala’s programme, which opens not with an established international guest, but with 13-year-old Singaporean violinist Chua Suen Ern playing J.S. Bach’s Violin Concerto No. 1. For Mervin, placing a teenage prodigy front and centre was an instinctive choice rooted in the collective’s long-term mission.
“Programming a young soloist to open our 10th anniversary gala was quite a natural decision,” Mervin explains.
“As a collective, we have been increasingly active working with young musicians, in our ‘Prodigious’ concert series featuring young concerto soloists and young musicians playing side-by-side with our musicians, without a conductor in a chamber orchestra. In fact, Suen Ern was a soloist in our 2025 Prodigious concert. She also played in a string quartet that consisted of very young players in our chamber music festivals in 2024 and 2026.”
To have excluded that generation would have missed the point entirely: “I would go as far as to say that not featuring one of the many young musicians who has played with us in recent years would have made the gala somewhat incomplete.”
The evening also looks squarely at Singapore’s contemporary sonic identity with the world premiere of ‘Sleepless in Singapore’, a four-movement suite commissioned from local composer Germaine Goh.
“The work follows the arc of a day, from the first moments of morning through the bustle of city life, into the stillness of night and towards the beginning of another day,” Mervin says. “For audiences, there are several musical ideas to listen out for. Germaine draws inspiration from cultural music traditions that are part of Singapore’s musical landscape, including the ‘alap’ in Indian classical music and rhythmic ideas inspired by kompang interlocking patterns. These ideas are explored within the context of a contemporary chamber ensemble.”
Instead of narrowing local culture down to a single aesthetic, the work reflects an evolving tapestry.
“Rather than presenting a single definition of what a ‘Singapore sound’ might be, Germaine describes Singapore as a meeting point of many cultures, traditions and communities, with that diversity reflected in its music. For us at Resound Collective, the commission is an opportunity to present new music by a Singaporean composer alongside works from very different musical traditions and periods, bringing these different musical voices together in one programme.”
Alongside the new work sits Gustav Mahler’s luminous ‘Adagietto’, an audacious pairing with the symphonic titan anchored in the second half: Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5.
“We have previously presented Beethoven symphonies 1, 2, and 3, so for a major event like this, the Fifth was a no-brainer,” Mervin notes. “Some concertgoers have joked about us extending our repertoire to composers like Brahms and, to the extreme, Mahler. So why not?”
The choice of Mahler’s Adagietto also carries intimate ensemble practicalities.
“The Adagietto sits alongside the Barber Adagio, Beethoven’s Cavatina from the String Quartet Op. 130, and Bach’s Air as one of the classic string ensemble ‘adagios.’ We have a wonderful harpist, Charmaine Teo, who plays regularly with us, so programming a contrasting work to the Bach violin concerto felt very apt.”
Tackling Beethoven’s Fifth, a monumental work historically dominated by large orchestral forces and autocratic conductors, demands an entirely different kind of discipline from a conductorless chamber orchestra led from the concertmaster chair.
“In brief with a lot of sweat and tears!” Mervin admits with a laugh. “Really, after having done the same with Haydn Symphony 104, Prokofiev’s Classical, Mozart’s Jupiter, and Beethoven’s Eroica, the Fifth hopefully should be fairly smooth sailing, as all musicians are so familiar with the work.”
Yet the absence of a baton changes the fundamental chemistry on stage.
“Preparing for performance without a conductor does take much more time and effort, as there is no conductor to dictate every note, bar or phrase. But by the same token, having every player committing to watch and listen attentively to one another, and adjust in real-time during performance adds an indescribable immediacy to the playing.”
That chamber scale also brings historical authenticity and raw sonic bite. “The chamber orchestra format, with typically three stands per violin section, is almost exactly what Beethoven would have used for this work. In Europe today, the vast majority of orchestras would be performing with an orchestra with numbers close to what we use, except in very large concert halls. If we used a larger string section in the YST or Victoria Concert Halls, we might even have to hold back on the loudest sections.”
The result is an intimacy that sacrifices none of its punch.
“In past performances, listeners have remarked that the group can sound quite loud! But they have also noticed that the slightly smaller numbers of strings, use of natural horns and baroque timpani offers a nice contrast to the sound of a larger symphony orchestra.”
Ultimately, framing this 10-year celebration with an all-Singaporean roster of musicians, soloists, guest leaders, and composers is a testament to how far the ecosystem has evolved.
“We are celebrating 10 years with an all-Singaporean lineup, including a local composition, and a Singaporean guest leader for the second half,” Mervin says.
“A chamber orchestra performing Mahler and Beethoven without a conductor would have been unthinkable ten years ago. This speaks very loudly about the depth of talent and ability that has developed over the past decades.”
Resound Collective 10th Anniversary Gala Concert
Saturday, 29 August 2026
YST Concert Hall, 7.30pm