Chamber Music and Arts Singapore (CMAS) believes that music and the arts have the power to transform lives. It envisions a world where the challenges faced by individuals, families, and communities can be addressed through the therapeutic benefits of engaging with music and the arts. Its mission is to democratise music, making it accessible to all, so it can be used as an everyday tool for navigating life.
The Band Post interviews CMAS on its upcoming 1824 historically-significant project, which is a celebration of this monumental year for chamber music and the cornerstone works written by Schubert.
What is the concept behind 1824?
As we live through the 200th anniversary of this defining year of 1824, Chamber Music and Arts Singapore (CMAS) is embarking on the beginning of a series of projects taking place over the next five years to commemorate a golden era in the history of classical chamber music, reflecting on the enduring impact of the treasure trove of works created in this genre, brought forth for humanity by the great composers for precisely two centuries since.
Self-titled 1824, this year’s project features Beethoven’s younger contemporary in Vienna, Franz Schubert – a prolific composer of lieder, music for domestic home enjoyment and chamber music masterpieces.
Artistic Director Tang Tee Khoon says, “It would be impossible for Chamber Music and Arts Singapore to let go of such an opportune time in history – to take this year and the next four – to look back exactly two centuries into the golden period of chamber music and the treasure trove of works this period brought forth for humanity.”
What does 1824 seek to achieve?
1824 will run from 29 November to 17 December 2024 across multiple venues in Singapore to provide different segments of Singapore with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the music and cultural excitements of this time in Vienna and its history.
Artistic Director Tang Tee Khoon says, “As like for literary works, paintings and visual art, as well as architecture of historical significance, CMAS has a responsibility to offer Singaporeans the opportunity to connect as a part of humanity with great masters of the past – by ensuring that works from this golden period of chamber music can be visited and re-visited by Singaporeans in LIVE performances within different settings of accessibility.”
What are the components of 1824 and the audience targeted for each event?
The responsibility of bringing forth the music of this year’s project 1824 – will rest on the shoulders of CMAS’ internationally-acclaimed chamber musicians:
- french solo clarinetist Florent Héau
- violist of Grammy-nominated Dover Quartet, Julianne Lee
- solo German cellist and former founding member of Artemis Quartet, Eckart Runge
- concert violinist and founder of CMAS, Tang Tee Khoon
- Singaporean concert violinist, Yang Shuxiang
whilst working hand-in-hand with friends of CMAS from Resound Collective and Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music
- Wang Xu on double bass
- Alan Kartik on the horn
- Lim Tee Heong on bassoon
- Ning An on piano
Adapting the stories of Schubert and his music for young audiences, the interactive Concerts for Children continue to create accessibility to quality chamber music for children – specially designed and curated for those ages 0-6 and 6-12. Modelled after Beethoven’s Septet and commissioned by the amateur clarinetist Count Ferdinand Troyer, audiences of 0-6 years will discover the array of string and wind instruments found in Schubert’s grandiose six-movement Octet while older children of 6-12 years will learn more about and experience ‘Schubertiads’ – regular evenings organised by friends of Schubert at the homes of wealthy patrons where his music would be shared and discussed. These interactive performances offer fun and light-hearted glimpses into the vibrant musical landscape of 19th-century Vienna in an up-close and personal way for children who never experienced it before in Singapore.
CMAS’ engaging animateur, E-van Yeung, will bring the young ones through these stories with the help of interactive activities and bite-sized musical excerpts, performed LIVE by the same powerhouse line-up of international and local chamber musicians.
The Evening Concerts of 1824 spans across two evenings on 16 and 17 December at the Esplanade Recital Studio, offering these cornerstone works:
- Schubert Arpeggione Sonata in a minor D 821
- Schubert String Quartet no. 14 in d minor D 810 ‘Death and the Maiden’
- Schubert Octet in F major D 803 on the second.
On top of performing for the concerts, French solo clarinetist Florent Héau will also offer local wind chamber groups an incredible opportunity to learn through a Wind Chamber Masterclass and Open Conversation held with the marketing support of The Band World and Band Academy Singapore.
Incorporated in July 2020 and registered as a charity in June 2021, CMAS has been unwavering in its commitment to bringing the highest quality of western classical chamber music to local audiences. With a special additional focus on engaging underprivileged children and youths in Singapore, CMAS strives to ensure that everyone, regardless of backgrounds, can experience the beauty and creative power of classical chamber music. Collaborating with internationally-acclaimed chamber musicians originating internationally and locally, CMAS designs and presents live performances across a wide variety of venues and spaces in Singapore, ensuring chamber music as an important cornerstone to our nation’s cultural and community enrichment.
As CMAS approaches its fifth anniversary in 2025, it reflects on its growth and commitment to nurturing meaningful connections through music and the arts. Over the years, they have continued to expand our reach through a diverse range of carefully designed programmes, including Evening Concerts, Concerts for Children, Programmes for Youths, The Glasshouse, Homegrown Series, and an extensive array of initiatives for and within communities. These efforts exemplify their vision of music and the arts being a transformative force in the lives of individuals, families and communities.
Programmes for Youths
Secondary School Music Experience
Held as one of the National Arts Council’s Arts Education Programmes (AEP) Public Arts Programme, and run by Chamber Music and Arts Singapore, this programme is conducted biannually at the Esplanade Recital Studio in May / June and November / December. The experience consists of three segments: a masterclass, a closed-door open rehearsal and an Evening Concert, held over the course of 2 or 3 days. Schools can choose to enroll their students in the May / June experience, November / December experience or both.
Apprenticeship Programme
CMAS Apprenticeship programme is designed for Secondary School and JC students who are keen on acquiring hands-on experience in arts project management through bringing a classical chamber music project from idea to reality with the CMAS Executive team. This Apprenticeship programme usually spans a period of 3 months each year leading up to our large-scale LIVE concerts projects.*
*although a customised timeline can be found according to the requirements of each participating school
The Glasshouse comes ALIVE !
Beyond The Glasshouse, The Glasshouse comes ALIVE ! is a special series of interactive music and arts events encouraging us to bring our work within this virtual creative sphere out to different communities – transforming digital experiences into LIVE events with the support of digital materials. This series of LIVE events responds to the desire of children, youths, families, young adults and working adults to gather for meaningful engagement in person with music and the arts since the post-pandemic world set in. It has also served as an important opportunity for the growing pool of CMAS Homegrown Series musicians to gather and to work together at the highest artistic levels for the purpose of community.
Bringing stories from within The Glasshouse into the physical realm through regular interactive events for children, youths and families – at communal spaces in the heartlands and within the communities offered by our venue & production partners – The Glasshouse comes ALIVE ! continues to be our largest and most consistent endeavour till date, in bringing quality classical chamber music out into the communities. The lively and many times outdoor atmospheres within which these events together with other curated activities are set – is designed to bring down the barriers of entry for audiences of all ages and backgrounds to access quality classical chamber music and arts.
It is infinitely encouraging that The Glasshouse which was originally conceptualised from early 2020 as an innovative creative product to manoeuvre around the pandemic – continues to serve as inspiration and a foundation for our events within communal spaces for the every day individual and families!