Kelly Tang - Composer
Kelly Tang - Composer
Singapore, SG, SG
Classical
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- Songs
| Status | T'ang Quartet performs Feet Unbound Suite at Singapore Encore in Brussels, Belgium on 25 Nov 09 |
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Bio
KELLY TANG (Composer, born Singapore, 1961) received his undergraduate training at York University (Toronto) and was awarded a Masters' degree in Composition by Northwestern University in 1991. He received his Ph.D. at Michigan State University in 1995. Tang was conferred the COMPASS Artistic Excellence Award by the Composers’ and Authors’ Society of Singapore in 2008. He currently serves as Associate Professor of Music at the Nanyang Technological University - National Institute of Education.
About
Kelly Tang - Profile:
Grounded upon a wide array of contemporary composing techniques, Tang's musical style springs from a confluence of diverse sources, ranging from his research in Schenkerian Theory, Parametric Analysis, Serial Procedures, Baroque Counterpoint and 20th Century Harmony, to his training in South Indian drumming under legendary Mrdangam virtuoso Trichy Sankaran. Tang’s music also draws inspiration from his experience as Rock album producer, Chinese folk song arranger, composer of Electronica and Jazz pianist.
Orchestral Works:
Kelly Tang's symphonic poem Apocalypso was premiered by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Kazimierz Kord, at Singapore Arts Festival 2000, a special millennial commission by the National Arts Council. In February 2008, Apocalypso was performed by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by renowned Finnish maestro, Okko Kamu
The Russian National Orchestra performed Tang’s Sinfonia Concertante at the Tchaikovsky Festival (Esplanade) in 2004, conducted by Christian Gansch. Sinfonia Concertante was commissioned in 1999 by the Singapore National Youth Orchestra for a President’s Charity Concert premiere.
Tang’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra will be premiered by pianist Lim Yan and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Lim Yau, at the Esplanade on 11 February 2010. Upcoming Orchestral works include a Jazz piano concerto to be premiered by Jeremy Monteiro & the Singapore Chinese Orchestra conducted by Tsung Yeh, commissioned for the opening concert of the SCO’s 2010 – 2011 season.
Symphonic Suite on a Set Of Local Tunes was premiered by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Lim Yau, at the Esplanade in 2004;a special May Day commission by the National Trades Union Congress. Since then, Symphonic Suite has been featured regularly by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra at venues as diverse as Vivocity Amphitheatre, Nanyang Auditorium, Toa Payoh Library Square and the Botanic Gardens Shaw Symphony Stage. The SSO featured Symphonic Suite at the Tan Chin Tuan Centennial Memorial Concert in May 2008.
In October 2006, the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Tatsuya Shimono, performed Symphonic Suite at the Esplanade Concert Hall. In August 2007, it was performed by the Macau Youth Symphony Orchestra at the Victoria Concert Hall, conducted by Brazilian maestro Veiga Jardim. In that same month, Symphonic Suite was performed by the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Adrian Tan, at the Hanoi Opera House.
During its 2008 concert tour of Italy, The Singapore National Youth Orchestra performed Symphonic Suite at the Church of St. Stefano (Florence), Montecatini Terme and the Auditorium di Milano, conducted by Lim Soon Lee. The SNYO also performed Symphonic Suite at the 2008 Singapore Youth Festival. In November 2008, Symphonic Suite on a Set Of Local Tunes was selected as Singapore’s official representative at the ASEAN Anthem Concert at the Aksra Theatre in Bangkok, performed by the Royal Thai Navy Symphony Orchestra.
Sketches of Singapore, Tang's second suite on Singaporean themes, was commissioned in 2008 in commemoration of Singapore's 43rd national Day. It was premiered in a series of SSO concerts in August 2008, conducted by SSO Young Associate Conductor, Darrell Ang. The Millennial Orchestra performed Sketches of Singapore at Asia Conference 2008 (Singapore Expo) and also at the "Composers & Talents from Home" concert at Victoria Concert Hall in August 2009.
The National University of Singapore Symphony Orchestra performed Sketches of Singapore at the National Library Atrium in September 2009. The Singapore National Youth Orchestra is scheduled to perform Sketches of Singapore in December 2010.
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra has premiered several other works by Tang including Largo for Piano and Orchestra (2001), cog-NI-sense (2003) Yuletide Rhapsody (2005) and Hollywood Magic Suite (2008). Yuletide Rhapsody was performed by the Singapore Lyric Opera, conducted by Zechariah Goh, in December 2006.
Tang’s new orchestration of Majulah Singapura,the Singapore National Anthem, was commissioned by the Ministry of Information, Communication and the Arts and recorded by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in 2000, conducted by Lan Shui. His orchestration of ACS Forever (the Anglo-Chinese School Anthem) was premiered by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra at the Victoria concert Hall on July 23rd 2009.
Two Contrasts - Concerto for Solo Violin & String Orchestra, commissioned by Foo Say Ming and the Re:mix String Ensemble, was premiered on 26th July 2009 at the Esplanade Recital Studio. In September 2009, Re:mix presented the Malaysian premiere of Two Contrasts at the Shangrila Ballroom in Kota Kinabalu. In October 2009, Two Contrasts was performed by Re:mix at the ArtSingapore exhibition, Suntec.
Tropicatto for solo violin and orchestra was commissioned by the Association of Banks in Singapore for the International SIBOS Conference in 2003. It was premiered by virtuoso Lee Huei Min, accompanied by the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Orchestra conducted by Richard Adams.
Chamber Works:
Tang’s Duo for Violin and Piano received its Carnegie Hall - New York debut performance by violinist Tee Khoon Tang in her East-West Auditions International Prize-winner's Recital in March 2005, accompanied by Taiwanese pianist Pei Shan Lee. That year, they also featured Duo at their New England Conservatory recital. The Singapore premiere of Duo was given by violinist Foo Say Ming and pianist Shane Thio at their 20th Century Duos recital in 1999.
T'ang-ology & Momentum, two compositions in Jazz style, were commissioned for a premiere by the Jeremy Monteiro Trio with Jazz legends Randy Brecker (trumpet), Ernie Watts (tenor saxophone) and the T’ang Quartet at Singapore Arts Festival 2009. In October 2009, the T'ang Quartet performed T'ang-ology at the Port Fairy Spring Festival in Melbourne, Australia.
Serenade for Winds was commissioned for a 2002 premiere by the Ensemble Contemporain of Montreal (ECM) at the Montreal-Singapore Exchange Concert, conducted by Veronique Lacroix. It received its second performance by the Magnetic Band at the Esplanade in 2005. On November 1st 2009, Serenade for Winds was featured in a VCH Chamber Series recital by Singapore Symphony Orchestra musicians.
Trio for Oboe Cello and Piano premiered at the Japan-Singapore International Exchange Concert in Suntory Hall, Tokyo in March 2006, organised by the Japan Federation of Composers. It was performed by Tokyo University of Fine Art professors, Yoshiaki Obata (Oboe), Sawako Ota (Piano) and Tomoki Tai (Cello).
Upon a special invitation, Tang composed Eight Decades for the 80th birthday celebrations of Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, an symphonic fantasy for solo violin based on eight selected tunes. Eight Decades was performed by world-acclaimed violinist Lee Huei Min on September 16th 2003 at the Shangri-la Ballroom.
Quintet for Piano and Strings was composed in 1996 for a Command House performance hosted by President Ong Teng Cheong. In 2004, it was performed by pianist Dr. Eleanor Tan, with musicians from the Russian National Orchestra, at “Eastern Counterpoint”: a Russia-Singapore exchange concert. Quintet was featured in the 2005 television documentary on classical music: No Strings Attached, performed by the T'ang Quartet with pianist Shane Thio. In August 2008, Quintet was performed at the Esplanade by Take Five, featuring eminent Singaporean musicians Lim Yan (piano), Foo Say Ming and Lim Shue Churn (violins), Chan Yoong Han (viola) and Chan Wei Shing (Cello), where it received an encore performance.
Piano Trio premiered in 2001 at the 20th Century Trios recital performed by Shane Thio (piano), Chan Wei Shing (cello) and Foo Say Ming (violin). In 2006, Piano Trio was featured by the Nanyang Academy of Fine Art Contemporary Music Ensemble at the 27th International Society for Music Education (ISME) World Conference, held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.
Film Score:
In 2006, Tang composed the music score to the feature film, Feet Unbound, produced by Long March Films of Australia. The score was performed and recorded by the T’ANG Quartet. Feet Unbound received its world premiere at the 19th International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam (IDFA) where it was featured in the highest category: the Joris Ivens Competition.
The Feet Unbound,concert suite was premiered by the T'ANG Quartet at Nanyang Technological University for the Exxon-Mobil concert series in 2006 and 2007. In 2008, the T’ANG Quartet performed the Feet Unbound Concert Suite at the Singapore International String Conference and also for President’s Star Charity 2008, a Mediacorp live television broadcast. In November 2009, the T'ang Quartet performed the Feet Unbound Concert Suite at "Singapore Encore" in Brussels, Belgium.
Feet Unbound has screened worldwide at prestigious festivals such as the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival 2006 (Greece), the Adelaide Film Festival 2006, the Yerevan International Film Festival 2007 (Armenia), the Singapore International Film Festival 2007, Cinema Digital Seoul 2007, the DocNZ Festival 2007 (New Zealand), the Sydney Film Festival 2007, the Montreal World Film Festival 2007, the Mannheim-Heidelberg Film Festival 2007 (Germany), the Leeds International Film Festival 2007 (UK), the Mexico City International Documentary Film Festival 2008 and the Hawaiian International Film Festival 2008 (USA).
In Singapore, Feet Unbound screened commercially at the Cathay Picturehouse, enjoying an unprecedented extended three-week run from 17th April to 7th May 2008. In July 2008, the film was given an encore screening at the Sinema Old School. Feet Unbound was released commercially on DVD in June 2008.
Opera:
In 2006, Tang composed the symphonic score to the opera Intrigues in the Qing Imperial Court, presented by the Chinese Theatre Circle in January 2007. Featuring Cultural Medallion winner Joanna Wong as the Empress Dowager and an orchestra conducted by Joshua Tan Kang Ming, Intrigues made history as the first Chinese opera to be sung in English and performed with a symphony orchestra.
Wind Band Compositions:
Three Portraits for Symphonic Band was commissioned by The Ministry of Defence in commemoration of “50 Years of Military Bands Service in Singapore”. Three Portraits was premiered by the Singapore Armed Forces Central Band at the Esplanade in November 2008, with principal musicians of “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band.
Shining Light for symphonic band was commissioned for the opening ceremony of the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) International Conference in 2005, where it was premiered by the Singapore Youth Wind Orchestra conducted by Takehiro Oura. It has also been performed by the ACJC Concert Band and the National Institute of Education Symphonic Band. Shining Light was premiered in Australia by the Queensland Conservatorium Wind Orchestra conducted by Ralph Hultgren, during their 2006 Coast to Coast concert tour.
Two Overtures for Wind Band was commissioned by the Ministry of Education for the Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging of Concert Bands 2009, where it was performed by more than 170 school bands. Tang is the first Singaporean in seventeen years invited to compose for this annual competition. Two Overtures for Wind Band was given its public premiere at the Singapore Youth Festival Concert Band Presentation on July 8th 2009 by the National Junior College and Anderson Junior College concert bands.
In July 2009, Overture no. 2 for Wind Band was featured in a command performance at the Sydney Opera House by the SMU Symphonia conducted by David Glosz for the 20th Australian International Music Festival. In August 2009, Overture no. 2 was also performed at the 16th World Music Competition in Kerkrade (Holland) by the Mus'Art Wind Orchestra and the Nanyang Technological University Symphonic Band. On New Year's Day 2010, Two Overtures for Wind Band will be performed by the National Institute of Education Symphonic Band at the Chiaying International Band Festival in Taiwan.
Highlandler Overture was commissioned in 2001 to commemorate the 160th anniversary of St. Margaret's Girl's Secondary School. It has since been performed by the Philharmonic Winds, the NIE Symphonic Band and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts Wind Ensemble. The Next Octave, was commissioned for the 80th anniversary celebrations of Geylang Methodist School in 2003.
Upcoming band compositions for 2010 include commissions to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Philharmonic Winds and the 85th anniversary of the Singapore Police Force.
Choral Music:
Solitary Reaper, was commissioned by the National Arts Council for the National Choral Seminar in 1999, premiered by the Victoria Chorale conducted by Nelson Kwei. In 2001, the Singapore Youth Choir performed Solitary Reaper at the Asia Pacific Symposium on Choral Music. It has also been performed by the Philharmonic Chamber Choir at the Asia Choral Days Concert in Tokyo Opera City and the Windsbacher Knabenchor in Germany. In 2005, Solitary Reaper was featured in a master class conducted by Jennifer Tham at the Karuizawa Choral Festival in Tokyo.
A Synchrony of Psalms, a multi-movement sacred work for choir and instrumental ensemble, was commissioned in 2004 for the 40th Anniversary of the Singapore Youth Choir. In 2005, the SYC performed Synchrony at the 2nd Symposium on Church Choral Music in Java, and also at the Divine Rhapsody concert banquet at Chijmes Cathedral. Other works commissioned by the SYC include the contemporary motets Flying Without Wings (2004) and She’s Out of My Life (2001), the latter of which was performed at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space in January 2009.
The Daffodils, a choral work for children, was commissioned by the Ministry of Education as the set piece for the Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging of Choirs 2006, where it was performed by over 120 primary school choirs. The Daffodils received its public premiere by the CHIJ St. Nicholas School choir at the Singapore Youth Festival Choral Presentation in July 2006. The Singapore Lyric Opera Children's Choir performed The Daffodils at the Esplanade in May 2007 and December 2008.
My Shadow, based on a poem from Robert Louis Stevenson's "A Child's Garden of Verses", was commissioned as the set piece for the Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging of Choirs 2010.
Six Significant Landscapes, a setting of Wallace Stevens’ poems for chamber choir and piano, was commissioned by The Singers Vocal Ensemble and pianist Shane Thio, funded by a National Arts Council project grant and premiered at the Made In Singapore recital at the Esplanade in August 2008. The Singers performed Six Significant Landscapes at the World Youth Choral Festival in December 2008.
The Snowman was commissioned by the Anglo-Chinese Junior College Choir for their 2007 Esplanade concert, “An Evening with Friends”. The Land of Dreams, Tang’s 2nd choral work for the Anglo-Chinese Junior College choir, was commissioned to commemorate the opening of the new ACJC Centre of Performing Arts in May 2008. In August 2008, The Snowman and Land of Dreams were featured in a master class by Jennifer Tham at the Summer Academy for Choral Conductors in Lithuania.
Tang's setting of Blake's Tyger! Tyger! Burning Bright was commissioned in 2001 by USA-based soprano Dr Eugenia Yau and pianist Prof. Christian Matijas for a series of recitals at the University of Michigan, Olivet College, the University of Texas, Northwestern University and Iowa Wesleyan University. That year, Tyger! was sung by Dr Yau, at Nanyang Technological University and the National University of Singapore, accompanied by Shane Thio.
Music for Strings & Harps:
Tang’s Shanghai & Nat King Cole Suites were commissioned by the Re:mix string ensemble for a world premiere at the Prince Songkla University (Thailand) and a Singapore premiere at the Esplanade in December 2007. These suites were reprised by Re:mix at their "Old School" recital in September 2009.
The Singapore National Youth Orchestra performed Tang’s Shanghai Suite and the Feet Unbound Concert Suite at the Asian Civilisations Museum’s “Kangxi Emperor: Treasures of the Forbidden City” exhibition in March 2009. ABBA Suite was commissioned by the Re:mix Ensemble for a premiere at the Esplanade in December 2008.
All Things Bright and Beautiful was commissioned by the Anglo-Chinese Junior College String Orchestra for the official opening of the ACJC Centre for Performing Arts in May 2008. Tapestry, a composition for harps, was commissioned by the Anglo-Chinese Junior College Harp Ensemble for the 2009 Singapore Youth Festival Central Judging of Instrumental Ensembles.
Contribution to Education & Arts Planning:
Tang’s profile & compositions are featured in standard music textbooks prescribed by the Ministry of Education for Singapore schools including MUSIC ALIVE! EXPLORING THE WORLD OF SOUND, a secondary school textbook published in 2007, as well as FIRST STEPS TO MUSIC, published in 2008. In October 2009, three volumes of Tang's recorded works, plus a full collection of his scores, were digitally archived by the National Library Board for on-line public access.
As Music Director of Eagles Communications since 1980, Tang has produced six Pop albums and written four full-length stage musicals. He has also composed and orchestrated the anthems of over ten schools. Tang is founder director of the NIE Composers’ Ensemble, which was awarded a commission in 2001 from The Esplanade: Theatres on the Bay to premiere five new works for the Music Box concert series.
Tang has served as artistic director of international collaborative projects such as Symposium on South Indian Drumming in World Music featuring legendary Carnatic percussion virtuoso Trichy Sankaran (2006), EASTERN COUNTERPOINT: A Russia-Singapore Composers’ Exchange Project which brought together musicians from the Russian National Orchestra and the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (2004) and The NIE Symposium On Electronic Composition With Digital Synthesis featuring IRCAM composer and Harvard professor Hans Tutschku (1997). Tang served as co-organiser for The Montreal-Singapore Exchange Project in 2002, featuring joint performances and workshops by the Ensemble Contemporain of Montreal with musicians of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and composers from Canada and Singapore.
Tang has also played a role in charting directions for various aspects of musical life in Singapore. He was appointed to the founding Board of Directors overseeing the Arts House at the Old Parliament in 2001. From 2001 to 2004, he served in the committee for establishing the School of the Arts (SOTA) in Singapore. As a member of the National Arts Council Music Resource Panel, he has been appointed to committees for the Singapore Arts Festival, the NAC Arts Awards, the Shell/NAC Scholarship Awards and the Arts Research and Development Funding Scheme. He currently serves on the board of the Singapore National Youth Orchestra.
Tang served as advisor to the Ministry of Education in revising the latest GCE 'A', 'O' and 'N' level curriculum. He also served on the curriculum development committees for the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and LaSalle School for the Arts. Tang was appointed by the Singapore Ambassador to the Russian Federation to join a cultural delegation aboard Singapore Airlines' inaugural flight to Moscow on March 1st 2006, tasked with forging ties with major Russian composers and music institutions.
Tang’s impact in music education runs the entire gamut, from teaching in a local “neighbourhood” school to lecturing at prestigious junior colleges and universities. He has taught overseas at Northwestern University and Michigan State University. In Singapore, he has taught at Raffles Junior College and St. Theresa's Convent. Tang has mentored upcoming young composers and conducted composition workshops at Raffles Junior College, Raffles Institution, National Junior College, Anglo-Chinese Junior College, Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), Temasek Junior College, Dunman High School, Singapore Polytechnic and the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.
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