FESTIVAL CONCERT #1 “MYTHS & LEGENDS: MOTHER GOOSE AND THE TALES OF 1001 NIGHTS" in collaboration with Musical Olympus Foundation 13 October 2016 7pm | Victoria Concert Hall Alexei Semenenko, violin Kerim Vergazov, piano Grieg: Sonata no. 1 Ysaye: Ballade no. 3 Paganini: I Palpiti 8pm / Victoria Concert Hall Members of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe & The Singapore International Festival of Music Orchestra / Darrell Ang Ravel: Ma Mère l'Oye ('Mother Goose' Suite) Rossini: Nacqui all´affanno e al pianto… (from La Cenerentola) (Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, soprano) Gounod: Vous qui fates l’endormie (from “Faust”) (Li Ao, bass-baritone) Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy (Alexey Semeneko, violin) Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The second Singapore International Festival of Music (SIFOM) opens to the theme of Myths and Legends with a full symphonic concert featuring the resident festival orchestra (SIFOM Orchestra), alongside members of the legendary Chamber Orchestra of Europe. SIFOM’s festival director Darrell Ang, will be conducting the orchestra. Three of the world's young classical music stars will also take centrestage with their favourite showpieces: Chinese bass-baritone Li Ao (winner of Placido Domingo's Operalia competition) plays the devil Mephistopheles in a famous aria from Gounod's beloved opera Faust, Bolshoi Theatre’s Vasilisa Berzhanskaya sings Cinderella's closing aria from Rossini's opera on the fairytale and violinist Aleksey Semenenko, who bagged the silver medal at the recent Queen Elisabeth Competition, promises to set the stage on fire with virtuoso pyrotechnics from Sarasate's beloved Carmen Fantasy. Lastly, be spellbound by Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's powerful symphonic retelling of the colourful adventures of Sinbad the Sailor and the 1001 Arabian Nights. His Scheherazade is full of unforgettable tunes which will leave you dreaming of flying carpets and magic lamps!

FESTIVAL CONCERT #2 “THE SEASONS" 14 October 2016 7pm | Victoria Concert Hall Nancy Yuen, soprano + SIFOM Orchestra / Alvin Arumugam Overture and Senta’s Ballad from Wagner: Der Fliegende Holländer 14 October 2016 8pm / Victoria Concert Hall 1B1 ... and featuring Basil Ong Tze Wee, Kaelyn Yunci Soh, Yuri Tanaka, Mathea Goh (violins) Grieg: Holberg Suite / Vivaldi: The Four Seasons / Piazzolla: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires 1. Grieg: “Präludium” from “Holberg Suite" 2. Vivaldi: Spring from “The Four Seasons" 3. Piazzolla: Verano Porteño 4. Grieg: “Gavotte” from “Holberg Suite” 5. Vivaldi: Summer from “The Four Seasons” 6. Piazzolla: Otoño Porteño 7. Grieg:”Sarabande” from “Holberg Suite” 8. Vivaldi: “Autumn” from “The Four Seasons” 9. Piazzolla: Invierno Porteño 10. Grieg: “Air” from “Holberg Suite” 11. Vivaldi: “Winter” from “The Four Seasons” 12. Piazzolla: Primavera Porteña 13. Grieg: “Rigaudon” from “Holberg Suite” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Spend the evening with one of Norway's best chamber orchestras – known affectionately as 1B1. This progressive string ensemble will bring with them an evergreen work – the Holberg Suite – by their country’s most famous composer, Edvard Grieg. Grieg's music will be cleverly interspersed by the sensuous and electrifying tangos of Astor Piazzolla and the equally evocative and descriptive The Four Seasons by Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi, 1B1 will work with four of Singapore's most gifted violinists, who will each take turns to share the stage with our Norwegian friends in Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. This evening's concert will be preceded by a pre-concert performance of excerpts from Wagner's opera, 'The Flying Dutchman', and will feature Singapore's grand dame of opera Nancy Yuen with the SIFOM Orchestra.

FESTIVAL CONCERT #3 MUSICAL OLYMPUS FOUNDATION presents "TODAY’S STARS, TOMORROW’S LEGENDS" 7.30pm | The Arts House | Chamber Vocal Recital by Li Ao (bass-baritone) and Vasilisa Berzhanskaya (soprano) Pianist: Beatrice Lin Songs and Arias by Rossini, Mozart, Rachmaninov, Bellini, Massenet, Bizet, Tchaikovsky, Handel, Schubert, Moore, Gounod Mozart: Aria of Dorabella from Cosi fan tutte / "Ah scostati/Smanie implacabili" Mozart: Aria of Ramiro from La Finta Giardiniera / "Va pure ad altri" Mozart: Aria of Cerubino from Le nozze di Figaro / "Voi Che sapete" Gounod: Aria of Stephano form Romeo and Juliet / Depuis hier/ "Que fais tu" Massenet: Aria of Charlotte from Werther / "Werther, Werther!" Bellini: Aria and cabaletta of Romeo from I Capuleti e i Montecchi / "Ascolta. Se Romeo/ La tremenda" Rossini: Aria of Rosina from Il barbiere di Siviglia/ "Una voce poco fa" Rossini: Aria of Cenerentola from Cenerentola / "Nacqui all'affanno" Mozart: Duo of Guglielmo and Dorabella form Cosi fan tutte / "Il core vi dono" Mozart: Duo of Zerlina and Don Giovanni from Don Giovanni / "La ci darem la mano" Scarlatti: Le violette Pergolesi: Nina Schubert: Die Forelle Schubert: Der Erlkönig Bizet: Quand la flamme de l'amour from "La Jolie fille de Perth" Gounod: Vous qui faites l'endormie from" Faust" Tchaikovsky: Reconciliation Rachmaninov: Aleko's Cavatina from"Aleko" Two Chinese Songs: "Rainbow sister" and "Legend of the dragon" _____________________________________________________________ Join two of the operatic world's brightest young stars – Li Ao, winner of Placido Domingo's prestigious Operalia competition and Bolshoi Theatre’s Vasilisa Berzhanskaya – in an evening of dramatic presentations of arias and art-songs. From timeless pieces including Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte and The Marriage of Figaro to Gounod's operatic interpretation of Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, well-known Lieder from Schuber – Die Forelle and Der Erlköning – be spellbound by these powerful voices!

FESTIVAL CONCERT #4 “THE SUNKEN CATHEDRAL AND OTHER STORIES…" 16 October 2016 3pm | The Arts House | Gallery Piano Recital by Kseniia Vokhmianina Claude-Achille Debussy (1862 - 1918) Préludes, Book 1 1. Danseuses de Delphes : Lent et grave 2. Voiles : Modéré 3. Le vent dans la plaine : Animé 4. "Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir" : Modéré 5. Les collines d'Anacapri : Très modérée 6. Des pas sur la neige : Triste et lent 7. Ce qu'a vu le vent d'ouest : Animé et tumultueux 8. "La fille aux cheveux de lin" : Très calme et doucement expressif 9. La sérénade interrompue : Modérément animé 10. La cathédrale engloutie : Profondément calme 11. La danse de Puck : Capricieux et léger 12. Minstrels : Modéré Kelly Tang (b.1961) Elegy (Solo Piano Edition 2015) Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915) Piano Sonata no.5, Op. 53 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Touted to be the piano recital of the year, Ukraine-born Kseniia Vokhmianina has selected a programme of daring imagination and virtuosity. A recipient of the Lee Foundation Scholarship Award, she will perform impressionist master Debussy’s Préludes, Book 1 for piano including its most famous and haunting movement, La Cathédrale engloutie (The Sunken Cathedral), Vokhmianina will also deliver a composition by Kelly Tang, one of Singapore's foremost composers and pedagogues. His Elegy is dedicated to the memory of Singapore's first Prime Minister Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, and taken from the 2nd movement of Concerto in Three Movements, commissioned in 2015 in celebration of Singapore's 50th anniversary. Ending off the recital with a bang, Vokhmianina will perform the Russian mystic and composer Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin’s 5th piano sonata of 1907.

FESTIVAL CONCERT #5 Challenging the barriers between cultures and genres, Ding Yi Music Company presents a night of East meets West: Chinese Music Quintet with the western Piano Quintet. Showcasing Ding Yi’s very own virtuoso musicians in collaboration with renowned Vietnamese chamber ensemble, Song Hong Chamber Music, the concert will showcase new compositions by Ding Yi Music Company Composer-in-Residence, Phang Kok Jun, guest composers Liong Kit Yeng, Wang A-Mao and guest Composer-Conductor Darrell Ang. Awarded the Grand Prize, Audience Prize and Orchestra Prize at the 50th Besançon International Conductor’s Competition, Darrell Ang, who is also the artistic director of the Festival, will collaborate for the first time with Chinese chamber music ensemble as guest artist, conducting his own composition, Dao and the Four Ghosts (叶老脱). Working with the five excellent soloists of Song Hong Chamber Music and Ding Yi Music Company's, Ang will also lend his special brand of music-making to two other compositions in what promises to be an unexpected treat for Singapore audiences!

FESTIVAL CONCERT #6 “… And there was N0th1ng” 16 October 2016 7.30pm | The Arts House | Chamber TO Ensemble “… And there was N0th1ng” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Award-winning Singapore composer-pianist Tze and his TO Ensemble make their SIFOM debut in a daring new compostition which seeks to blur boundaries of classical, ethnic, jazz and popular music. Tze's intriguing new composition, … And there was N0th1ng, is inspired by an original story about how a machine tried to understand humanity, but through its own failings, eventually realizing and appreciating the imperfection, it recognises the unpredictability and imagination of man as a pinnacle of evolution it can never achieve.

FESTIVAL CONCERT #7 “THIEF IN THE NIGHT AND OTHER BIZARRE TALES…" 18 October 2016 7.30pm | The Arts House | Gallery II Piano Recital by Thomas Ang Ravel - Gaspard de la nuit Chopin - 3rd Ballade in A flat major, op. 47 Chopin - Étude in E major, op. 10 no. 3 Chopin - Étude in C sharp minor, op. 10 no. 4 Chopin - Étude in G flat “Black Keys”, op. 10 no. 5 Chopin/Hamelin - Étude X “pour les idées noires” after Chopin’s “Black Keys” Chopin/Godowsky - Étude no. 10 “Capriccio” in A major after Chopin’s “Black Keys” Bach - Prelude and Fugue in F sharp minor from Book 2 Feinberg/Ang - The Dream Feinberg - 2nd Sonata, op. 2 Tchaikovsky - Daydream and Lark-song from Children’s Album, op. 39 Tchaikovsky/Rachmaninoff - Lullaby, op. 16 no. 1 Tchaikovsky/Ang - When the day dawns ______________________________________________________________ Young Singapore pianist, Thomas Ang who has just graduated from London's prestigious Royal Academy of Music, will present a recital to display musical strengths coupled with strong programming ideas in the form of Ravel's most terrifying piano masterpiece Gaspard de la Nuit, Chopin's Third Ballade and finger-twisting Études and Thomas’ own transcriptions of songs by Feinberg and Tchaikovsky. Proceeds from this concert's ticket sales will be donated to the Hamish Dyer Young Musicians' Scholarship – the same fund that allowed Thomas to pursue his music studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

FESTIVAL CONCERT #8 “NEW MUSIC IN A MYTHIC LANDSCAPE" 19 October 2016 7.30pm | The Arts House | Chamber “New Music in a Mythic Landscape” Musicians from SIFOM Orchestra / Marlon Chen Ho Chee Kong: Echoes of Fall John Sharpley: Singapore Dreams Chen Zhangyi: Sandcastles Tan Yu Ting: Chinatown Bertram Wee: love songs Koh Cheng Jin: Ecstasy Ding Jian Han: Slow Jogging on a Not-so-silent Night Mick Lim: (Commissioned Work) ______________________________________________________________ The resident festival orchestra (the SIFOM Orchestra) will perform an evening of compostitions from two veteran composers, one established representative of the current crop of young composers, and five new voices – each with his or her own unique story to tell of a Singapore that is in a perpetual flux. This set opens with Associate Professor Ho Chee Kong’s meditative Echoes of Fall and progresses with newcomers Bertram Wee’s Love Songs – sets of 7 miniature piano pieces and closes with a commissioned work by Mick Lim.

FESTIVAL CONCERT #9 “VICTORIA’S GREATEST HITS" 7.30pm | The Arts House | Gallery II Vocal Recital by Victoria Songwei Li Piano: Thomas Ang Caro nome - Verdi (Rigoletto) Gretchen am Spinnrade - Schubert Be kind and Courteous - Britten (A Midsummer Night's Dream) Love went a-riding - F. Bridge Chiedi all'aura lusinghiera - Donizetti (L'elisir d'amore) Prendi per me se libero... - Donizetti (L'elisir d'amore) Ange adorable - Gounod (Romeo et Juliette) No word from Tom - Stravinsky (The Rake's Progress) Zdes' horosho - Rachmaninov Ne poy, krasavitsa, primne - Rachmaninov Je veux vivre - Gounod (Romeo et Juliette) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Journey with Singapore soprano Victoria Songwei Li, through the various stages of love based on European legends – from innocent young love in Verdi’s Caro Nome to a young girl's discovery of the excitement of love, to the proclamation of the joys of youth and love in Gounod’s Je veux vivre. Li is a recent graduate of the Royal Academy Music in London and recipient of Hamish Dyer Young Musicians' Scholarship.

FESTIVAL #10 PORTRAIT OF A COMPOSER / IKAN GIRL A story of good triumphing over evil, the story of Ikan Girl reminds one of patience and kindness and the perils of engaging in evil acts especially the mistreatment of a fellow being. Inspired by a Malay ancient poem known as the Syair Bidasari, this story will be presented in the form of a multidisciplinary performance that incorporates movement vocabulary from Malay dance, bharatanatyam and contemporary dance genres. It will also feature original music composed collaboratively and performed ‘live’ by classical and traditional musicians.