Singapore Chinese Cultural Contribution Award

Tay Teow Kiat is a renowned local conductor of Chinese orchestral music, with an extensive and highly esteemed presence in the Singaporean musical scene. He is a pioneer who has made outstanding contributions to the education and development of local Chinese music scene and has a wealth of experience in developing and training Chinese music orchestras and concert planning. Tay’s conducting style is known for its rigour, precision, and passion, and has a place in the Chinese orchestral music scene.

Tay received his PhD in Art Studies from Beijing Normal University. He is currently the President of the Singapore Chinese Music Federation and the Emeritus Music Director of Ding Yi Music Company. Furthermore, he also serves as the Music Director of the City Chinese Orchestra, the Dunman High Performing Arts Centre, and Reverberance, a Chinese wind percussion ensemble.

In a music career spanning half a century, Tay has travelled all over China as a guest conductor and judge in music competitions. In 1985, he was invited to conduct the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra, becoming the first Singaporean to conduct a professional Chinese orchestra in China. Later, he was invited to conduct various professional orchestras as well as the orchestras of various music academies in Tianjin, Shanxi and Shandong, among others. He also often served as a judge of Chinese music competitions in China, and in 2007, he was invited to be a judge of the National Instrumental Music Competition organised by China Central Television. All these demonstrate the industry’s deep respect for Dr Tay. In an article titled “Tay Teow Kiat & Chinese Music” written by China’s late renowned music conductor Piao Dongsheng in his 2003 book “50 Years Chronicles of Chinese Music”, he wrote: “In Singapore, everyone calls him ‘Zheng laoshi. Although a teacher, he is highly recognised in Singapore; he is also very well-known in the music industry in Southeast Asia and China . There are few who do not know Zheng laoshi. This not only reaffirms Tay’s highly respected status in Chinese music circles overseas, but also emphasises the important role he played in the education and development of the local Chinese music.

In 1980, Tay took over the training and development of the Dunman High School Chinese Orchestra, and under his leadership, the 100-member orchestra has won acclaim both locally and internationally. In 1992, he led them on tour in Beijing and Shanghai, where their high-level performances drew great praise. The authoritative Chinese music magazine People’s Music published an article applauding Tay’s conducting as “natural, unrestrained and free-spirited”. It further went on to quote various musical luminaries who commended the Dunman High School Chinese Orchestra as being “of the highest standard among youth orchestras seen in China”. At that time, the China Nationalities Orchestra Society also held a symposium in honour of the Dunman High School Chinese Orchestra tour, inviting influential figures such as Liu Wenjin, Qin Pengzhang, and Piao Dongsheng to discuss Singapore’s excellence in Chinese music popularisation and education. Tay has also provided training and music consultation to local institutions. Among them, in 2000, he served as the Music Director for the East Zone School’s Chinese Orchestra Development Centre, using the foundation laid down by Dunman High School Chinese Orchestra to improve the performance level for schools in the east zone of Singapore. This proved Tay’s ability and strength in training Chinese orchestras.

Besides this, Tay also founded City Chinese Orchestra, a non-professional orchestra that has more than a hundred members. His motto in training the orchestra is that they are “an amateur group with a professional spirit”, hence, the orchestra maintains a professional-level standard and has been consistently active in the local music scene. From 1996 to 2013, Tay led City Chinese Orchestra on tour in Beijing, Tianjin, Zhengzhou, Changchun and other places, winning rave reviews from audiences.

Tay has spared no effort in his unflagging mentorship of youth groups and has unfailingly promoted the development of local Chinese music over the years. In 2007, he became the Music Director of Ding Yi Music Company to develop the group and genre of Chinese chamber music. In 2017, he became its Emeritus Music Director. In 2013 and 2018, he became President of the Singapore Chinese Music Federation and Reverberance respectively, yet again contributing to uniting local Chinese music groups, and developing Chinese wind and percussion music with youth groups. In 2019, under his leadership, the Singapore Chinese Music Federation joined forces with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra and the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre to hold the inaugural Singapore Chinese Music Festival (SCMF), sowing the seeds for the future of local Chinese music. In 2021, SCMF presented nearly 40 programmes and performances in 30 days, both live and online.

Over a storied career of more than half a century, Tay has not only been highly acclaimed by the music industry for his artistry as a conductor, but recognised for his outstanding contributions to the development of local Chinese music. Many batches of outstanding young Chinese musicians look up to him as a mentor figure. Truly, Tay has been utterly instrumental in the vigorous growth and development of the local Chinese music scene.

Liang Wern Fook is an outstanding Singaporean author, poet, and music-maker. Over the last 40 years, his words and music have attained a Singapore style and carved out a place for Singaporean culture in the Chinese-speaking world.

Xinyao is a music and cultural movement that began in Singapore in the 1980s, and Liang is one of this movement’s earliest pioneers. Xinyao is a unique expression of Singapore’s Chinese culture. Liang’s iconic works such as Singapore Pie (新加坡派), The Sparrow with a Bamboo Twig (麻雀衔竹枝), One Step at a Time (一步一步来), Too Much (太多太多) and Before the History Exams (历史考试前夕) have distinct local Chinese traits and a national flavour, reflecting the vibrant linguistic and musical charms of a multi-cultural society. They also reflect the spirit of the era when they were created in, in documenting Singapore’s development and building social cohesion amongst Singaporeans.

In Singapore, Liang is a household name who is known across different generations and whose work is admired by diverse segments of society. Dramatist Kuo Pao Kun once described Liang’s special role in Singapore’s arts sector as that of a builder of bridges between literature and music. A public poll conducted by the Composers and Authors Society of Singapore saw Liang voted as the person who was most representative of the spirit of xinyao. After xinyao’s heyday, he worked with top singers from mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, thereby introducing the cultural specificities and literary charm of Chinese Singaporean popular music to then wider Chinese-speaking world. This helped to consolidate and promote the development and maturation of the local Chinese popular music industry.

Professor David Wang of Harvard University has highlighted Liang’s Singapore-style xinyao as an important emblem of Singapore’s Chinese linguistic culture. He stressed that the popularity of xinyao pointed to the rise of a localised voice. As a leading figure in the xinyao movement, Liang had used his talent for creating lyrics and melodies to translate the sentiments and historical memories of Singaporeans into a “voice of the people”. In 2013, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang hosted a state banquet for Prime Minister Lee. At this event, Friendship Forever was performed, symbolising the long-standing ties between China and Singapore. The song also illustrates how Chinese Singaporean culture is connected to Chinese heritage while also possessing its own unique style. In 2015, Liang held a concert to mark the 35th anniversary of his career as a songwriter. The event was described as a banquet of literature and music, and Lianhe Zaobao named Liang as the representative figure for the music industry when it published its list of that year’s important cultural figures.  He has also been invited twice to write the closing song for the Chingay Parade, which features distinctive local multi-cultural characteristics as well as Chinese cultural traits.

Liang has received several awards and accolades for his works. He has continuously created outstanding literary and musical works which have connected with audiences within and beyond Singapore, and helped to mould a unique Singaporean identity. He is an iconic figure of our culture.

Information accurate as of 3 May 2021.

A celebrated historian in Singapore and Malaysia, Kua Bak Lim graduated from Nanyang University with First-Class Honours in History in 1971. Fueled by a desire to promote the cultural values and heritage of the Chinese Singaporean community, Kua joined the Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations (SFCCA), serving as the inaugural Chairman of the Research Committee for 10 years from 1986 to 1995. He resumed his stewardship of the Research Committee in 2010.

His first 15 years with the Research Committee was focused on promoting and preserving the heritage and culture of the Chinese Singaporean community. The second stage of his work with the committee commenced in 2010, with an emphasis focused on sharing and promoting research into the history and culture of the Chinese Singaporean community. With this end in mind, he has been organising research-led international conferences, lectures, public talks, broadcast programmes, and exhibitions in this area. Under Kua’s leadership, the academic activities of the Research Committee have provided a platform for sharing and exchange amongst scholars, historians, and the general public. The work of the Research Committee has also been recognised by Xiamen University in China, which regards the SFCCA as one of their collaborative partners in academic research.

Kua’s own research focuses on the history of the Chinese pioneers in Singapore. An author and editor of many noted publications, he won the Book Award 1988 from the National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS) for his publication, The Studies of Historical Figures in the Chinese Community of Singapore. His latest and most acclaimed book, A General History of the Chinese in Singapore, launched by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in November 2015, was commended as a “precious gift to the Chinese community in Singapore”. This book was also rated by the newspaper China Reading Weekly as one of the best 20 publications in 2018 under the category of “History and Biography”. The English edition of this book was released in June 2019 to commemorate Singapore’s Bicentennial.

Since 2013, Kua has represented Wan Qing Yuan – Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall (SYSNMH) under the National Heritage Board to deliver lectures in China, Japan, and San Francisco. He was also invited by the China National Archive in Beijing to support their application for “Qiaopi” (侨批) as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in the UNESCO Register (April 2013).

Besides his chairmanship of the Research Committee, SFCCA, Kua serves on the Board of Governors, Chinese Heritage Centre, at Nanyang Technological University. He is also a member of the National Library Advisory Committee, Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre’s Academic Advisory Committee, and the resource panel of SYSNMH. Aside from his duties on various boards, he is a history consultant for the Quanzhou History Museum of Overseas Chinese in China and an Adjunct Professor in Chinese Studies, New Era University College, Malaysia.

Information accurate as of 24 May 2019.

Lee Yuk Chuan is the President of the Choral Association (Singapore) and the Honorary Life President of the Association of Composers (Singapore). He is also the Honorary President of the Musicians Society of Singapore and its choir conductor.

Lee Yuk Chuan graduated from the Royal College of Music, London, with numerous certificates in violin, vocals, and music theory. In the 1950s, at the mere age of 20, he became the conductor for the Ershang Alumni Association choir. In the 1960s, he was the Chinese orchestra and choir conductor in many large-scale cultural performances. He introduced local and classical music in radio programmes and wrote dozens of articles on music for TV Weekly. Along with his friends, he founded the Metro Philharmonic Choir, and as its President, led three tours to Malaysia. He also conducted this choir as part of the opening ceremony of Television Singapore, which was broadcasted live.

In the 1970s, Lee was appointed conductor of the National Theatre choir, and music director of the Singapore Police Force. He also served as the music instructor for the Ministry of Defence to produce music lessons for the National Service and conduct its choir and Chinese orchestra.

In the 1990s, he served as the President of the Association of Composers (Singapore) and Choral Association (Singapore). In 1998, he led the Association of Composers (Singapore) to perform at vocal and  instrumental music concerts in Beijing.

In March 2006, Lee led the Melo Art Choir and Choral Association (Singapore) to present his works in Zhu Ni Jiankang, organised by the Choral Association (Singapore) and the Association of Composers (Singapore). It raised funds for the Singapore Cancer Society and received tremendous support from all quarters. Over the years, Lee has led various local and overseas choirs, Chinese orchestras, and ensembles in his delicate yet bold and energetic style. He has also composed for symphonic orchestras, Chinese orchestras, choirs, and soloists. He teaches the violin and his students number in the thousands. He has actively contributed to local music and choral composition and is a sought-after judge in international music  competitions.

Lee led the Association of Composers (Singapore) in seven editions of the Singapore International Choral Festival. Under his leadership, the association successfully organised the Singapore International Choral Festival, Voice Of A Thousand, Asia Vocal Competition, Asia Singing Competition, Singapore-Malaysia Singing Competition, the 2006 Singapore International Chinese Choral Festival, Songs of Joy and the 2010 Singapore International Vocal Competition, featuring the participation of 160 professionals and amateurs from all over the world.

Lee released his first collection of songs in 1982 in Singapore and Taiwan, his second collection in 1993, and his third collection, Zhu Ni Jiankang, in 2006. His recent works include Women Shi Jianguo Yidai and Zaoan A, Xinjiapo. Amongst Lee’s works are many original music  compositions, lyrics, and choral  arrangements that incorporate his  compositions, renowned Chinese and Western pieces, and Indonesian folk songs.

Information accurate as of 18 May 2018.

Han Lao Da (also known as Ann Jong Juan) has been active in Singapore Chinese theatre since the 1970s. Until the early 1990s, he was the Chairman and Head of Theatre Group of the Singapore Southern Arts Society, and Secretary-General of the Singapore Chinese Language Theatre Alliance. Many of his works were staged at the drama and arts festivals in Singapore.

In December 1986, he started the Sin Feng Xiang Sheng Society with Yang Shibin and several crosstalk enthusiasts. It was registered as the first crosstalk organisation in Singapore in the following year. From the early days of the Sin Feng Xiang Sheng Society, Mr Han worked tirelessly and played the promoter’s role to bring Chinese crosstalk masters and arts organisations to perform in Singapore. He forged close friendships with the Chinese Ballad Singers Association and crosstalk masters like Ma Ji and Jiang Kun, and collaborated with them on cultural exchanges. This brought high quality crosstalk performances to Singapore, and enhanced crosstalk appreciation amongst local enthusiasts and crosstalk practitioners. In 1995, the Chinese Ballad Singers Association awarded the Honorary Certificate to Han Lao Da, and for many years invited him and representatives of the Sin Feng Xiang Sheng Society to attend the prestigious China Art Festival, and for exchanges to various provinces and cities in China. Exchanges with the Malaysian crosstalk scene started since 1986 when Mr Han and the late Yao Xinguang, the ‘father of Malaysian crosstalk’, became friends.

Mr Han played a major role in the development, promotion and localisation of crosstalk in Singapore. Since creating ‘The Gift Ticket’ in 1973, he has written countless scripts, many of which have been performed on stage. He has also published three crosstalk collections and commentaries, and written more than 60 crosstalk works. In 1996, the Sin Feng Xiang Sheng Society organised the ‘Tan Tian Special Crosstalk Performance’ to raise funds for the Chinese Development Assistance Council. In 2012, the Young People’s Performing Arts Ensemble put up the ‘Lao Da Special Crosstalk Performance’.

Han Lao Da’s meticulous research for his crosstalk script-writing has resulted in diverse works that have inherited traditional crosstalk techniques and are infused with characteristics of local culture. In 1990, he participated in the Shanghai International Crosstalk Exchange Performance, and showcased for the first time in China a Singaporean crosstalk ‘A Chain of Love Stories’ performed by Yang Shibin and Huang Jiaqiang. The basis of this crosstalk is an Indian love song, which reflected Singapore’s unique multiculturalism. In 2005, Han Lao Da led Wang Weilin and Weng Yingfen in participating in the televised crosstalk competition organised by the Beijing Television Station. Their crosstalk item ‘One-Day Tour of Singapore’ captured the attention of the Beijing audience and the Chinese judges. In 2008, his performance of ‘Chinese English Parody’ won him the Special Prize for the Overseas Category in the crosstalk competition organised by the China Central Television. In 2015, he wrote ‘Unresolved Issues of the Lion City’, the inaugural attempt to use the crosstalk format to reflect local history. His works, ‘Unresolved Issues of the Lion City’ in 2015 and the ‘Queries on History’ series in 2016, both demonstrated how crosstalk could leave the audience in stitches and still manage to stimulate thinking about life and history. These can be considered iconic local crosstalk works.

Approaching age 70 now, Han Lao Da has spent nearly 40 years of involvement in a career of crosstalk. Till now he still perseveres in making sterling contributions in innovating, promoting, and passing on the tradition of the local crosstalk genre.

Information accurate as of 20 May 2017.