Asian Youth Orchestra concert
August 14, 2024
We are delighted to have supported the Asian Youth Orchestra (AYO) concert, held at the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. Awarded the Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture and Community in 2015, the Hong Kong-based AYO visited Singapore again after an eight-year hiatus with a 100-strong troupe.
Founded in 1990 by Yehudi Menuhin and Richard Pontzious with a vision to unite young musicians across Asia, the 100-plus orchestra members were selected from young musicians every year from different cities in Asia through a rigorous round of auditions. Aged between 17 and 28, these musicians represent the finest from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. This year, four Singaporean musicians were selected to perform in this remarkable concert.
Embarking on a three-week concert tour across Asia, the troupe showcased the fruits of a vigorous summer training camp through a performance in Singapore featuring different renowned classical pieces including Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloe Suite No.2 and Boléro, Lalo’s Cello Concerto and Debussy’s La Mer.
Under the baton of principal conductor Joseph Bastian, with the fine companion of internationally celebrated cellist Alban Gerhardt with 30 years of experience on stage, the concert garnered rounds of applause from close to 800 audience.
Since its inaugural performances in 1990, the award-winning AYO has performed over 400 concerts across Asia, Europe, the US, and Australia, reaching more than one million concertgoers. This year marked AYO’s 10th concert in Singapore, a highly anticipated event for many fans since its last tour in 2016.
