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The Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a 96-member professional symphony orchestra. Its main performing venue is the Esplanade Concert Hall in Singapore, and it has also toured widely in Asia, Europe and the United States. The orchestra was formed in 1979 under the patronage of Dr. Goh Keng Swee, with Choo Hoey its Director and Resident Conductor. The current Musical Director is Lan Shui. The orchestra records under the BIS label and has released a number of well-received recordings. ==History== There were a number of orchestras formed in Singapore in the colonial period and after independence. One of these, also called Singapore Symphony Orchestra, was formed in 1945 by the Scottish composer Erik Chisholm in his capacity as ENSA Music Director for South East Asia. Some of its members were from the British army or air force bands, and though it was short-lived it gave over fifty concerts and played with some notable soloists such as the violinist Szymon Goldberg. After that, until 1979, all orchestras in Singapore were composed largely of amateur musicians. Orchestras of the early periods included the orchestras of Singapore Musical Society, Singapore Chamber Ensemble, Singapore Youth Orchestra, as well as the short-lived Singapore National Orchestra formed by National Theatre Trust in the 1970s. In 1973, at the opening ceremony of the Japanese Garden in Jurong, the then defence minister Dr. Goh Keng Swee described the absence of a professional symphony orchestra in Singapore as "a minor scandal". An initial proposal to establish a national symphony orchestra however was not accepted as it did not plan for the inclusion of Singaporean musicians. In 1977, a largely amateur Singapore Philharmonic Orchestra was formed under the leadership of Yoshinao Osawa, and its success spurred further interest in the idea of a national symphony orchestra.〔 Goh Keng Swee then made arrangements for the establishment of the professional orchestra that would be supported by public fund, and one that can serve as a flagship arts company for the enrichment of the local culture scene.〔 In 1979, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) was instituted, and its first Director and Resident Conductor was Choo Hoey. The orchestra had 41 members, 14 of whom were Singaporean, and it gave its first performance at the Singapore Conference Hall on 24 January 1979. The program for its inaugural concert ranged from Rossini's Overture to ''The Barber of Seville'', Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 (soloist Ong Lip Tat), to the Chinese orchestral piece Dance of the Yao People. The Singapore Symphony Chorus was also formed in 1980 so that choral work may be performed with the orchestra. For its inaugural concert, the chorus performed Brahms' ''A German Requiem'' in English. In 1980, the Victoria Memorial Hall became home to the orchestra. In 2003, the orchestra moved to its current performance venue the Esplanade. The orchestra and chorus had performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on the venue's official opening in 2002. The SSO expanded to its target of about 90 musicians by the early 1990s, and now has 96 members in the orchestra.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=SSO STORY )〕 Choo Hoey stepped down as Musical Director in July 1996, and now holds the position of the SSO's Conductor Emeritus. Choo was succeeded by Lan Shui who remains the current Musical Director. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Singapore Symphony Orchestra」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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