Latest Posts

《愿》蒋勋 “Wishes” by Jiang Xun An English Translation

Published by

While guest conducting in Kaohsiung Dec 2022, I absolutely fell in love with my colleague Chen Anyu’s gorgeous rendition of 冉天豪 Ran Tian Hao’s choral work titled 《願》”Wishes”. The superb text setting and atmosphere painting music aside, the poetry by 蔣勳 Jiang Xun was an equally glorious piece of poetry – a fiery unapologetic love declaration that I think really deserves to be shared and appreciated by anyone who is interested in Chinese literature. If you want to send a message to impress your (potential) other half with Chinese poetry to declare your undying love, this could be it!

Here’s a relatively functional English translation I cooked up – it’s obviously not meant as a poetic translation (I’m no poet!) and serves primarily as a study for choristers/conductors who are non-native speakers! The English translation I came up with can be used freely as long as it’s credited. Enjoy!

《愿》　　蒋勋

我愿是满山的杜鹃　只为一次无憾的春天

我愿是繁星　舍给一个夏天的夜晚

我愿是千万条江河　流向唯一的海洋

我愿是那月　为你　再一次圆满

如果你是岛屿　我愿是环抱你的海洋

如果你张起了船帆　我愿是轻轻吹动的风浪

如果你远行　我愿是那路　准备了平坦　随你去到远方

当你走累了　我愿是夜晚　是路旁的客栈　有干净的枕席　供你睡眠

眠中有梦　我就是你枕上的泪痕

我愿是手臂　让你依靠

虽然白发苍苍　我仍愿是你脚边的炉火　

与你共话回忆的老年

你是笑　我是应和你的歌声

你是泪　我是陪伴你的星光

当你埋葬土中　我愿是依伴你的青草

你成灰　我便成尘

如果啊　如果

如果你对此生还有眷恋

我就再许一愿　与你结来世的因缘   

“Wishes” by Jiang Xun (translated by Albert Tay)

I wish to be the azaleas all over the mountains

If only for just one Spring Day with no regrets;

I wish to be the countless stars,

Giving up my light to a Summer night;

I wish to be the millions of rivers and streams,

Flowing to the one and only ocean;

I wish to be that Moon

To be full once more, for you.

Were you an island,

I wish to be the seas embracing your shores;

If you raised your sails,

I wish to be the gentle caressing wind and waves;

Were you on a long journey,

I wish to be that road,

having prepared a smooth path,

to travel with you to afar. 

When you grow weary from travelling,

I wish to be the night,

Or the roadside inn,

With clean pillows and sheets,

For you to sleep on.

If you dreamed in sleep,

I am the traces of tears on your pillow.

I wish to be the arm,

to let you lean on.

Even when we are gray-haired,

I still wish to be the fireplace at your feet,

Reminiscing the good old times of yesteryears.

Were you the laughter,

I would be the chorus echoing you;

Were you the tears,

I would be the starlight accompanying you.

If you are laid in earth,

I would still wish to be the green grass by your side,

If you turned into ashes,

I would become dust.

If, ah if…

If you feel nostalgic about this life,

I will make one more wish,

To continue our love in the next life.

P.S. I really should try to sleep instead of getting all excited and staying up till 3am reading and translating poetry. Good night guys!

A Review of Speed Dating Tonight!

Published by

The genre boundaries between musicals and opera have been blurring for a long while now and Speed Dating Tonight! is another example of how drama in modern opera continues to be carried forward primarily by music & singing, but now incorporates many of the dialogue, dance and acting elements traditionally found in musicals.

The music and libretto of Michael CHING while ‘contemporary’, was largely tonal, accessible and on occasion, paid tuneful, tongue-in-cheek tribute and references to classical composers like Mozart or Bizet that opera aficionados would appreciate. Musical interest was aptly sustained throughout the ca. 1 hour 15 min show by the interspersing of various solo arias, duets, trios and tutti, some of which were sung a cappella and showcasing the excellent musicianship of the entire cast.

The full-house, lively audience were thoroughly entertained throughout the show. The relatable individual characters were fleshed out via the arias and duets – finding love (successfully, or not), getting ghosted, or nailing the use of modern day texting abbreviations (LOL!) etc.

Kudos to excellent staging, lighting, dancing (choreographed by Max Ko) and slapstick surprises… that surreal tangent featuring a chorus of giant dancing, singing cockroaches was just OMG (I’ll have whatever they’re having from Hendrick’s Gin). There were plenty of spontaneity as well. A member of the audience responded to Bartender Quinn’s soliloquy with an audible “OK”, to which the quick thinking artist Samuel NG broke the 4th wall by giving a thumbs-up as he left a chuckling audience and exited downstage.

Music Director and pianist Aloysius Foong accompanies the action on the piano (and cajon!) with an excellent sensitivity to balance during songs and spoken bits.

The cast were all excellent performers and delivered a high level of performance. Music stalwarts like Reuben LAI, Akiko OTAO, Leslie TAY, Christina THÉ were reliable, delivering comedic and poignant moments with equal aplomb. What was personally noteworthy, were the equally good things happening with the younger performers like Preston LIM playing Dan (Dater) and Ted NGOO playing Marc (Busboy).

The role of Stephanie (Waitress) was shared between two persons and was admirably sung by NG Jingyun near the wings, with excellent movement acting from Chloe CHUA whose command of physical theatre brought the character to life despite being masked up throughout. This unusual arrangement, while somewhat disconcerting initially, is understandable – It was revealed during the curtain call that the first show had to be cancelled as 3 cast members were indisposed due to Covid-19 (get well soon!), and the 4 extraordinary young artists had to be brought in with 3-4 days notice to be performance ready. 

Speed Dating Tonight! Curtain Call

Special mention and commendation must be made of the two outstanding young artists Samuel NG and Natasha Michella DA COSTA playing the roles of Quinn (Bartender) and Julie (Dater) respectively. Phenomenal memorisation speed aside, their performance felt organic and an integral part of the whole. Kudos also to Director Eleanor Tan for intelligent staging and to the rest of the cast for integrating them so very quickly and well.

Speed Dating Tonight! is an entertaining music package that packs a punch. In such difficult and darkest of times, the fabulous talent and resilience of this L’Arietta cast shines very brightly indeed! Congratulations!

Albert TAY

Living with Endemic Covid-19 According to PM Lee

Published by

Did you catch PM Lee’s fab and timely speech earlier today? 

I personally liked PM Lee’s speech(writer) – it really addressed many of the prevailing concerns of the day. Read his full address here.

While I peruse foreign news outlets for a more balanced view of the world, seriously, don’t be too sold on the sensational reportage from some of these overseas players – who at times, seem more interested in testing Singaporeans’ psychological defences, influencing the opinions of locals to their advantage/agenda or simply keeping a hold on their own citizens who are currently residing in Singapore. 🧐🤔🤭

The takeaways are perhaps:

1. If fully vaccinated, we can be less kiasi (afraid to die) liao lah. Endemic Covid means everyone will catch it at some point in time, but with mild or no symptoms if fully vaccinated. Also, please go take booster shots if invited to do so.

2. Healthcare Protocol is streamlined and as simple as 1-2-3 (🤣 thanks for the much needed simplification!) and C+ people with mild/no symptoms will by default be on Home Recovery Programme (HRP) – like anyone who’s caught the flu.

3. Healthcare system wise, it’s still flattening of the curve primarily to keep severe illness and deaths consistently low i.e. no exponential explosion so as to avoid unnecessary deaths and not overtax healthcare system and frontline heroes.

If you’ve made it this far, here’s your reward – a meme worthy quote designed to get older folks vaccinated. “(…) the booster shot makes a vaccinated 80-year old look like a much younger vaccinated 50-plus year old!” Wah seeeeeh!! 💪😎🤣

#albertsannotations

Who Cares About the General Elections 2020?

Published by

As a young man during my early 20s, I was quite apathetic towards politics and current affairs. After all, I’ve never had to exercise my right to vote (walkovers were very common back then) and my life went on as per norm. No biggie right?

All that changed after I started studying with Mr. Leong Yoon Pin.

He was a principled man who cared deeply about his surroundings and the people around him. The fact that he actually got upset seeing people smoke and harming pregnant ladies with second hand smoke speaks volumes about the kind of man he is. I would often observe folded newspapers on his sea-facing desk during my morning “harmony” (composition) pilgrimages to his Bayshore home. He seems to read the news everyday and is very well versed in current affairs. 

Being ever curious, I asked him “Why would you bother reading the news when it doesn’t really concern us at all?” He was obviously amused (and a little concerned) but patiently replied “Politics, current affairs, policies affect us in more ways than you might imagine”. That morning, he proceeded to tell me stories about how rare it was for Singaporeans to study overseas during his time, and how he thought he was  followed by “mysterious men” in Singapore after returning from his overseas studies, closing of Chinese choirs etc.. Frankly at the time, it sounded more like spy novel fiction than fact! The conversation however sparked a beyond-textbook interest in Singapore’s local history. Henceforth, my habit of daily news reading started as a means of understanding the world and to hear important messages that were being delivered to Singaporeans. When the internet came along, my reading list expanded to include news networks from overseas to get the really interesting stuff I don’t get to read about locally.

“Politics, current affairs, policies affect us in more ways than you might imagine”.

– Leong Yoon Pin

Fast forward to today, I’ve had the privilege of travelling to very interesting countries/territories because of music. I’ve made many good friends who are intellectuals, people who are often the crème de la crème of their own society and witnessed firsthand how politics and policies can shape their craft and the arts and culture in their respective cities. Good politics can uplift, unite and give hope to an entire generation, bring about greater equality between people regardless of the colour of one’s skin, the language one speaks or one’s religious, spiritual or sexual orientation beliefs. The converse holds true when arrogant, tone-death (pardon the pun), foolish people come into power. We see plenty of that in the news as well.

There is no such thing as a perfect system, only trade-offs, where we stand and what we might be willing to give up in exchange for something else. Be discerning, listen to both sides of the story, be rational, calm and assess the veracity and substance of one’s words and actions. Be careful of getting swept up by passion, charisma, group think etc. and please be kind with your comments. Being loud may get you attention, but being gentlemanly and civil is the surest way of commanding respect.

You are not too young nor too old to start paying attention to the news, politics or elections. Until a Star Trek future comes to fruition, a future where money is obsolete and humanity is united as a species, I’m afraid artificial constructs such as nationalism will have to do for now. Read, listen, watch, assess and pay attention. YOU, SHOULD care about General Elections 2020. Our future depends on it!

#albertsannotations #votewisely #payattention #currentaffairs #ge2020 #startrek