Event Date: 16th June 2007

SOPRANO TAN SIN SIM

Tan Sin Sim first received vocal training at the age of 9. She was a member (SOPRANO 1) of "The Suara Mas" the Golden Voices Choir Group , Kuala Lumpur City Counsel (DBKL) at the age of 9 and she was selected for the broadcast choir performances in Sydney , Australia in 1993. Her vocal talent became apparent whilst she was still in primary school and since then she has gone on to win many prizes in various singing competitions. One of the most notable moments of her singing career was winning the Malaysia National Classical Singing Competition at the age of 18 in 1999. She went on to win the same competition in both 2001 and 2002. In June 2002, she also won the " Tian Ming En's Songs" Classical Singing Competition in Kuantan , Malaysia , in June 2002.    
                 
             Sin Sim graduated with a Bachelor of Performing Arts (Music ) from University of Malaya (M.U.) in August 2004. Throughout her student days at the university, she was invited on numerous occasions to perform at official functions such as " The Night of M.U. Symphony Orchestra " which was officially launched by DYMM Paduka Seri Sultan Perak Darul Ridzuan Sultan Azlan Shah Tuanku Chancellor, University of Malaya , held at the Tunku Chancellor Hall on the 26th of March 2003 . In addition to playing the violin in the orchestra, she sang as a soloist to tremendous applause and received highest compliments from Sultan Azlan Shah, who further proclaimed that " Miss Tan Sin Sim is a truly gifted and impressive singer, who should and must go further on to the world-class stage in the future ". On the 14th of April 2003 , she sang in the chamber concert of Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) " Organ & Voices " , under the baton of renowned Scottish conductor Marc Rochester.  
               
              During her study years, Sin Sim was formerly trained under several renowned voice teachers in local. They are Ms. Cecilia Yap Keat Chee, Mr.Armando Chin Yong, Mr.Cha Seng Tiang. She is currently coached by the renowned Singaporean tenor Mr. Lim Shieh Yih.

              In April 2005, Sin Sim won the championship of the 1st Festa Canzone International Art Song Vocal Competition , hosted by the Singapore Classical Singers' Association, held from 14th to 16th of April at the Recital Studio, Esplanade Auditorium, Singapore. The six judges from four different countries: Korea - Tenor Master Kim Shin Whan and Baritone Roh Jae Bum , Taiwan - Piano Collaborator Dr. Hong Pei Chi , Philippines - Lyric-Coloratura Soprano Rachelle Gerodias and Singapore - Mezzo Soprano Anna Khor and Piano Collaborator Yap Chiu Yen ; unanimously complimented and commended Sin Sim on her vocal techniques and skilful interpretation of the selected pieces in the competition. Sin Sim has a naturally bright and powerful voice which determined her to grows as a dramatic- coloratura in future. She was invited to perform in the Recital Studio, Esplanade Auditorium, Singapore in April 2005.

             In Dec 2005, Sin Sim was participated in the International Classical Singing Competition "The Mondial Chinese Vocalist Concours Taipei 2005" that held in Taipei , Taiwan . Pitted against the 70 participants worldwide, she was placed 7th out of the ten grand finalists.  On 19 th Dec 2005, she was invited to sing the soprano part in Brahms' Lieberslieder and also some solo pieces in the annual concert held in the Tainan University of Arts, Taipei , Taiwan .  

Sin Sim has recently performed in the Opera Highlights – W. A Mozart's Magic Flute (in English version) held by the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC)  in Stage 1, Theatre Hall, KLPAC from 22 nd March – 25 th March 2007 . She acted the role of “The Queen of The Night” and has been acclaimed as one of the very out- standing, young and talented soprano in Malaysia- Singapore.                  

With her vast experience as a singer, Sin Sim is often invited by numerous Malaysian Cultural Societies and Malaysian Music Associations to perform in various states of Malaysia for both charitable and private functions. Sin Sim has recently done a performance in the Stamford Art Center, Singapore in March 2006. Her wide repertoire ranges from classical numbers to Chinese oldies and folk tunes. This has attracted foreign music producers and as a result, Sin Sim recorded one Chinese folk tunes for the album " Amnesty International " presented by Buddha Bar , International French section, whose albums are currently available in the market worldwide. Sin Sim has recently recorded three Chinese original compositions and the album has been released in 2005. At present, she performs regularly and teaches singing privately both in Malaysia and Singapore . She is also hoping to pursue her Master's Degree overseas in the near future.

PIANIST GENEVIENE WONG

Geneviene Wong Jen-Pei graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD), Scotland with First Class Honours in 1999 and received the “ Rhona Reid Scholarship ” to pursue the MMus (Performance) in Piano Accompaniment with Jean Hutchison. Upon completion of the Masters, she was awarded the “ Broadwood Junior Fellowship for Piano Accompaniment ” at the RSAMD.

She is a keen chamber musician and won several prizes whilst at the RSAMD, including the “ Peter Lindsay Millar Prize for Piano Duet ”, “ John D Miles Lieder Prize ”, “ British Reserve Insurance Prize for Early Music ”, “ Ian D Watt Prize for String and Piano Duo ”, and “ Alex Menzies Memorial Fund for Piano Accompaniment ”. She has also participated in many solo and accompaniment masterclasses with, among others, Dennis Lee, Malcolm Martineau, Dmitri Alexeev, Bernard D'Ascoli, John Streets, Roger Vignoles and the King's Consort.

In Glasgow, she accompanied the Glasgow Youth Choir and the Glasgow Philharmonic Male Voice Choir, performing in various venues throughout Britain, Germany and the Czech Republic and was actively involved in the community music scene in Britain as a member of the ‘ Scottish Council for Music in Hospitals ' and the ‘ Live Music Now! ' scheme, an outreach programme founded by the late Lord Yehudi Menuhin. She has also accompanied various instrumentalists such as Andrea Griminelli and the Italian Wind Quintet as well as singers such as Ralph MacDonald, Wu Jie and Li Guo Hua in recitals in Malaysia , Brunei , Thailand and Britain , including the prestigious Edinburgh International Fringe Festival.

t present, she teaches piano and chamber music at University College Sedaya International (UCSI) in Kuala Lumpur , as well as at Universiti Malaya (UM) and the National Academy of Arts, Culture and Heritage (ASWARA) . She also free-lances as an accompanist and music arranger and has worked with several local choirs, including the Young KL Singers, the KL Children's Choir and the Philharmonic Society of Selangor. She was awarded the Accompanist Prize in the 2004 National Classical Singing Competition.

For further information:
Pang Piano Sales and Service Centre (088) 266670
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Helen Tseu (088) 437322, [email protected]

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