Singapore Chinese Music Festival (SCMF) 2025 Opening Ceremony will be presented by Ding Yi Music Company, under the baton of Cultural Medallion recipient, SCMF President, and Ding Yi Emeritus Music Director Dr Tay Teow Kiat, alongside Resident Conductor Wong De Li, Dedric. 

Featuring collaborations with Nam Hwa Opera, Siong Leng Musical Association and more, the evening showcases the rich cultural roots and musical diversity of the Chinese heritage in Singapore. Audiences will be treated to a rich tapestry of works by Ding Yi musicians, including guzheng musician Yvonne Tay and Visiting Artist Li Cangxiao on the erhu, as well as renowned federation members such as erhu soloist Ling Hock Siang, guzheng virtuoso Yin Qun, and dizi master Zhan Yongming. Three signature works conducted by Dr Tay are Yeo Puay Hian’s Passing the Light, the famous Dream of the Red Chamber; and Longing for Home, a poignant collaboration with Siong Leng Musical Association that captures the aching yearning for home, parents, and one’s roots.

A quiet, gentle river—yet her lifeblood runs deep and wide.
With notes as fluid as water, she composes the ever-flowing, ever-evolving vitality of the Singapore River.
In today’s light, she traces her past—stories adrift like mist, legends whispered through time.
Among her countless descendants, one boy stirs her heart, drawing from her a rare, tender grace.

The River Remembers is Ding Yi Music Company’s tribute to Singapore’s SG60 celebrations — a poetic and powerful concert that flows between tradition and modernity, guiding audiences on a reflective journey through time, memory, and identity, expressed through the evocative language of Chinese chamber music.

In collaboration with Dance Ensemble Singapore, this concert of contemporary resonance brings to life the enduring spirit of our Mother River — a powerful symbol of heritage, resilience, and renewal — portrayed soulfully by Sharon Au. Through the interweaving of music and movement, the performance honours the generations shaped by her waters and the collective strength of a people carried forward by her current.

A celebration of the river that shaped a nation and continues to carry its dreams into the future, this production features an original composition by Law Wai Lun, direction by Goh Boon Teck, musical direction and conducting by Wong De Li, Dedric, choreography by Cai Shiji, with Sharon Au in the central role of the Mother River.

Join Ding Yi Music Company on an enchanting musical journey through the mystical legends of Singapore’s islands, as they bring to life the captivating stories of Sisters’ Islands and Kusu Island. This intriguing experience will transport students to a time when Singapore’s islands were rich with tales of love, bravery, and transformation.

Accompanied by a live traditional Chinese music ensemble, students will experience Singapore’s vibrant island folklore through dramatised stories while learning about the fascinating world of Chinese plucked string and woodwind instruments. Students will also have the opportunity to learn about how a melody is crafted and observe different instruments performing together to create different soundscapes.

Join Ding Yi and PLAY with them on their musical island adventure!

Learning Objectives

• Discover instruments from the plucked and wind sections of a Chinese chamber ensemble
• Discover tales and legends behind Singapore’s offshore islands
• Appreciate how melody and harmony work together to tell a story

A programme of 60 Connections – At Home and Afar, a year-long season of Singapore stories and international collaborations in celebration of SG60.

This is an Esplanade Co-production.