Singapore International Foundation

Singapore Encore is a series of events held across different cities worldwide to promote Singapore's art and culture internationally through an evening of Singapore music and performances, visual arts, lifestyle design and culinary delights. Since its inception in 2004, Singapore Encore has travelled to major cities including Dubai, Los Angeles, Manila, New York, San Francisco, Tokyo, Vienna and Washington D.C.

Singapore Encore 2009: Dubai, United Arab Emirates (3 April 2009)

In April, Singapore Encore made its Middle Eastern debut in Dubai, organised by the SIF in partnership with the Singapore Consulate-General in Dubai. Performing artistes included jazz diva Claressa Monteiro and young singing sensation Kareema Ramli. Held at the Atlantis, Dubai’s newest landmark hotel, the event saw an attendance of some 250 distinguished local guests as well as prominent Singaporeans in the UAE.

Singapore Encore 2008: Manila, Philippines (30 – 31 January 2008)

The SIF partnered the Singapore Embassy in Manila to present Singapore Encore in Southeast Asia for the first time. Singapore’s Swing King, Jeremy Monteiro and his quartet, together with jazz singer Alemay Fernandez provided the entertainment for both evenings.

The event also featured a photo exhibition entitled "eye e city: A Visual Account of the last 24 hours of 2006", a collection of memories of Singapore in 2006, as seen through the eyes of people from all walks of life. Heritage Hotel Manila’s Executive Chef Sunny Goh also whipped up a delectable array of authentic Singaporean dishes like Hainanese chicken rice, laksa, satay and nonya kueh, for the guests.

Singapore’s then-Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Dr Lee Boon Yang, was the guest of honour, at the event which was attended by a total of some 600 guests. These included top government officials and distinguished guests from the diplomatic, business, social and cultural strata of Philippine society, overseas Singaporeans and representatives from Singaporean agencies and companies based in Manila.

Singapore Encore 2006: Tokyo, Japan (5 – 7 December 2006)

Singapore Encore 2006 was presented as the gala opening of Spotlight Singapore at the Mon Tower in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo. The three-day arts and lifestyle programme showcased Singapore artists and culture to promote greater understanding between Singapore and Japan.

The gala opening featured the world premier of Generation/s, a 45-minute inter-disciplinary musical production involving video art, electro-acoustic technology and a diversity of Asian traditional performing arts, put together by music composer-arranger, Iskandar Ismail.

There was also a performance by the internationally renowned T'ang Quartet and a visual art showcase, accompanied by cuisine prepared by top Singapore chefs. The guest of honour for the event was Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports.

Spotlight Singapore was organised by The Arts House with the support of various government and private agencies in Singapore and Japan. These include the SIF, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Embassy of Singapore in Tokyo, Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Singapore), the National Arts Council (Singapore), and DesignSingapore Council.

Singapore Encore 2006: Vienna, Austria (3 – 7 March 2006)

In conjunction with Singapore's participation at the European Congress of Radiology, Singapore Evening was held on 4 March 2006 at Semper Depot to showcase Singapore's advances in radiology alongside Singapore food and performing arts.

Singapore Evening was attended by 140 international guests, comprising leaders in radiology from Europe, America and Asia.

During the evening, a quartet from the Singapore Chinese Orchestra made its debut in Vienna with a performance featuring the sanxian (a three-stringed plucked-string instrument), dizi (a Chinese flute), sheng (a woodwind instrument) and er hu (a two-string bowed-string instrument) in a 30-minute performance of Chinese and Malay songs. The event also featured a Viennese group, the Rococo Ensemble, which paid tribute to Mozart.

Singapore Encore 2005: Washington D.C. and New York City, United States (27 April – 3 May 2005)

Singapore Encore 2005 was held in April 2005 at the Singapore Embassy in Washington D.C.

The event's 150-strong guest list included representatives from various embassies, US government officials, overseas Singaporeans and officials from the World Bank. The guests were treated to performances by the Nuradee Brothers, the Singapore Chinese Orchestra Duet and Robert Fernando.

The event was repeated in May at New York City's United Nations Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium and again at the Swissôtel The Drake. Guests included members of the United Nations Press Corps, United Nations personnel, the diplomatic corps, American and Singaporean media, as well as overseas Singaporeans.

Singapore Encore 2004: San Francisco, United States (24 – 26 March 2004)

Singapore Encore 2004 was SIF's inaugural showcase event of Singapore. The debut in San Francisco and Los Angeles hosted over 300 guests comprising journalists, clients and constituents of Singapore agencies, members of the diplomatic corps and overseas Singaporeans.

The artistes featured in San Francisco on 24 March and Los Angeles on 26 March were the Huqin Quartet and Jacintha Abisheganaden, respectively.

The Huqin Quartet is the first and only independent Chinese string quartet in the world and represents an unprecedented milestone in Chinese music. Their repertoire in their quest for new variations in Chinese chamber music includes original works by Singaporean composers, as well as startlingly unique interpretations of contemporary music pieces.

With five critically acclaimed albums on the Groove Note label to her name, Jacintha Abisheganaden performed at the New Zealand International Arts Festival 2004, together with well-known composer, arranger and musical director Iskandar Ismail, composer, arranger and musician Joshua Wan, percussionist and drummer Tama Goh, and one of Asia's best saxophonists, Teo Boon Chye.