SNYCO by the Bay

The Singapore National Youth Chinese Orchestra (SNYCO) is an orchestra organised under the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) National Project of Excellence (NPOE). Members of the orchestra come from a diverse range of backgrounds and have all been selected through a rigorous process. Every year, recruitment is open to tertiary and arts institutions, as well as mainstream primary and secondary schools. In the 2020 Singapore Chinese Music Competition, 17 musicians from SNYCO won 1 Solo Grand Category, 1 Audience Choice Award, 6 First Prizes, 5 Second Prizes and 4 Third Prizes. From its inception, SNYCO holds three major ticketed concerts annually and since 2017, it has taken the additional step of performing in outreach and educational concerts in neighbourhood schools, the heartlands and communities. Not only do these concerts give the musicians more performance opportunities and stage experience, they also help to promote Chinese music to the communities.

To date, SNYCO has nurtured numerous outstanding musicians, and among them, eight have successfully joined the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO), establishing themselves as professional full-time musicians. Besides becoming professional musicians and distinguished members of the Singapore Chinese music fraternity, many other SNYCO members have also moved on to become respected professionals in their respective fields, making innumerable contributions to both the Singapore arts scene and various corporations and institutions.

Under the leadership of Music Director Quek Ling Kiong and Associate Conductor Moses Gay, SNYCO seeks to nurture aspiring youths to be the future pillars of Singapore’s Chinese music scene. Currently, there are over 90 members in SNYCO between the ages of 10 and 26 who receive professional tutelage under the guidance of 13 SCO musicians, representing more than 40 schools in Singapore.