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A Stream Of Arias
08 Sep 2020
Baritone Martin Ng will sing well-loved operatic arias in a live streaming concert on 29 September
“A Night at the Opera: An Opera Aria Recital by Baritone Martin Ng” will be streamed live from the Victoria Concert Hall Dance Studio at 7: 30 pm on 29 September on Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and Instagram Live.
Singaporean baritone Martin Ng will sing arias from well-known operas including The Barber of Seville by Rossini, The Elixir of Love by Donizetti, Don Carlo by Verdi, Hamlet by Thomas, The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart, and Andrea Chenier by Giordano. He will be accompanied by pianist Beatrice Lin. Steven Ang will moderate an Q&A session with the artists at the end of the concert.
Ng is holding the concert to provide the public with an access to the performing arts while restrictions on public gatherings due to the pandemic are in place. “With the closure of concert halls and opera houses, the public has lost its access to the arts. (We) hope to provide an outlet and a response to this dark period when public health takes precedence over mental and spiritual wellbeing,” he said in a press statement.
The award-winning baritone envisions the endeavor as a way to explore digital platforms as an alternative to traditional theatrical presentations. He hopes that the streaming services of social media platforms will help reach and engage a much wider audience than a conventional recital. Ng’s YouTube, Facebook and Instagram accounts have a combined reach of 12,000 followers, giving him a potential audience that is much bigger than what regular concert halls can accommodate.
Ng, who was last seen as Ping in Puccini’s Turandot with the National Weiwuying Performing Arts Centre in August, adds that he chose to stream the concert in real time rather than air a pre-recorded performance in order “to preserve the excitement of performing live, albeit to a virtual audience. Social media statistics have also shown that there is a greater degree of engagement on digital platforms when shows are streamed live”.
He is keen on using modern technology to create better audience engagement in the arts.
“Another benefit of doing a live stream concert on social media platforms is that audiences can give their feedback in real time while the show is going on. This is something that can never happen in a traditional musical performance.”
He plans on engaging the audience by giving brief introductions to every piece that he sings and talk briefly about his experiences singing those roles onstage. “This will immediately create an affinity between the performer and the audience on an unprecedented level, as I am able to communicate with them in real time during the performance.”
On board the team is recording producer Dominik Streicher of MSM Productions Asia, whose professional engagements have taken him to opera houses around the world, “making him the ideal choice for this digital presentation of opera arias”. The team promises to deliver a top-notch audio and visual presentation with a highly skilled and competent technical team who will ensure it is nothing less than a live performance in a concert hall.
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