programmes
We are pleased to announce the new line up of NAC-AEP programmes for 2017 / 2018.
The full listing of programmes eligible for the 50% Tote Board Arts Grant subsidy is also available here.

Gypsy Music
by The Lost Tribe
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
This programme is The Lost Tribe’s introduction to the almost magical world of gypsy music, also known as hot jazz that was invented in the 1930s.
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Experience and discover the typical instruments used in gypsy music
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Experience and understand the sounds associated with nomadic gypsies
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Learn the function of the instruments in creating the music
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
The Lost Tribe of Pulau Gypsy demonstrates the lighter side of music with a fun, interactive and informative look at gypsy music. Presented by music graduates from Berklee College of Music and the Vienna Academy of Music.
Finding Singapore's Voice
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
To understand
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the evolution of the Singapore music industry from the 1960s to present day
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how the government used music as a medium to reach out to the people of Singapore
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why music will be instrumental in continuing the prosperity of Singapore
Students will learn the importance of Singapore’s music history and be encouraged to examine their roles in shaping the future of Singapore through their consumption of and contribution to music. Through understanding our own history via music, students will also be encouraged to think critically about how music in different parts of the world can teach us about different cultures.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students will enjoy an interactive Singapore music history lesson brought to life by live band demonstrations of the content.


Chop, Tap and Swing it, Strings!
- The Y Quartet (String Quartet)
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
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To educate and encourage an appreciation of a traditional string quartet playing in a non-traditional manner
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To stimulate creativity in students by taking the string quartet ‘out of the (classical) box’
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To demonstrate different ways of playing string instruments (tapping, choking, sliding, strumming and plucking)
Students will enjoy a programme of music with a mix of pop, rock, jazz, latin and classical music in ways they have never expected a string quartet to play.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students can expect an afternoon of fun and entertaining music by the Y Quartet – the first and only improvisational jazz string quartet in Singapore
Students will be asked to exercise some creativity and suggest ways to play the stringed instruments
Programme will be conducted by either Mr. Kailin Yong (Vienna Academy of Music) or Mr. Felix Phang (Berklee College of Music), both of whom are violinists and very active in the contemporary music scene.
Music and Its Roles in the ASEAN Countries
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
To understand
- A brief history ASEAN
- How music has a place in ASEAN
- The different music cultures of the members of ASEAN
Students will learn the importance of ASEAN and be encouraged to examine the collective roles and how music is promoted and used in ASEAN activities. Students will be more aware of the members of ASEAN and a brief history of their music cultures.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students will enjoy an interactive lesson of discovering ASEAN history and music brought to life by live band demonstrations of the content.


Guitar and Effects in Modern Music
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
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To educate and encourage an appreciation of the role of guitar and the many effects employed in modern music.
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To stimulate creativity in students by demonstrating how one particular effect or approach might change the entire song or entire generation of songs.
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To demonstrate different ways of approaching the guitar (tapping, sliding, strumming and plucking)
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To demonstrate that the key factor is one’s creativity and not the tools
Students will enjoy a program of music with a mix of pop, rock, jazz, and see how the guitar and its effects would greatly affect the feel and vibe of a song.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students can expect an afternoon of fun and music, and hopefully understand that they are limited only, by their creativity and not the tools available to them.
Students will be asked to exercise some creativity and suggest ways to manipulate the guitar effects in order to recreate specific examples as well as solve some musical situations a recording musician might face.
Music from the Islands
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
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To educate and appreciate the distinct sounds of the types of steel pans from the Caribbean islands.
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How the steel pan is made and played
Students will enjoy an authentic repertoire of Calypso music and also learn how the steel pan can blend into other Latin music genres.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students can expect an afternoon of entertaining music as well as instruction with interactive activities conducted and performed by Berklee College of Music graduate Felix Phang who also manages a 12-piece band entirely comprising steel drums.
No prior music background is required to enjoy this intuitive instrument and live band demonstration, where the steel pan will be performed with the guitar, bass, and drums.


Our Music Today: Pop, Rock, Jazz and Bossanova
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to differentiate between the popular musical styles used today. They will also learn that any styles may be used for playing the same song.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students will experience an afternoon of live band entertainment as well as discovering the different ways of approaching songs. Students will be encouraged to think out of the box instead of thinking that existing songs can only be performed in the same manner.

What is Jazz?
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
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To discover the elements that gave birth to the new genre at that time
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Realize why and how traditional jazz and modern are different today
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To understand how economic and political situations affected the musical genre and the band size
Students will discover the evolution of jazz and also learn to infer how external factors can affect culture and experience.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students will enjoy a musical journey of the jazz idiom, along with discovering the political, economic and social landscapes of that time which influenced each unique and distinct style of jazz.
Around the World on a Fiddle
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
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To take students on a fascinating and wondrous musical and cultural journey around the world seen through the lenses of a violin in the hands of a crossover violinist
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To help students appreciate the vastness of the global cultural landscape through a broad variety of world and folk music performed by Fiddler For Peace, Kailin Yong and his band.
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To inspire students to pick up a musical instrument to start making 'joyous sounds' in the name of promoting friendship and world peace
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To encourage students to be curious about other cultures and music
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To cultivate a broader world view in our youths, showing them how each one of us has the power to make a difference in the world we live in.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students will travel through cultural time and space with Fiddler For Peace Kailin Yong and his band as they play an exciting program of world music showcasing the sonic and cultural versatility of the violin.
Kailin and his band will teach students unique rhythms from different parts of the world and encourage them to clap along with the songs and sing along with the choruses.

The Exotic Sounds & Rhythms of the Middle East
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
Learning Objectives
At the end of the program, students should
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Have a broader view on the diversity and the beauty of global cultures
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Have a deeper appreciation for music that uses microtones as well as odd time signatures
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Know a few middle eastern rhythms like Maqsum and Baladi
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Understand that music, language and culture are intrinsically linked
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
This programme offers a sampling of the exotic sounds of the Middle Eastern and Arab world performed by a traditional orchestra of Middle Eastern music known as Takht. The Takht ensemble includes instruments like the qanun (zither), oud (lute), ney (bamboo flute), violin, riqq (arabic tambourine) and darbuka (egyptian goblet drum).

Learning Objectives
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To educate and appreciate the power of music in films
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To promote teamwork and communication skills
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To be open-minded
Students will enjoy live musicians playing different types of music to a film and discover the possibilities of emotions how music can affect the film.
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
Students can expect an afternoon of entertaining music as well as instruction with interactive activities conducted and performed by The Lost Tribe of Pulau Gypsy which comprises of Kailin Yong on violin, Vienna Academy of Music and Berklee College of Music graduates Felix Phang on double bass and Alvin Wong on guitar.

The Power of Music in Film
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.
What Is American Roots Music?
This programme is eligible for up to 50% subsidy from the Tote Board Arts Grant.

Learning Objectives
This programme offers a sampling of American roots music, which is the source and basis for all American music like jazz, rock and roll, R&B and hip hop.
At the end of the program, students should
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Have a better understanding of how the blues is the foundation of all popular styles of American music
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Have a better understanding of how music can be used as a tool to affect positive social and political changes
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Have a better understanding why music is so important for the identity and cohesiveness of a culture
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What it means and why it is important to understand our own cultural roots
Highlights that students can expect from the programme
The music presented will feature genres like old time, jug band, bluegrass, western swing, cowboy, cajun music and of course, the blues, performed on an array of traditional string band instruments, which includes fiddle, banjo, mandolin, acoustic guitar, resonator guitar and string bass.
The programme will highlight important cornerstone numbers from iconic figures of American roots music like Robert Johnson, Woody Guthrie, Bill Monroe, Tommy Jarrell and Mississippi Sheikhs.
Students will be strongly encouraged to perform and sing along with the band by honoring the jug band tradition of using found objects and voices to make music.