Conservatory’s New Building Offers Harmony
of Form and Function

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory’s new home includes a main entrance with full-length glass panels.

In 2001, the Peabody Institute and Johns Hopkins University broke new ground with the creation of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (YSTCM), in collaboration with the National University of Singapore (NUS). The first such partnership between an American conservatory of music and a leading Asia-Pacific university, the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music opened its doors in 2003 in temporary quarters on the National University of Singapore campus and welcomed its first bachelor of music degree candidates in performance (orchestral instruments/piano) and composition.

This September, the YSTCM continues its groundbreaking progress by enrolling its first full cadre of students—projected capacity is 200 students—in its new, permanent home. The YSTCM building’s stunning design by RSP Architects strikes a visual chord in the National University of Singapore’s Cultural Centre and offers perfect harmony of form and function. The main entrance’s full-length glass panels are supported by paired bow trusses inspired by violin or cello strings; the main entrance offers views into the foyers of the library and the 600-seat concert hall designed by renowned acoustician Eckhard Kahle. The building’s many windows flood the space with natural light, including the fully wired classrooms and the ensemble, studio, and practice rooms that surround a courtyard. Rounding out the building’s beauty and purpose are a 100-seat lecture-recital hall flexible for small-scale performances, rehearsals, and master classes; music technology and audio/video rooms; and one of the largest recording studios in Asia.

The Concert Hall seats 600 patrons.

The grand opening celebration on October 7 and 8 will include chamber concerts, recitals, tours, and a gala concert by the YSTCM Orchestra led by new Music Director Wang Ya-Hui, featuring renowned American pianist Jerome Lowenthal in his first Singapore performance. Also on the gala concert’s program will be the world premiere of Meridians, by one of the earliest “architects” of the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, former Peabody Director Robert Sirota (now President of the Manhattan School of Music), whose piece was commissioned for the opening. “The completion of the new Yong Siew Toh Conservatory building is a key milestone in the remarkable progress that the Conservatory has made over a very short period of time,” says Chorh Chuan Tan, provost and deputy director of the National University of Singapore. “Great credit is due to the Governing Board, Director, faculty, staff and students of the Conservatory, as well as our colleagues and friends in the Peabody Institute, who gave invaluable advice and assistance. The collaboration between the Conservatory and Peabody Institute is a wonderful illustration of a mutually beneficial partnership, which has greatly facilitated the setting up of the Conservatory and is providing unique, high-quality educational opportunities for our students. The new building and the continuing deep engagement between our two institutions will further enhance the quality of education and levels of music performance for the Conservatory, and indeed for Singapore and the region.”