Christmas Concert at the Esplanade, 16th Dec 06
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
The Day of the Concert :
It's always hard to have a good night's rest
the night before a big performance. My mind runs through
the songs and through the lyrics and does a virtual
walk-through of the concert proceedings and it's hard to quiet
an active mind and fall into a deep sleep.
Thankfully, I managed to get sufficient rest.
After a good breakfast of chicken hor fun and tea,
we set off for the Esplanade with all our barang-barang...
there was the long dress and the high-heeled shoes (which
I ended up not wearing for fear of tripping on stage! I HATE
high-heeled shoes.), there was Kavin's lap-top with pro-tools,
and the mixer, there were back-up scores and charts,
there were toiletries.....thank goodness we got a lift
from Papa and Mummy to the Esplanade.
We were blessed to have a beautiful dressing room and
I was delighted that there was an upright piano in the room as well.
Stephanie and Yen showed up soon after to take photos of the rehearsal.
They've been wonderful at capturing the moods, the ebbs and flows
and the stories both of the performances and the 'making of'
the performances. They are both, gifted visual storytellers and photographers,
and they have also become good friends of both Kavin and I.
They give so much of their talents and their time for us, that
we are truly grateful.
The full rehearsal run-through started around 3 p.m and thankfully
we were done by 5.15 p.m
Singing with the SYC Ensemble Singers (photo copyright, Stephanie Yeow)
Kavin rehearses the string players (photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Reggie's (Percussion player) Butterfly windchimes (photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Space invaders at the Esplanade (photo copyright Stephanie Yeow)
(A solo moment at the piano - Photo copyright by Yen Meng Jiin)
(Taking a moment to write my thank yous - photo by Yen Meng Jiin)
Hi, my name is Corrinne May's pencil case. I shall be singing on her behalf tonight. photo copyright by Yen Meng Jiin)
Checking some last minute sms messages - photo by Stephanie Yeow
After slurping up a portion of my fish bee-hoon dinner,
Ernest showed up to do hair and make-up. I love the way
he does the make-up. Somehow, thankfully, he makes my eyes
look bigger and brighter *grin*
Getting make-up done - photo by Stephanie Yeow
By the time hair and make-up was done, it was close to 7 p.m.
And the show was due to begin in 30 minutes. The band members,
Kavin and I gathered around in the band's dressing room for
a short prayer before we headed out on stage for the evening's
concert.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
The band and the string players went ahead of me on to the
stage while I lingered backstage and took a deep breath.
I was a little nervous before walking out onto the stage
but once the applause started, I remembered the joy of
the stage and the fear somehow evaporated once I set my
fingers on the piano and sang the first song of the concert
"Silent Night".
Photo by Stephanie Yeow
The rest of the concert went by smoothly and I was
grateful for the intermission in between sets. I was able
to stretch and take another drink of water, take a breather
and compose my thoughts before the
second set kicked in after the 20 minute intermission.
It was lovely to have the choir there for the 2nd set
and "Hail Mary" was serene yet grand and the audience
was surprisingly reverent and silent for that song.
Singing with the SYC Ensemble Singers - photo by Yen Meng Jiin
So the second set flowed along nicely too, apart
from a minor buzz in my in-ear monitors which was quickly resolved.
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
I enjoyed the whole evening and was sad when we
got done with the final song of the concert set,
"Joy to the World". Thankfully, the audience
brought us back through their enthusiastic applause
for an encore.
Kavin played the piano while I sang "Grown-up Christmas
List" and the band joined us on "Have Yourself A Merry Little
Christmas". I had so much fun just sitting in the middle of
the stage on a high chair, singing my heart out to the darkened
hall of people, trying to project everything I felt through
the songs.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
The darkened hall seating 1600 people (photo by Stephanie Yeow)
The last lingering note, the applause, the bow and
a lovely bouquet of flowers was thrust into my hands
from a lady with the Esplanade and then, it was done.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Song List
Silent Night
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
O Come O Come Emmanuel
Be Thou My Vision
Away in a Manger
Angel in Disguise
Beautiful Seed
In The Bleak Midwinter
What Child Is This
(Intermission)
Hail Mary
Angels We Have Heard On High
O Come All Ye Faithful
Do You Hear What I Hear
The Answer
On My Way
5 Loaves and 2 Fishes
Joy to the World
Encore : Grown- up Christmas List
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
I walked backstage and the choir and string players
greeted me with their applause. I was pretty moved.
The Band and the String Ensemble
We all took some pictures backstage and I thanked them all
for the wonderful job they had done and told them
that I hoped we would be able to work together again
sometime in the not-too-distant future.
The SYC Ensemble Singers and I
Then, it was out to sign autographs.
(photo by Stephanie Yeow)
Where's Corrinne? (photo by Stephanie Yeow)
There were many people waiting outside and I was
thrilled that my family and friends were standing
right outside the door. Thankfully, I got a chance
to give a hug to Auntie Betty, fourth auntie,
both grandmas, my parents and my friends Pam and Simon,
Tong Jen and Lee Jeng before being shuttled to the
autograph table. It was a lovely coincidence that they
had all just happened to stand there, not realising
that I would be exiting through that door,
since I was supposed to exit through another door.
(Popo, Mama, Aunty Betty, Si Yi.. thank God for family)
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Tong Jen and Lee Jeng had brought a lovely bunch
of flowers. They were heavy! Sunflowers smiled
out the top of the bunch and accompanied me as
I signed autographs for the next few hours.
I was delighted to see Benson ( CEO of The Esplanade) and his wife Margeret, as they
stopped by to offer their well-wishes.
(Photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Without Benson's invitation to
do a Christmas concert at the Esplanade,this concert would not have taken place.
I shall always be grateful that he extended the invitation to perform
at the Esplanade. It has been a steady progression through the various
venues within the Esplanade, first with the outdoor theatre, to the
recital studio, to the lovely concert hall.
Angelina Yeo,
was first in line at the autograph table, with loads of CD sleeves,
including the Japanese release. It was lovely to see her again
as she has been one of my longest supporting fans in Singapore.
(photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Sean and Timothy stopped by to chat with me while Yen and Kavin shared a conversation.
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Rachael, one of the patient fans who stayed till the end to say hi(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
and Francia sweetly made a lovely hand-made card.She seemed surprised
that I had remembered that I signed her guitar at the concert
in NUS in February :)
I got to sign on Ben's ipod and on someone else's styrofoam
hand (!). I discovered then and there that styrofoam is extremely hard
to write on! Ee Kwang gave me a pic of his wedding photo,
There were lovely cartoon postcards from Favian, a really
gifted graphic artist. I was also delighted to finally meet
Deborah in person. She helps out with the bulletin board
and it was lovely to see her there with her mom.
There were lots of young couples, some army guys,friends,
girlfriends who came together in a group...daughters who came
with their mothers, husbands who came with their wives,
girlfriends who came with their boyfriends, students from college,
and it was lovely to meet each and everyone of them, to find out a little bit
about their story and to thank them for sharing and listening
to mine.
(say "Cheese!" photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Amy and Keith were wonderful in helping out with helping the
fans take photos and write their names on little slips of
paper so as to make the autograph-signing process a little
faster for everyone.
I finally signed the last autograph at 12.15 a.m and felt
bad for the poor overworked Esplanade crew who had to wait
for me to finish the autograph signing session.
The Crew at the Esplanade at 12.15 a.m, still smiling!(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Mummy and Pa, Stephanie and Yen were still around
and all of us headed back to the dressing room, packed up,
took a couple more photos together and then headed back home.
Trying out my new funny face at Mummy (photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Stephanie and Yen had very sweetly given Kavin and I
two packets of Hokkien Mee and Char Kway Teow. Yay! Now
that I had no more singing to do, I could eat all the oily,
spicy food I wanted! The moment we got back home, Kavin and I sat
at the dinner table and wolfed down the food, with a cup of hot
Milo to chase it all down.
By the time I took off all my make-up and had a shower, it
was close to 3 a.m. Got to bed at 3.15 a.m, exhausted,
but happy and satisfied by the end of a very
fulfilling day.
Mummy and I (photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
The Day of the Concert :
It's always hard to have a good night's rest
the night before a big performance. My mind runs through
the songs and through the lyrics and does a virtual
walk-through of the concert proceedings and it's hard to quiet
an active mind and fall into a deep sleep.
Thankfully, I managed to get sufficient rest.
After a good breakfast of chicken hor fun and tea,
we set off for the Esplanade with all our barang-barang...
there was the long dress and the high-heeled shoes (which
I ended up not wearing for fear of tripping on stage! I HATE
high-heeled shoes.), there was Kavin's lap-top with pro-tools,
and the mixer, there were back-up scores and charts,
there were toiletries.....thank goodness we got a lift
from Papa and Mummy to the Esplanade.
We were blessed to have a beautiful dressing room and
I was delighted that there was an upright piano in the room as well.
Stephanie and Yen showed up soon after to take photos of the rehearsal.
They've been wonderful at capturing the moods, the ebbs and flows
and the stories both of the performances and the 'making of'
the performances. They are both, gifted visual storytellers and photographers,
and they have also become good friends of both Kavin and I.
They give so much of their talents and their time for us, that
we are truly grateful.
The full rehearsal run-through started around 3 p.m and thankfully
we were done by 5.15 p.m
Singing with the SYC Ensemble Singers (photo copyright, Stephanie Yeow)
Kavin rehearses the string players (photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Reggie's (Percussion player) Butterfly windchimes (photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Space invaders at the Esplanade (photo copyright Stephanie Yeow)
(A solo moment at the piano - Photo copyright by Yen Meng Jiin)
(Taking a moment to write my thank yous - photo by Yen Meng Jiin)
Hi, my name is Corrinne May's pencil case. I shall be singing on her behalf tonight. photo copyright by Yen Meng Jiin)
Checking some last minute sms messages - photo by Stephanie Yeow
After slurping up a portion of my fish bee-hoon dinner,
Ernest showed up to do hair and make-up. I love the way
he does the make-up. Somehow, thankfully, he makes my eyes
look bigger and brighter *grin*
Getting make-up done - photo by Stephanie Yeow
By the time hair and make-up was done, it was close to 7 p.m.
And the show was due to begin in 30 minutes. The band members,
Kavin and I gathered around in the band's dressing room for
a short prayer before we headed out on stage for the evening's
concert.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
The band and the string players went ahead of me on to the
stage while I lingered backstage and took a deep breath.
I was a little nervous before walking out onto the stage
but once the applause started, I remembered the joy of
the stage and the fear somehow evaporated once I set my
fingers on the piano and sang the first song of the concert
"Silent Night".
Photo by Stephanie Yeow
The rest of the concert went by smoothly and I was
grateful for the intermission in between sets. I was able
to stretch and take another drink of water, take a breather
and compose my thoughts before the
second set kicked in after the 20 minute intermission.
It was lovely to have the choir there for the 2nd set
and "Hail Mary" was serene yet grand and the audience
was surprisingly reverent and silent for that song.
Singing with the SYC Ensemble Singers - photo by Yen Meng Jiin
So the second set flowed along nicely too, apart
from a minor buzz in my in-ear monitors which was quickly resolved.
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
I enjoyed the whole evening and was sad when we
got done with the final song of the concert set,
"Joy to the World". Thankfully, the audience
brought us back through their enthusiastic applause
for an encore.
Kavin played the piano while I sang "Grown-up Christmas
List" and the band joined us on "Have Yourself A Merry Little
Christmas". I had so much fun just sitting in the middle of
the stage on a high chair, singing my heart out to the darkened
hall of people, trying to project everything I felt through
the songs.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
The darkened hall seating 1600 people (photo by Stephanie Yeow)
The last lingering note, the applause, the bow and
a lovely bouquet of flowers was thrust into my hands
from a lady with the Esplanade and then, it was done.
(photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Song List
Silent Night
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
O Come O Come Emmanuel
Be Thou My Vision
Away in a Manger
Angel in Disguise
Beautiful Seed
In The Bleak Midwinter
What Child Is This
(Intermission)
Hail Mary
Angels We Have Heard On High
O Come All Ye Faithful
Do You Hear What I Hear
The Answer
On My Way
5 Loaves and 2 Fishes
Joy to the World
Encore : Grown- up Christmas List
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
I walked backstage and the choir and string players
greeted me with their applause. I was pretty moved.
The Band and the String Ensemble
We all took some pictures backstage and I thanked them all
for the wonderful job they had done and told them
that I hoped we would be able to work together again
sometime in the not-too-distant future.
The SYC Ensemble Singers and I
Then, it was out to sign autographs.
(photo by Stephanie Yeow)
Where's Corrinne? (photo by Stephanie Yeow)
There were many people waiting outside and I was
thrilled that my family and friends were standing
right outside the door. Thankfully, I got a chance
to give a hug to Auntie Betty, fourth auntie,
both grandmas, my parents and my friends Pam and Simon,
Tong Jen and Lee Jeng before being shuttled to the
autograph table. It was a lovely coincidence that they
had all just happened to stand there, not realising
that I would be exiting through that door,
since I was supposed to exit through another door.
(Popo, Mama, Aunty Betty, Si Yi.. thank God for family)
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Tong Jen and Lee Jeng had brought a lovely bunch
of flowers. They were heavy! Sunflowers smiled
out the top of the bunch and accompanied me as
I signed autographs for the next few hours.
I was delighted to see Benson ( CEO of The Esplanade) and his wife Margeret, as they
stopped by to offer their well-wishes.
(Photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Without Benson's invitation to
do a Christmas concert at the Esplanade,this concert would not have taken place.
I shall always be grateful that he extended the invitation to perform
at the Esplanade. It has been a steady progression through the various
venues within the Esplanade, first with the outdoor theatre, to the
recital studio, to the lovely concert hall.
Angelina Yeo,
was first in line at the autograph table, with loads of CD sleeves,
including the Japanese release. It was lovely to see her again
as she has been one of my longest supporting fans in Singapore.
(photo copyright Yen Ming Jiin)
Sean and Timothy stopped by to chat with me while Yen and Kavin shared a conversation.
(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Rachael, one of the patient fans who stayed till the end to say hi(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
and Francia sweetly made a lovely hand-made card.She seemed surprised
that I had remembered that I signed her guitar at the concert
in NUS in February :)
I got to sign on Ben's ipod and on someone else's styrofoam
hand (!). I discovered then and there that styrofoam is extremely hard
to write on! Ee Kwang gave me a pic of his wedding photo,
There were lovely cartoon postcards from Favian, a really
gifted graphic artist. I was also delighted to finally meet
Deborah in person. She helps out with the bulletin board
and it was lovely to see her there with her mom.
There were lots of young couples, some army guys,friends,
girlfriends who came together in a group...daughters who came
with their mothers, husbands who came with their wives,
girlfriends who came with their boyfriends, students from college,
and it was lovely to meet each and everyone of them, to find out a little bit
about their story and to thank them for sharing and listening
to mine.
(say "Cheese!" photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Amy and Keith were wonderful in helping out with helping the
fans take photos and write their names on little slips of
paper so as to make the autograph-signing process a little
faster for everyone.
I finally signed the last autograph at 12.15 a.m and felt
bad for the poor overworked Esplanade crew who had to wait
for me to finish the autograph signing session.
The Crew at the Esplanade at 12.15 a.m, still smiling!(photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
Mummy and Pa, Stephanie and Yen were still around
and all of us headed back to the dressing room, packed up,
took a couple more photos together and then headed back home.
Trying out my new funny face at Mummy (photo copyright of Yen Ming Jiin)
Stephanie and Yen had very sweetly given Kavin and I
two packets of Hokkien Mee and Char Kway Teow. Yay! Now
that I had no more singing to do, I could eat all the oily,
spicy food I wanted! The moment we got back home, Kavin and I sat
at the dinner table and wolfed down the food, with a cup of hot
Milo to chase it all down.
By the time I took off all my make-up and had a shower, it
was close to 3 a.m. Got to bed at 3.15 a.m, exhausted,
but happy and satisfied by the end of a very
fulfilling day.
Mummy and I (photo copyright of Stephanie Yeow)
posted by Corrinne May | 7:26 PM
11 Comments:
Hi Corrinne, thanks for the wonderful concert! It was super to hear you in person again, and I'm sure the audience felt the same way too. I especially loved listening to your anecdotes in between songs; you should collect these in upcoming albums too! Looking forward to your future concerts. All the best in your booming career!
Thanks for the great treat! You look wonderful~!!
I became a fan of yours last year, and haven't yet had a chance to see you live, unfortunately. Considering how much your songs and the soul of your voice moves me in audio form, I can only imagine how spectacular it would be live. This was a wonderful post, thank you for sharing all of the pictures! I'm an American living in Japan--if you ever get a chance to perform in Japan, I'll be in the first row.
hi corrinne! great to hear your updates. it was a lovely concert and it was a great way to celebrate christmas and the birth of our Lord. if you're having any concerts in the states do update! i'm a singaporean student studying in US now. hope to hear you sing again soon! (:
This comment has been removed by the author.
Hi Corrinne,
Great entry. Fantastic memories. Thanks for the email by the way! Loved the concert. Look forward to great stuff from you! Take care. Benedict :)
corrinne u were absolutely wonderful! i really enjoy your live performances and so looking forward to your new album! =)
Hi Corrinne! I just heard from Ee Kwang that you mentioned us in your blog! Wows! Never been mentioned in a celebrity's blog before! It was great meeting you. Thanks for that most wonderful evening. We really enjoyed your performance.
Favian
P.S.If you're interested you can see more of my cartoons at my website www.wens-world.com
It truly was a nice concert and I was glad I got a chance to meet you in person. Too bad I couldn't meet Kavin. Oh well! :)
hello!
i've couldnt make it for the concert that time.will you be coming back to singapore again for another concert?
Hi Corrinne,
It was wonderful reading yer blogs esp the Christmas concert one.
It is super nice of u to stay up late to talk to fans, and to sign autographs till the last fan. I'm sure we fans appreciate this thoughtful gesture!
I've been yer fan ever since I heard yer song featured in the Sg TV show 'Chase'. I rushed out to buy all yer albums after that. Thank you for writing those beautiful and meaningful music & words.
I've alwis wanted to go for yer concerts but each time I couldn't because I was studying in Adelaide.
So it's great that u included pics and wrote the experience down in yer blog.
But still, I would REALLY love to hear u sing live. When will u be singing in Singapore next? Hopefully soon! and i pray i'll not be out of the country! God bless!
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