Music For Everyone, 2019, Fabric Banners (cotton, polyester, wool), 134 x 180 cm each (series of 7) All artworks courtesy of Song-Ming Ang. Photograph by Renée Ting.

First presented in 2019 in Venice, Italy, Music For Everyone: Variations on a Theme was held at the Singapore Pavilion of the 58th Venice Biennale, one of the most prestigious international contemporary art platforms. The exhibition references a series of music concerts organised by Singapore’s Ministry of Culture from 1971 to 1985, responding to state directives that deploy the arts as a means of nation building during this period.

The expanded presentation at the National Museum of Singapore comprises three sections: A History; Amateurism and an Art of Rehabilitation; and Purposeful Play and an Art of Empathy. Together with works that engage thoughtfully with structures and contexts of music-making, this homecoming show in Singapore reveals how music can be a ground for ideological contest, capable of accommodating state agendas while allowing for agency, ambiguity and dissonance to emerge.

Venue: National Museum of Singapore, Basement Level

When: 8 Oct - 8 Nov 2020, 10am - 7pm

By: National Museum of Singapore