love this @amandaleekoe ... i wanna hear the whole song... ✨
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#Repost @amandaleekoe
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“I Am Ardently In Love With The Girl”
i made a song about two lovers making a pact under a pink frangipani tree for National Gallery Singapore's Light to Night Festival, in response to the histories of Esplanade Park. .
in my research i came upon a 5 june 1952 The Straits Times article, about a pair of lovers, a 21-year-old indian electrician (Maniam) and a 23-year-old chinese girl (Ah Eng), who were tried in court after they tried to commit suicide by jumping into the sea from esplanade park (they were rescued from the sea by a malay seaman). when asked by the magistrate why they did so, Maniam said: "I am ardently in love with the girl, but I know it is a hopeless affair." . 💔 💔 💔 .
fiction fails when history was so cruel. these two lovers did no wrong. i didn't want to write a story or a dialogue, so i wrote lyrics incorporating statements from the court hearing. sixty years on, one hopes things have gotten better for any sort of relationship that falls out of the bounds of societal norms (be it race / class / religion / gender), but the going is always gonna be tougher than it should have to be. if you're in a relationship with someone your parents / peers / workplace / strangers don't accept / acknowledge / approve of, this one's for you <3 <3 <3
_____________________
performed by Shak feat. ALK
composed by Victor Low
arranged by Evan Tan
lyrics by ALK
for
Under The Five Trees, an audio and environmental installation curated by Kaylene Tan and Ben Slater. opens tonight (18 jan) and runs thru art week (no admission hours or tickets since it’s a public park yay) 🌸🍃⛲️ to listen to the full song and check out the rest, go take a gander at esplanade park — you'll find 5 trees with QR codes — you need a cell phone and probably headphones. my pink frangipani tree is right next to the blue tan kim seng fountain and a short way ahead if you see some green mounds that’s Boey Kim Cheng’s installation)
i’m not in sg (freezing ass off back in nyc) so i won’t be able to experience this in the flesh, help me live / love vicariously under the five trees xx
