old music, new words
old music, new words is an interdisciplinary performance exploring how the written and spoken word can reframe Western classical music and create new forms of relevance for performers and audiences. The presentation draws on insights from varied encounters with art and entertainment, as well as two performances developed in 2025: Hensel’s Ostersonate, framed by fictional letters from Hensel to her brother, and Of Childhood and Correspondences, which paired poetry and prose by Singaporean writer Zhang Ruihe with works by Bacewicz and Schumann.
Through a newly developed artistic format combining music and speech, pianist Frances Lee reflects on the creative possibilities and challenges of placing different artistic forms in dialogue. The presentation itself becomes an extension of this inquiry, using performance to explore how narrative, language and musical interpretation can reshape relationships with familiar repertoire.
Dr Frances Lee
Born in Singapore, pianist Frances Lee has performed internationally as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral keyboardist. Her wide-ranging practice includes contemporary music, historical performance and outreach projects highlighting women composers across the centuries. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University, and is currently an Instructor at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, National University of Singapore.
Photo courtesy of Shengyuan Zhou
YST Conservatory of Music