Playful Textures by Morse Percussion

Featuring Derek Koh and Cheong Kah Yiong, the performance set showcases an eclectic range of percussion instruments and found objects – from caxixi shakers from Brazil and Western orchestral percussion instruments like the triangle and snare drum, to your everyday flowerpots!

About the Performers

Derek Koh

Touted as “one of the most promising musicians of his generation” (The Straits Times), Derek Koh’s sensitive musical voice and dynamism has led him to work with art forms of all genres and mediums, from western and Chinese classical music to theatre and dance.

Derek is Co-founder and Creative Director at Morse Percussion, Secretary-General at the Percussion Association of Singapore, and percussionist at Chinese chamber ensemble Ding Yi Music Company. Highly flexible and collaborative, Derek has premiered over fifty solo and chamber works, and has worked and recorded with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, and Singapore Chinese Orchestra.

Derek is a graduate of the Mannes School of Music and Royal College of Music, and is currently music faculty at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) and Tanglin Trust School.

Cheong Kah Yiong

One of the most highly sought-after percussionists in Singapore due to his flexibility in Western and Chinese music literature, Cheong Kah Yiong has performed with many of Singapore's most important ensembles including the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, Ding Yi Music Company and Arts Fission. He is also part of contemporary percussion collective Morse Percussion.

Kah Yiong currently serves as a military musician in Singapore Armed Forces Central Band. He performed with the band both locally and internationally. Notable performances include In Harmony 34th and 35th (Acting Principal Timpanist) and Chamber Repertory XVI (Soloist) performing Triptych Boom by Chad Floyd, accompanied by the Band’s Percussion Ensemble.

Kah Yiong has spent summers in both the Asian Youth Orchestra and Pacific Region International Summer Academy. Most recently, he recorded percussion for Disney’s live-action adaptation of Mulan. A graduate of the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), his mentors include Mark Suter, Christian Schioler, Ted Atkatz and Rob Knopper.

Morse Percussion

Morse Percussion is a contemporary classical percussion group formed in 2020 by a group of like-minded percussionists with an adventurous and eclectic taste for percussive music. The group hopes to inspire through exquisite contemporary percussion music making, educate and cultivate interest of classical percussion through compelling productions, and be Singapore’s first professional percussion group characterised by musical diversity and excellence.

Morse Percussion most recently played to a sold-out audience at the Esplanade concert hall in the Singapore Festival of Arts 2021. Their concert, titled Ghosts of Yesteryear, locally premiered music by American legend Philip Glass and award-winning composing sensation David T. Little.

An ardent supporter of commissioning Singaporean works, Morse Percussion have worked with award-winning local composers including Phang Kokjun and Cheng Jin Koh, and have five more commissioned works coming their way in 2022.