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S’pore music contest sets milestone, draws 900 youths

Finalists of the local Eco Music Challenge organized by NEA. (Screengrab: Facebook)
Finalists of the local Eco Music Challenge organized by NEA. (Screengrab: Facebook)

An online song-writing competition in Singapore to raise awareness about the environment and nurture local talent achieved a new milestone after it received over 300 song entries from more than 900 youth participants this year.

13 English and Chinese compositions that vary in music genres and styles have been shortlisted this August for the Eco Music Challenge 2011, which is organised by the National Environment Agency (NEA).

Andrew Tan, chief executive officer of NEA, said, "Our top 13 finalists come from varied backgrounds; from students and music teachers to cabin crew members and doctors, and even one of Cleo Magazine's 50 most eligible bachelors."

"We hope that their diversity in professions will enable their green composition to touch every part of the community," he added.

The bands and individuals behind the 13 entries will undergo a three-week mentorship programme to prepare for the finale concert. They will work with popular local musicians, including former guest vocal trainer on Singapore Idol, Sara Wee, and veteran singer-songwriter, Clement Chow.

The competition's partners also include Intune Music School and Timbre Music Academy.

"I am impressed by the strong interest and outstanding entries. It was challenging to select the top 13 songs," said Danny Loong, co-founder and chief creative director of Timbre Group, which has been championing the local music scene for the last six years.

The finale concert that is open to public will be held this Saturday at Orchard Central. The top three winners will walk away with S$5,000, S$3,000 and S$2,000, respectively. The winning song will also be crowned the official Clean & Green Singapore campaign 2012 theme song.