Song-Ming Ang presents 'Music for Everyone: Variations on a Theme' at Singapore Pavilion in 2019 Venice Biennale

Song-Ming Ang represents Singapore at the 2019 Venice Biennale with an exhibition titled 'Music for Everyone: Variations on a Theme', located in the Arsenale. The show references a historical concert series from the 1970s and 1980s organized by Singapore's Ministry of Culture, which promoted Western classical music and national identity. Ang's presentation counters that top-down approach by emphasizing improvisation, play, and amateurism in a grassroots manner. He views the pavilion as an honor, acknowledging nation-states as problematic constructs while expressing pride in his Singaporean background. Ang notes that his work blends transnational and local elements, though he avoids overthinking such categorizations to allow full artistic realization. For Singapore, a small and young country, the Venice Biennale offers a rare international platform to showcase its artists on a global scale. Ang recalls his first Venice visit in 2009, when Ming Wong's 'Life of Imitation' at the Singapore Pavilion received a Special Mention from the jury, an achievement he found deserving. He anticipates seeing the main exhibition curated by Ralph Rugoff, noting conceptual overlaps between their projects, with both featuring dialogues across two sets of artworks. The biennale runs from May 11 to November 24, 2019.