Cover ‘A Great Day in Singapore’ by Russel Wong features the luminaries, practitioners and enthusiasts of the jazz scene in Singapore (Photo: Russel Wong)
‘A Great Day in Singapore’ by Russel Wong features the luminaries, practitioners and enthusiasts of the jazz scene in Singapore (Photo: Russel Wong)
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Led by maestro Jeremy Monteiro, the Jazz Association Singapore brings together the luminaries, practitioners and enthusiasts of the city’s jazz scene to recreate, with celebrity lensman Russel Wong, Art Kane’s famous ‘A Great Day in Harlem’ photograph
It is half past seven on a Monday evening—and the last museum visitor has left the building. But a buzz of excitement can be heard from the Singapore Courtyard, in the City Hall Wing of the National Gallery Singapore. In what is a night at the museum of sorts, members of Singapore’s jazz community descended upon the space dressed in their Sunday best—and some armed with their musical instruments—for a very special occasion.
With a flurry of hellos, handshakes and hugs behind them, they take directions from the man at the centre of it all, Singapore’s King of Swing, Jeremy Monteiro, executive director and music director of the Jazz Association Singapore (Jass). He has the monumental task of bringing together the luminaries, practitioners and enthusiasts of Singapore jazz, nearly 180 of them, for a family portrait—and taking reference from A Great Day in Harlem, the famous 1958 black-and-white photograph taken by Art Kane for Esquire magazine, in an issue dedicated to jazz.
A young art director at the time, and not yet the fashion and music photographer he became known as later, Kane shot a portrait of the musicians—57 of them—on the steps of a Harlem brownstone in New York City. “It’s a snapshot of a great moment in jazz history and the coming together of jazz greats in America,” says Monteiro. While we do not have the copyright permission to publish the photograph here, a quick Google search will bring up the image, which features luminaries of the 1950s New York jazz scene, including Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, Thelonious Monk and Gerry Mulligan.
Read more: Jazz Maestro Jeremy Monteiro Reflects on 45 Years of His Music Career
Above Jeremy Monteiro, executive director and music director of Jazz Association Singapore (Photo: Jazz Association Singapore)
Jeremy Monteiro, executive director and music director of Jazz Association Singapore (Photo: Jazz Association Singapore)
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Kane’s portrait has inspired numerous tributes, including the latest dubbed A Great Day in Singapore. “We’ve always had world‑class jazz musicians among us, going back to the 1950s, but there are more international level jazz musicians in Singapore right now than there has ever been in our history—and that’s all of you,” Monteiro points out, addressing the musicians. “We’re at a very important crossroads, where we have all these great musicians and practitioners, as well as jazz lovers in Singapore, so we wanted to come together for a family portrait.”
And who better to capture this milestone than celebrity photographer Russel Wong. “Music has a big influence in my life and, of course, jazz is part of it. In photography school, I would hang out at jazz bars in Los Angeles and photograph famous jazz musicians. Coincidentally, Art Kane was one of my teachers,” Wong tells us. “Being photographers, we’re historians in a way, and we don’t take it for granted that all these jazz greats are around in the same space at the same time—I think it’s important to document it and archive it, so the future generations are able to enjoy it.”
In case you missed it: Singapore jazz icon Louis Soliano looks back on 70 years of showbiz in his new memoir
Above Singapore’s godfather of jazz Louis Soliano (Photo: Frenchescar Lim)
Singapore’s godfather of jazz Louis Soliano (Photo: Frenchescar Lim)
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Monteiro has assembled musicians from the various eras, from the Jazzlings, a group of young artists who are making a name for themselves today, to the young and established ones such as Sean Hong Wei, who is now based in New York, where he is studying music. “A Great Day in Singapore is a snapshot of the current times and the people in the scene right now—and I feel that in the next 20, 30 or 40 years, when the younger cats look back on this photo, they will see their mentors, or their mentors’ mentors—and it will be a nice memory for the future,” enthuses Hong.
There are also the luminaries, from Jass associate music director Chok Kerong, one of the city’s most versatile talents, to Singapore’s godfather of jazz and Cultural Medallion recipient Louis Soliano, who received the Public Service Medal this year. “It’s a great honour to be here,” Soliano says. “Never in my dreams [did I imagine] that this is going to happen. It’s one of the hardest things to get all of the musicians together—and Jeremy Monteiro managed to pull it off.”
Indeed, Monteiro took care of every single detail. While there are no brownstones in Singapore, “we wanted a location that’s quite iconic”, he says. “The former City Hall, now home to the National Gallery, is a place that Singaporeans can identify with—and this shows the ‘Singaporean-ness’ of our effort.”
In case you missed it: Young Jazz Singapore: Saxophonist Sean Hong Wei Puts His Soul into Playing Music
Above Young musician Sean Hong Wei, who is now based in New York, where he is studying music (Photo: GT Gan)
Young musician Sean Hong Wei, who is now based in New York, where he is studying music (Photo: GT Gan)
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Jass can also count on the support of its patrons. One of them is Ang Kong Hua, who has been listening to jazz “for the greater part of my life, and consider myself as a hobbyist musician”. He highlights the importance for Singapore to have a good jazz environment. “All major cities are not cities without one or two good jazz clubs,” he says. “It’s a niche art form but it makes the city vibrant. However, musicians don’t have an easy time making a living, therefore we need to support them.”
As Wong presses the shutter one more time—and captures one last frame, everyone slowly starts to disperse to the strains of Louis Armstrong’s rendition of When the Saints Go Marching In.
“It’s a great day,” Soliano enthuses. And we could not agree more.
Above ‘A Great Day in Singapore’: Jazz Association Singapore recreates the famous Art Kane photograph
As Senior Editor of Tatler Singapore, Hashirin champions and refines the storytelling across platforms—curating and crafting compelling profiles, cover stories and features that spotlight visionaries shaping culture, business and impact. Driven by curiosity, she draws inspiration from the artists, changemakers and trailblazers she encounters through her work. Beyond the pages of Tatler, she is an avid supporter of local theatre and delights in seeking out art in every city she visits.
