The Singapore gig calendar just got a little less colourful. Next year's Mosaic Music Festival will be the 10th edition - and also the last.
But the established brand of concerts organised by the Esplanade will live on in other forms, says the arts centre.
The 10-day festival, to be held from March 7 to 16 next year, is noted for its eclectic mix of acclaimed acts from genres ranging from indie and jazz to world and electronic music.
Next year's event will feature international acts such as Grammy-nominated American singer- songwriter Neko Case, who performs at Esplanade Concert Hall on March 16; British fusion jazz act John McLaughlin and The 4th Dimension at the same venue on March 11; and joint gigs by Cuban pianist and composer Omar Sosa and Italian trumpeter Paolo Fresu at the Esplanade Recital Studio on March 13.
The organisers emphasise that the Mosaic brand lives on though, as the venue will continue to present gigs under the name throughout the year.
Says the Esplanade's assistant director of programming, Mr Clarence Yap: "It's important to note that we are not ending Mosaic. While the Mosaic Music Festival will see its final edition in its current format, Mosaic, as a platform to present music at its artistic best in an acoustically appropriate environment, will continue. Mosaic and our music programmes can take many forms, hence its name."
Ending the festival in its current form gives the organisers a chance to review Mosaic, he adds, and to explore new ways of contributing to the music scene without being hindered by commercial interests.
The Esplanade has been staging year-round gigs under its Mosaic series since 2003 and launched the first 10-day festival in 2005.
The decision to stop the festival has nothing to do with recent reports of the Esplanade's drop in box- office revenue in the past financial year, says Mr Yap. According to its annual report, the takings dropped from $7.45 million for the financial year ending March last year to $4.35 million in the one ending March this year.
He points to the growing number of concerts and festivals presenting non-mainstream music in the local concert scene today, a far cry from when Mosaic music festival started in 2005.
New multi-act gigs that have appeared in the last few years include the annual Laneway festival, which will stage its fourth edition at Gardens by the Bay on Jan 25, as well as newcomers Camp Symmetry at the same venue last month.
Another, Hostess Club Weekender, is set to debut at Fort Canning Park on Feb 22.
Mr Yap elaborates: "Mosaic was the first to bring such a large and diverse range of performers and genres into Singapore, and it has contributed to developing music audiences here.
"Now that there is a growing number of commercial concerts and festivals serving audiences, it is a good time for Esplanade to look at how it can contribute to the music scene in ways that others are not or cannot."
In addition to sets by popular Australian ska/jazz act The Cat Empire, British indie duo The Big Pink and American jazz act John Pizzarelli Quartet, next year's festival will also celebrate its 10th year with an exhibition showcasing past highlights.
These include behind-the-scenes photographs, autographed posters and personalised messages written by the artists who have been part of Mosaic, such as Norwegian folk duo Kings Of Convenience, Japanese jazz pianist Hiromi and American folk-pop singer Jason Mraz.
Besides ticketed gigs at venues such as the Esplanade Concert Hall and the Esplanade Recital Studio, the festival will also feature plenty of free performances at places such as the Outdoor Theatre and Concourse.
This year's Mosaic Music Festival, which featured popular and acclaimed acts such as Grammy Award-winning jazz musician Esperanza Spalding and R&B songbird Joss Stone, drew 90,000 people to both ticketed and free performances.
While it is a smaller crowd compared to previous years' - last year's edition drew 135,000 - the average attendance was 89 per cent, up from 88 per cent last year.
The Esplanade declined to reveal the estimated crowd size for next year's edition.
While the arts centre presents multiple festivals all year round, ranging from dance festival da:ns to offbeats arts fest Flipside, Mosaic will be the first festival that it is ending.
Says Mr Yap: "This is indeed the first festival that we're 'graduating'. We are happy to be celebrating this evolution on a high note, gratified that we have played a part in developing a diverse, discerning audience and helping to create more commercial opportunities for promoters and festival organisers."
Mosaic fans such as licensing manager Timothy Tan are saddened to hear of the 10-day festival's demise.
"It's a real pity. They've been going on so strong over the years," says the 45-year old, who has attended shows at every single Mosaic festival.
"Unlike other festivals such as Laneway from Australia, this is our festival, something Singaporeans can call our own, and one held at Singapore's premier concert venue. You also get a more interesting mix of genres at Mosaic and I've discovered a lot of music by going to the Mosaic festivals."
dinohadi@sph.com.sg
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