Latest news with #MusicLab

Straits Times
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Choosing music as a career: Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs and touring with Mandopop star A-mei
Music Lab Podcast Choosing music as a career: Musician Evan Low talks NDP songs and touring with Mandopop star A-mei Synopsis (headphones recommended): Each month, The Straits Times invites music acts to its podcast studio. In this special episode of Music Lab, ST's music correspondent Eddino Abdul Hadi hosts award-winning Singaporean composer, producer, and music director Evan Low. A recipient of the National Arts Council's Young Artist Award in 2024, Low has worked on over 200 songs. From left: Mr Evan Low, Singaporean Music Director and Music Producer, and Mr Eddino Abdul Hadi, Music Lab Host. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE He is best known for being a co-composer and musician on recent National Day Parade songs The Road Ahead (2021) sung by artistes such as Linying, Not Alone (2024) by Benjamin Kheng and the 2018 remake of We Are Singapore. The artiste also known as Evanturetime has also toured with international pop star and Taiwanese singer A-mei and has performed to massive crowds in venues such as the Beijing National Stadium in China. Low, who first took piano lessons at the age of five, graduated from Singapore Polytechnic with a Diploma in Music and Audio Technology. He then honed his skills at famed American music school Berklee College of Music, thanks to scholarships from the school as well as the Media Development Authority. This episode was recorded and filmed in front of a live audience of nearly 80 attendees on June 3 - at swish nightspot Rasa at Republic Plaza, as part of the ST Podcast Live! Sessions celebrating 180 years of The Straits Times in 2025. The third ST Podcast Live session is part of a series of events to celebrate 180 years of The Straits Times. ST PHOTO: REBEKAH CHIA Highlights (click/tap above): 2:17 Realising the impact of music: How Evan cried during piano practice when he was a kid 3:54 How he ended up choosing to further his studies in music instead of science 6:36 On developing his own set of 'special skills' while studying music in the US 10:56 The pressure of coming up with NDP songs 18:20 How he got singer Benjamin Kheng to venture outside his comfort zone on NDP song Not Alone 26:46 How he balances his finances as a full-time musician 29:25 On helping others achieve their dreams of pursuing music as a career Discover Evan Low's music at: Spotify: Instagram: Read Eddino Hadi's articles: Host: Eddino Abdul Hadi (dinohadi@ Produced by: ST Podcast Team & ST Outreach & Engagement Team Edited by: Amirul Karim Executive producers: Ernest Luis & Lynda Hong Discover previous artistes' live performances featured on Music Lab Podcast: Channel: Apple Podcasts: Spotify: Feedback to: podcast@ --- Follow more ST podcast channels: All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: ST Podcasts website: ST Podcasts YouTube: --- Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section: The App Store: Google Play: --

RNZ News
28-05-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Singing to babies boosts their mood and wellbeing, study shows
The study was between the University of Auckland and the US University of Yale. Photo: Copyright (c) 2022 eggeegg/Shutterstock. It's a universal practice, parents and caregivers singing to babies. But now research proves that singing to babies really does have benefits. A joint study between the Universities of Auckland and Yale, in the US, shows singing can help to lift their moods and boost their wellbeing. Psychologist and director of the Music Lab in Auckland Dr Samuel Mehr - and led the research - told Morning Report it was quite a hard topic to study. He said the study texted parents a few times a day to ask: has the baby been crying, are they feeling good, or what's going on with the infant Photo: Samuel Mehr The answers were measured over a multi-week study, showing the effects of singing on infants. "It's a general effect, so it's not just that infants are happier when the singing is going on, but it's that their mood is better in general. "But I think communication with infants from parents is always a positive thing." It doesn't even matter if the singing is in tune or not. "Infants are very chill about the quality of the vocal input they are getting, they really like to hear their parents voices," he said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.