The b-l duo are on a mission to play the creepiest, craziest keyboard music – at least that’s how they put it in their own words. Also active in the Singaporean collective weird aftertaste, Bertram Wee and Lynette Yeo combine chamber music with pop, harsh noise and contemporary music in their repertoire.
This is also the case with their programme conceived especially for MaerzMusik 2024, which brings to life new compositions for keyboard instruments. In addition to a piece by Sarah Nemtsov for toy piano, mini-synthesiser and two monotrons as well as “Rad” by Enno Poppe – a major influence on the act – for two keyboards, their selections include works by a new generation of artists: “Sometimes Voices” by British composer Alex Paxton and arranged by Wee for two keyboards, inspired by metal and electronic dance music in equal measure, will be placed alongside Wee’s own composition “my body, broken for your amusement” for keyboard and talkbox, which draws on the work of Alvin Lucier to explore the human body as a sonic space.
Furthermore, the b-l duo will also be presenting another voice from South East Asia with “To drift, float, but never land” by the young Singaporean experimental music composer Joan Tan. This work for toy pianos and electronics was written especially for Yeo and Wee and demonstrates the textural qualities of their instruments in a uniquely bizarre way.
FACTS
1. The first thing we performed together as undergrads was Ravel’s La Valse, at the Royal College of
Music in London.
2. Art is over.
3. You can eat an orange in the shower, it smells good.
1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
LYN: I’m still looking for it. For now, making music with my partner and friends, playing and listening
to pieces which move me strongly, and the freedom to experiment.
BERT: I’m inspired and deeply moved by so much, but galvanised into action by the loving support
and enthusiasm of my partner-in-crime.
2. How and when did you get into making music?
LYN: When I was six I figured out how to play the tune of Mozart’s Symphony No.40 in G minor by
ear on a toy keyboard. My grandfather bought me a piano and I haven’t stopped since.
BERT: Piano lessons from when I was a child, which led to baffling experiences with a whole bunch of
music in the local arts library that I didn’t understand but loved (Babbitt, Carter…) – and then I
wanted to play everything and also make some of my own.
3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time?
BERT: It’s a hard one, but here’s 5 I return to very often:
Naked City – Torture Garden
Jute Gyte – Perdurance
Mike Patton – Adult Themes for Voice
Bernhard Gander – Bunny Games
The Gerogerigegege – Yellow Trash Bazooka
4. What do you associate with Berlin?
LYN: Dietrich Fischer-Diskau, Berlin Bear, and currywurst.
BERT: Diversity and unbridled expression.
5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
LYN: I love the beautiful Victoria Concert Hall in Singapore. My first music-making experience
(singing in a children’s choir) happened there.
BERT: The warm embrace of home
6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
LYN: Work in an art gallery. Do yoga, make colourful culottes with pockets.
BERT: Throw up
7. What was the last record/music you bought or listen?
BERT: Second-hand copies of Aki Takahashi’s original release of the Hyper Beatles project
8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
LYN: Along with my duo and collective in Singapore, it would be amazing to collaborate with other
contemporary music ensembles.
BERT: Too many to even attempt to name: there are so many young, fiercely creative and generous
artists out there.
9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
BOTH: Chornobyldorf, hcmf// 2022, as spectators: I don’t think we’ve ever experienced something
quite as riveting and till today we wish we could relive the madness of that experience.
10. How important is technology to your creative process?
LYN: While I’m very much a pianist, I enjoy exploring music for keyboard synthesizers and samplers
and relish the unique creative challenges that come with it.
BERT: It’s not a core part of my creative process, even as it is central to the actualisation of a lot of
my projects and music.
11. Do you have siblings and how do they feel about your music?
LYN: Yes. She is bewildered about what we do but comes for every show.
BERT: They are quietly supportive but probably don’t really get what we do.
