If Singapore’s multiculturalism had a sound, the music made by Tze n Looking Glass might be it.

The world fusion band, formed five years ago, consists of four musicians from Indian, Western and Chinese musical backgrounds, each with its distinctive flavours, rhythms and sounds.

Band leader Tze says he wanted to create music that is inspired by the colourful sounds from different cultures he grew up with and to “find something that’s truly our own”.

He found it strange that Singapore is such a melting pot of cultures but so few “truly tries to connect with them”.

So the 33-year-old decided to form a cinematic-jazz Asian-fusion band with his motley crew of musician friends “to create something which is unique”: a contemporary Singaporean sound.

Getting in tune

There was, however, a hitch: half the band wasn’t Singaporean.

What’s more, the self-taught musician was concerned that his band mates wouldn’t gel because the instruments they used were “not meant to be played together”.

But the brotherhood of musicians, bound by their love of music, eventually got in tune with one another.

“It’s the people who made things work,” Tze explains, adding that “it’s crucial to let everybody be themselves in the group so that they can play with someone from another culture and musical tradition”.

The diverse band includes China-born Dai Da, who plays the er hu (a Chinese string instrument) and India-born Lazar T. Sebastine, who plays Indian folk music with the violin.

Though not Singaporean, the two have been living here for 11 years and are permanent residents.

Rounding off the quartet is saxophonist Teo Boon Chye, who like Tze, is Singaporean.

Tze n Looking Glass - Stories from wonderland 2011 highlights

Teo plays bebop jazz while Tze plays improvised music, jazz and composes the band’s music. Citing film score composers such as Ennio Morricone, Ryuichi Sakamoto and jazz pianist Keith Jarrett as his main influences, Tze wanted to combine the sounds from the Indian, Chinese music traditions with his first love – film music.

Coming up with the band’s signature sound was not just the result of combining elements of film score, jazz, Chinese and Indian music though; it was harnessed from Tze’s internalisation of Singapore’s multicultural society and also an exposure to European jazz and movies from around the world

To him, a band is like “a mini society”, and the music he wants is the kind that one can “feel a part of”.

Singapore song by Singaporeans

The band’s efforts led to An Indian Folk Song Meets Jazz – a song from their first album, Stories from wonderland - winning the best instrumental prize at the United Kingdom Songwriting Contest this year.

“I’m proud it’s something Singapore-made, by Singaporeans, that won,” Tze says, smiling as he recollects the winning moment.

“The Europeans must have felt so strange – an Indian folk song won and you see that a Chinese dude wrote it.”

The “Chinese dude who wrote it”, a computer science graduate from the National University of Singapore, has worked on a diverse array of productions and across multiple disciplines. He recently wrote the original score for Singaporean theatre practitioner Ramesh Meyyappan's theatre piece, Snails and Ketchup, which was showcased in London with the support of the SIF Singapore Internationale arts grant, as part of the 2012 London Cultural Olympiad.

Other than feeling proud to be part of a production which showcased Singapore talent at the Cultural Olympiad, Tze also hopes that it will help to “draw the world’s attention” to the fact that “Singaporeans can create original, deep and well-conceptualised works - when they pour their heart and soul into it”.

Dreaming big

Looking ahead, next year Tze will be working on more works inspired by Singapore's heritage, history, through collaborations with different disciplines, from contemporary dance, theatre involving visual art/video and also “live” music.

He also plans to start a semi-professional contemporary string ensemble alongside his  group, to create a platform for young musicians trained in western classical music to experience other musical traditions. This way, he hopes to inspire younger musicians “to think for themselves” and in doing so, rediscover “their culture and even personal identity” through their music.

On a personal note, he has drawn up an ambitious goal – to win an Oscar or a Grammy in 10 years' time.

“Nothing is impossible,” he says. “You just need to set goals for yourself; one step at a time – dreams often only seem impossible because you have no idea how to get there.”

The man who dares to dream big, is also unafraid of failure: “Even if you fall short, at least you gave your all, and  you are not short-changing yourself.”

As for Tze n Looking Glass, which has played in various festivals including Journey of the Youth Olympic Flame 2010, a Singapore Showcase in New Zealand and the 2010 Singapore Arts Festival and the MOSAIC Music Festival, Tze hopes the music from his fusion band can help bring people together as well as inspire people around the world to bring about positive change “one note a time”.

* Tze n Looking Glass just had their second concert at the Esplanade Recital Studio, featuring the six piece band and a 12-piece string ensemble. To find out more about Tze, click here or drop him a mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it