McNally Award for Excellence in the Arts winner Elliott Tan from the BA (Hons) Music programme, photographed by Christal Gallyot and Renny Nadira from BA (Hons) Film.
BA (Hons) Music’s Elliott Tan is the first electronic music specialist to receive the McNally Award for Excellence in the Arts, following in the footsteps of fellow School of Contemporary Music winners Nick Zavior and Ilina Hattangady, who themselves specialised in jazz and pop.
Just as electronic music is a many-faceted umbrella genre, Elliott is an artist of many faces. Uniquely positioned in the arts world as both a performer and a provider, she has released well-received original music, but is also deeply involved in the local music scene. Elliott has rubbed shoulders with homegrown pop darlings like Shazza and Marian Carmel as their session bassist, designed soundscapes for film and theatre, and supported her fellow artists in diverse disciplines by applying her music sense to multimedia means.
Elliot talks to us about her journey towards winning the prestigious award, why she ditched psychology for electronic music, and the importance of rugged determination in the face of adversity.
Congratulations on your win! How are you feeling?
I’m proud of my peers for successfully seeing their two- or three-year commitments through. Completing a diploma, bachelor’s, or master’s programme is not easy, especially if you have obligations or are coping with neurodivergence.
I know I couldn’t have done it without the support of my teachers, friends, and family. My dissertation supervisor Dr Timothy O’Dwyer, Head, School of Contemporary Music and senior lecturer Brian O’Reilly believed in me, pushed me to be better, and advocated for me, even writing reference letters as I applied for further studies and scholarships.
It’s truly a team effort.
Absolutely. I was recently asked about my favourite LASALLE memory and I’ve come to realise that it’s an amalgamation of all the times I’ve experienced my fellow students’ work.
I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with and support incredibly special peers from various disciplines in LASALLE – Lemuel Lee and Chelsea Aw from BA (Hons) Music, Marwyn Ho from BA (Hons) Acting, Justin Ng from BA (Hons) Animation Art, as well as alumni Annie Hung, Mina Choo, Corliss Tay, Marian Carmel and Phoo Myet Che.
What differences have you felt going from being a teen interested in music to studying it at a bachelor’s degree level? Do you think you’ll only write electronic music from now on?
I studied Music & Audio Technology at Singapore Polytechnic, then wanted to grow more in an undergraduate course with a structured academic environment like LASALLE’s. It was here, specialising in electronic music, where I transformed my approach to music.
I used to centre my compositional and improvisational practices around melody, harmony, and rhythm, but now I see them as optional components. I am more focused on the gradual evolution of elements like timbre and density across the duration of a piece. I think this development of my musical sensibility has expanded my range in all my sonic projects.
On that note, I don’t have a favourite genre of music! It’s important to not limit oneself, to move beyond disciplines and stay adaptive. When I think of versatility, I think of Evan Low. He’s a music director and producer for many big artists, which proves that he’s competent in every area necessitating those roles, from playing instruments to arranging to mixing and mastering.
You’re sometimes unabashedly romantic about art-making, and other times quite stoic. You mentioned before that getting to this point was not all smooth-sailing.
I know what it’s like to feel financially insecure and operate from a place of perceived lack of monetary resources. The fear that I did not “have enough” stood in the way of me pursuing my creative goals for a long time. I worked as a financial consultant for a bit, and it took that for me to realise that it was more important to live in the moment.
I pivoted to music after a year majoring in psychology. I’m grateful to my mom and dad for not putting up too much resistance when I told them I was dropping out of psychology.
It was also smaller moments of joy and creation that kept me going, like playing music with my classmates in the rehearsal room and then going to Fortune Centre or Al Jilani for a meal. I know this sounds cheesy, but engaging with art is what makes me feel grateful to be alive, and the only thing more magical than that is making art.
Where are you headed next?
I have secured a scholarship from the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to fund my tuition and living expenses as I take on the MMus Sonic Arts programme at Goldsmiths, University of London. I hope to hone my craft there and return to Singapore to work in the field of sound design.
What’s your wish going forward for your cohort?
I actually have an anecdote about this. My parents went to the temple to draw my fortune on my behalf. It said that as long as I kept going, I would eventually strike gold. In the same way, I hope that the people who wish to stay in the arts will remain undeterred by the challenges that arise, because I think we have the capacity for so much.
If you’re anything like me – if you love being completely immersed in the creative process, the feeling of bringing something uniquely yours into existence; if you feel seen by the books you read, songs you’ve heard, the films you’ve watched and you want to have the same effect on others; if you love working hard and playing even harder – why not give yourself the freedom to have that lifestyle?
If we keep going, we’ll eventually strike gold.
