[UPDATE: The submission deadline has been extended to February 6th, 2011...so get cracking!]

To help aspiring local musicians be heard amidst the clutter of YouTube, Noise Singapore and Timbre are launching a platform to provide young, talented singer-songwriters in Singapore with the first step to becoming the next big thing.

The Noise-Timbre Singer-Songwriter Programme, which opens on 14 December 2011, aims to uncover unknown gems on YouTube and have them trained by top musicians in Singapore before giving them the chance to perform live at Timbre @ The Substation.

“The Noise-Timbre Singer-Songwriter programme provides young Singaporeans with the rare opportunity to perform at a popular music venue, and at the same time receive training by music professionals. That is essentially what Noise Singapore aims to do – provide youths with opportunities to learn and showcase their talent,” said Ms Chua Ai Liang, Director, Arts Engagement, National Arts Council.

How to Participate
From 14 December 2010 to 16 January 2011 6 February 2011 [Update: Deadline extended!], local youths aged 18-35 can take part as an individual or duo by recording videos of themselves performing one original song and one song of their choice, and uploading them onto YouTube. Participants then have to visit www.noisesingapore.com to become a member of Noise and submit their YouTube video links to take part in this competition.

The first winner will be picked by Noise Singapore and Timbre in February 2011, while 10 other finalists will be unveiled at the same time for public voting on www.noisesingapore.com and the Timbre Music Academy Facebook page (www.facebook.com/timbremusicacademy). Based on the number of “likes” for the videos and ratings by judges from Noise and Timbre, one winner will be chosen each month from March to July 2011.

The prize? Professional training and a gig at Timbre.

Winners will undergo a fully sponsored four-week workshop series helmed by Mang Irama Dusique from Goodfellas/Zero Sequence and music veteran Kevin Mathews to hone their songwriting skills, performance technique and musicianship before taking to the stage for a 20-minute set at Timbre @ The Substation.

“Timbre Music Academy is proud to partner the National Arts Council in such an initiative to suss out our hidden talents. We are very excited about what we will find and to be part of their development process. As a music school, the Timbre Music Academy has had the privilege of working with many brilliant Singapore musicians and singer-songwriters. There is a lot of raw Singapore talent out there that needs just a little polishing for them to shine and that’s what our team of experienced trainers will provide,” said Mr Danny Loong, Chief Creative Director of Timbre Group.

The Noise-Timbre Singer-songwriter Programme is open for submissions from 14 Dec 2010 to 16 January 2011 6 February 2011 [Update: Deadline extended!]

About Noise Singapore
An initiative of the National Arts Council, Noise Singapore is a youth arts festival dedicated to creating noise about the creative talents of youths aged 35 and below. Through numerous platforms designed to give youths opportunities to express, develop and showcase their creativity, Noise hopes to encourage young people in Singapore to actively participate and nurture their relationship with the arts, as well as get them spotted for their budding abilities. Since 2005, hundreds of youths have benefited from Noise Singapore’s apprenticeship programme, workshops and talks, as well as exhibitions and concerts that feature their creative works. For more information, please visit www.noisesingapore.com.

About Timbre Music Academy
Designed to complement the Timbre Music Eco-system, Timbre Music Academy caters to Singaporeans’ demand for music education with a twist, by offering more than just theoretical music lessons and to prepare students for live performance opportunities. All music instructors have hands-on professional gigging experience being performers at one or more Timbre venues.

Timbre Music Academy is located at 11A Mount Sophia #01-05A Singapore 228465 (Tel: 6884 5920) just beside Timbre @ Old School. For more information please visit www.tma.com.sg